Letter from Center Leadership
To Columbia Business School’s Real Estate community of alumni, advisors, friends, and valued supporters:
We are pleased to share with you the 2023-2024 Annual Report from the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate, as this past academic year has been one of significant milestones. This report encapsulates key curricular and academic achievements, experiential learning opportunities for our real estate MBA students, as well as new and enhanced initiatives. It also showcases alumni and industry engagement, while emphasizing the faculty's thought leadership and the cutting-edge research conducted under the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate.
While this report is comprehensive, it only scratches the surface of the incredible impact your support has had on the Center’s programs and our strategic goals. We hope it conveys just how crucial our real estate community is, not just in the classroom but in shaping the exchanges that take place between our students and the industry at large.
The success of the Center is a direct reflection of the many ways each of you choose to engage with and support our mission. Over the past year, our MBA Real Estate program welcomed nearly 100 guest lecturers into the classroom to enrich our students’ learning with real-world insights. We are truly fortunate to be educating the next generation of business leaders right here in the “backyard” of one of the most dynamic real estate markets in the world.
Many of you have hired our students as interns or as full-time employees, others have served as sponsors for the business plan competition, or industry judges for academic exercises. We are grateful for the contributions you, your families, and your organizations have made in support of real estate at Columbia Business School.
Impact Highlights:
Steady Enrollment: Enrollment across the RE curriculum was consistent to FY23, nearing 900 seats in courses.
Innovative & Evolving Curriculum: Business & Climate Change was introduced as a new course by Assistant Professor Pari Sastry, and the Real Estate Development course was redesigned by Adjunct Professor Benjamin Atkins. Both courses debuted in Spring 2024.
Experiential Learning: With the newly established Ronald Dickerman Fund, support for student international travel and global learning and networking has expanded with greater access for more students. Additionally, with support from the Milstein Center, the Case team for the Real Estate Association of Columbia Business School, placed 1st among many other peer schools at the 2024 UNC Real Estate Development Challenge
Cutting-Edge Research: The Milstein Center underwrites tools, data sets, technology, and research staff to support thought leadership through a wide range of research pursuits. Faculty thought leaders conducting research under the auspices of the Milstein Center have been cited in many major academic journals and national news sources such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Yahoo Finance, The Economist, The Washington Post, and 60 Minutes, to name a few.
Industry Leadership: The Milstein Center partnered with The Hub @Columbia, the School’s own “think tank” initiative, to host a small, invitation-only summit, to discuss a multidisciplinary path forward for NYC. The discussion group included faculty, public officials and private business leaders, and resulted in a White Paper: The Future of NYC Real Estate.
Alumni Engagement: The Real Estate Circle, now with 131 members and growing, hosted 24 events for its members and engaged 250+ of additional alumni through its activities. Events took place in NYC, virtually, and socially in other major cities such as Miami, Florida and Seattle, Washington. This is an exciting area of growth and opportunity for further expansion in the year ahead.
Gratitude and a New Chapter
We shared this spring that Christopher Mayer would be retiring from fulltime teaching, and as Co-Director from the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate at the end of the academic year in June.
Chris’s career-long commitment to Columbia Business School and the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate includes cutting-edge research with practice applications, exemplary service, and extensive teaching. His contributions over the past 25+ years have had a profound impact on the School, the Milstein Center, and countless students and faculty members. We extend our deepest thanks to Chris for his dedication and expertise.
With great pleasure, we welcomed Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh, Earle W. Kazis and Benjamin Schore Professor of Real Estate and Professor of Finance, as the new Faculty Co-Director of the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate, effective July 1, 2024. Stijn will lead the MBA real estate curriculum and in partnership with David Sherman, and direct the strategic vision for the Real Estate Center and its platform.
Stijn joined the faculty at Columbia Business School in 2018. He holds a PhD in Economics from Stanford and has been teaching and conducting cutting-edge research for more than 20 years, most recently at NYU Stern, where he founded and led the Center for Real Estate Finance Research from 2012 until 2018. He was the President of the American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association in 2022. Stijn’s research, including his groundbreaking insights into the impact of remote work on the commercial office sector and “the urban doom loop,” has been widely publicized. This spring, he was awarded the inaugural Columbia Business School Practice Prize.
In closing, we’d like to reiterate our gratitude and appreciation for your ongoing commitment to The Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate. Whether you participate in one event per year or many, lead a committee, sit on the Real Estate Forum or the Circle Board, speak to students, share our research, hire our students, or host alumni for a property tour, your time, expertise and generosity continues to inspire us and strengthens the pride we have in our platform.
We invite you to review the detailed contents of the 2023-2024 Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate Annual Report in the pages ahead. We hope it provides you with a closer lens into a wide range of activities, and inspires you to stay connected, involved, and in support of real estate at Columbia Business School.
Be well and stay in touch!
David Sherman '82
Co-Director
Professor Stijn Van Nieuwerburg
Co-Director
Kristin Svenningsen
Managing Director
Christopher Mayer
Professor Emertius, Former Co-Director
Executive Summary
MBA Real Estate Curriculum
16 Real Estate Courses
- 9 full-term, 7 half-term electives
- 2 sections of RE Finance each semester and EMBA-specific section in the summer
- Redesigned & reintroduced Real Estate Development back into curriculum
- 2 new courses on Climate Finance and Business & Climate Change
- Continue to offer Hyflex EMBA seats in real estate curriculum
Executive Education
- Real Estate Investing (2 sessions/year, in-person on campus)
- Real Estate Investing Strategies (Online, 6-week sessions, ongoing)
- Custom Real Estate Executive Education programs
Center Supported Resources
- Dedicated staff member supporting real estate faculty and adjuncts in the classroom, and onboarding new faculty members
- 3 Staff Officers of Research for real estate and a dedicated computing environment
- Data, tools, and memberships (for research, teaching, and student recruiting/research)
- Real Capital Analytics, CoreLogic, Trepp, Green Street, CompStak, NAREIT, ARGUS, PREA, RS Means, NCREIF, A.CRE Accelerator
Teaching and Advising
- 6 Full-time Faculty Members
- Parintha Sastry, new in Fall 2023
- Chris Mayer, Emeritus as of June 2024
-
11 Adjunct Professors
- Benjamin Atkins, new in Spring 2024
- Andrew Jacobs ’96 retires from teaching in Spring 2024
- Scott Shapiro ’99 joined Leanne Lachman as dedicated Real Estate Executives-in-Residence
Signature Events and Programs for Students and Alumni
- 16th Annual Real Estate Symposium
- MBA RE Program Open House
- Real Estate Capital Markets Conference
- Real Estate Circle Member Market Observations + Member Assembly (monthly)
- International Alumni Market Observation Meetings (bi-monthly)
- The Psychology of Persuasion: Faculty led alumni executive leadership workshop
- Goldie Initiative Scholarship for Women in Real Estate Panel
- WX – Women in Real Estate NY Mentorship Panel
- “Building Tastes” Food, Business & Real Estate Panel co-hosted with Hospitality Club and Real Estate Association Annual Real Estate Forum Meeting and member dinner
- Distinguished Real Estate Speaker Series
- Real Estate Association Career Forum
- Real Estate Association Mentorship Kick-of Reception
- The Alexander Bodini Foundation Business Plan Competition
- Discussion Across Disciplines, Faculty Book Roundtable
- Coming to Terms: Negotiating Joint Ventures (with MIT, Harvard, GSAPP, NYU)
- Columbia’s Women in Real Estate Summit (with GSAPP WiRED)
- Diversity in Commercial Real Estate Conference (sponsor)
- National Bureau of Economic Research Summer Institute (sponsor)
- The Hub @ Columbia: Public + Private roundtable discussion on Future of NYC Real Estate
- Circle Member + Real Estate Association site tour: UBS Arena/BelmontPark Village
- Careers in Real Estate Series
- Affordable Housing Conference
- Guided alumni speed networking
- Alumni Networking Social events in Austin, Miami, Seattle, Mumbai•Real Estate Alumni NYC Summer Social
By the Numbers
- 225
- Real Estate Association Members
- 55
- Center-sourced career opportunities for MBA students
- 131
- Real Estate Circle Members
By the Numbers
- 31
- Real Estate Circle Members
- 54
- Center-led events
- 94
- Guest speakers in classroom throughout curriculum
Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh Awarded Inaugural CBS Practice Prize
“The professor, known for his ‘urban doom loop’ research, has deftly bridged the gap between policy and practice.”
By Jonathan Sperling
At Columbia Business School, Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh is the Earle W. Kazis and Benjamin Schore Professor of Real Estate as well as an accomplished professor of finance. Outside the walls of CBS, however, Van Nieuwerburgh is known for dedicating the past four years of his career to documenting the potentially catastrophic trend of declining commercial real estate values in New York City.
MBA Real Estate Program Enrollments
Based on a Fall, Spring, and Summer semester sequence
Real Estate Course | 2022-2023 | 2023-2024 |
(E)MBA Real Estate Finance (Fall, Spring, Summer) | 387 | 367 |
Real Estate Transactions (Fall) | 50 | 42 |
Real Estate Equity Securities Analysis (Fall) | 43 | 42 |
Real Estate Debt Markets (Fall) | 56 | 39 |
Advanced Seminar in Real Estate (Spring) | 26 | 30 |
Real Estate Project Class/Private Equity (Fall/moved to Spring 2019) | 32 | 26 |
Real Estate Development (Spring) | Not offered | 34 |
Real Estate M&A Workshop (Spring) | 30 | 11 |
Social Impact Real Estate Investing and Development (Spring) | 33 | Not offered |
Real Estate Portfolio Management (Fall/Spring) | 29 | Not offered |
PropTech and Real Estate Disruption (new course as of 2019) | 51 | 47 |
Residential Real Estate: Dirt, Debt, and Derivatives (new course as of Fall 2019) | 79 | 71 |
Distressed Real Estate Investing (new course as of Spring 2021) | 66 | 36 |
Real Estate Analytics (new course as of 2022) | 11 | 30 |
EMBA Real Estate Block Week (Spring) | 31 | 72 |
EMBA Real Estate Block Week: Real Estate as an Asset & Business (Spring) | 42 | 31 |
Real Estate Analytics (new course as of Spring 2022) | 14 | 11 |
EMBA Real Estate Block Week (Spring) | 31 | 72 |
Total | 924 | 847 |
2023-2024 Center Developed and Sponsored Columbia CaseWorks Cases
Columbia CaseWorks
Columbia CaseWorks develops and regularly updates teaching cases and materials for use in Columbia Business School classrooms. All material is closely tied to and based on the research and expertise of Columbia’s world-class faculty.
The program leverages the energy, creativity, and intellectual capital of the school and provides a bridge between theoretical and practical business knowledge. Real Estate Cases are developed and produced in partnership with Columbia CaseWorks and are supported by the Michael Lehrman ’90 Case Study Fund.
Updated: Office 2.0: Considerations of the Post-Pandemic Office Landscape
By Michelle K. Felman, Russell C. Platt (Course use: Advanced Real Estate Seminar)
In 2022, the US commercial real estate market is at a critical, unprecedented point. After almost 2 years of COVID-19 related mandatory lockdowns and remote-work for a large part of the nation's office-based employees, companies in real estate development as well as the tenants of those real estate complexes are grappling with strategic next steps. For consideration are the issues of location, building amenities, and continued labor market shifts with the new post-pandemic normal. In this case, students will learn about the commercial real estate market, with a special focus on major metropolitan areas as well as up-and-coming suburban development. Students will be asked to assess the business situation from the perspective of a real estate development manager as well as from that of a major financial services employer who is considering new office locations for its returning post-pandemic workforce.
Updated: C-PACE: Alternate Financing that’s Good for the Customer and Good for the Environment
By Michelle K. Felman, Russell C. Platt (Course use: Advanced Real Estate Seminar)
Is C-PACE an ideal option to address financing challenges in the real estate market? L.A. Hospitality (LAH), a commercial real estate developer, is considering financing options for a new hotel project, and Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) is an option that has become newly available to LAH and its peers. In this case, students will learn about how C-PACE financing works, as well as how a specialty financier like North Bridge ESG assesses and invests in projects through these loans. Students will be asked to analyze metropolitan markets and commercial real estate projects from a financing lens and will learn how to apply this form of financing to ESG real estate developments.
Participation in the Classroom
Real Estate Transactions
Instructors: Karen Holdridge, Dave Powell
- Aaron Abraham, Troutman Pepper
- Chris Balestra, Taconic Investment Partners
- Zach Bernstein, Fried Frank
- Charles Fyfe, Cerberus
- Chris Herron, Ironhound
- Andrea Karp, Ares
- Matthew Lustig, Lazard
- Cia Buckley Marakovits ’93, Dune Real Estate
- Sean McSweeney, Mitsui Fudosan America
- Rich Monopoli, BXP
- Jennifer Morgan, King & Spalding
- Doug Rosner, Goulston & Storrs
- Rob Sorin, Fried Frank
- Glen Weiss, Vornado
- Rick Wolfe, Fried Frank
Real Estate Debt Markets
Instructor: Brian Lancaster
- Stephen Buschbom, Trepp
- Catherine Chen ’10, Apollo
- Ron Kravit, Cerberus
- Steven Marks, Fitch Ratings
- Michael Nagelberg, Real Estate Debt Strategies Group
Real Estate Equity Security Analysis
Instructor: Ross Smotrich ’83
- Angela Aman, Kilroy Realty Trust
- Ric Campo, Camden Properties Trust
- Jay Leupp, Terra Firma Capital Management
- Hamid Moghadam, Prologis
- Mary Hogan Preusse, Sturgis
- Larry Raiman ’89, LDR Capital Management
- Matt Rand, Link Logistics Real Estate
- Owen Thomas, BXP
Residential Real Estate
Instructor: Brian Lancaster
- David Benson, Fannie Mae
- Hope Burgess, Banana Kelly
- Harry DeRienzo, Banana Kelly
- Jef Hingst, Bloomberg
- Meredith Marshall ’92, BRP Properties
- Caaminee Pandit ’22, Lendlease
- Chris Prokop, DDG
- Adam Rapport, Cross Lake Partners
PropTech and Real Estate Disruption
Instructor: Tomasz Piskorski
- Lisa Cations ’17, IWG
- Ivan Chomer, Dividenz
- Jim Costello, MSCI
- Atlaf Ganihar, Snaptrude
- Sophia Ghadamian ’19, Nine Four Ventures
- Brad Hargreaves, Common
- Felix Lipov, Enertiv
- Gijo Mathew, VTS
- Matthew Micksin ’12, Common
- Dan Miller, Fundrise
- Kevin Rippon, VTS
- Brett Robbins, Orchard
- David Rose ’83, USREM
- Zak Schwarzman ’13, MetaProp
- Greg Thompson ’14, K Hovnanian Homes
- Zach Wade, LightBox
- Jonathan Wasserstrum ’12, SquareFoot
Real Estate Finance
Instructors: Boaz Abramson, Chris Mayer, Tomasz Piskorski, Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh
- Bakari Adams ’07, Starwood Capital Group
- Nicholas Bienstock ’96, Savanna
- Mary Lang, CBRE
- Diane Yentel, NLIHC
Real Estate Private Equity
Instructor: Andrew Jacobs ’96
- David Rose ’83, USREM
- Marvin Shapiro, Avanti Properties
- Roberta Waxman-Lenz, Townsend Group
Real Estate Development
Instructor: Ben Atkins
- Miriam Harris, MGH Advisory
- Ayush Kapahi, HKS Capital Partners
- Sam Kim, Edge Principal
- Alex Oshansky, Zenith IOS
- Philippe Visser ’04, Related
- Jef Walker, Edge Principal
Real Estate M&A
Instructor: John Haggerty
- Nancy Davey, UBS
- Sherheryar Hafeez ’11, JLL Capital Markets of America
- Hicham Hamdouch, Bank of America Merrill Lynch
- J.T. Jung, Citi Jonathan Litt, Land & Buildings Investment Management
- Neil Rudisill, Goldman Sachs
Real Estate Advanced Seminar
Instructors: Michelle Felman, Russell Platt
- Dean Adler, Lubert-Adler
- Jay Cross, The Howard Hughes Corporation
- Olivia John, Osso Capital
- Mike LaBelle, Boston Properties
- Laura Rapaport, North Bridge
Distressed Real Estate Investing
Instructors: Ron Kravit, David Sherman ’82
- Ed Adler ’88, Lubert-Adler
- Matt Borstein, Oak Hill Advisors
- Saul Goldstein, Activum SG Capital
- Maximo Lima, Hemisferio Sul Investimentos
- Erika Jobson ’22, Lazard
- Joe Smith ’99, 1754 Properties
- Phillip Summers, Lazard
- Gil Tenzer, Contrarian Capital
Real Estate Analytics
Instructor: Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh
- Swaget Banerjee, Welltower
- Stephen Buschbom, Trepp
- Kevin Stoll, Welltower
- Salam Turki, Welltower
EMBA Block Week: Real Estate as an Asset & Business
Instructors: Chris Mayer, Ivo de Wit ’17
- Fernando Carrasco, Locatium
- Kate Davis, Harrison Street
- Peter Hobbs, BFinance
- Mary Lang, CBRE Investors
- Michael O’Connor ’01, Clarion Partners
- Brian Steinwurtzel ’04, GFP Real Estate
The Alexander Bodini Foundation Competition
Second-year MBA students enrolled in the Real Estate Private Equity course
compete annually in the Alexander Bodini Foundation Competition as their
"capstone" project. This highly anticipated event challenges students to apply
their classroom knowledge to real-world scenarios with guidance from some
of the industry's top firms.
With generous support from Daniele Bodini ’72,
and the Foundation, this year's competition marked the twenty-fifth edition,
a signature offering of the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate and the MBA
Real Estate Program.
Professor Andrew Jacobs ’96 divided students into eight teams, each working with one of four distinct, real-world investment projects. Throughout the semester, the students worked directly with their sponsors to complete quantitative and qualitative analyses and ultimately develop a comprehensive business plan and investment committee memo. The top four teams, each representing a unique project, were selected to compete in the final round of the competition, presenting their work before a panel of distinguished alumni, and their classmates.
The 2024 panel of judges included:
- Roger Fortune ’01, Vice President, The Stahl Organization
- Erik Horvat ’04, Global Co-Head of Real Estate, The Olayan Group
- Rob Stern ’88, Founder and Managing Partner, Castle Hill Investors
The team of MBA students who won 1st place this spring included Ali Mac Jinks ’24, Landon Lichtenstein ’24, Brendan Keen ’24, Colin Ahrens ’24. They delivered a winning acquisition strategy for their client, focusing on a portfolio of 14 hotels. Their analysis demonstrated market savvy and a keen eye for value-add opportunities.
Special mention must also be made for Professor Andrew Jacobs who has poured much time, energy, and expertise into his courses at Columbia Business School, and this corresponding competition. He retired from teaching in April 2024, after 16 consecutive years as an adjunct professor, teaching hundreds of real estate students in his advanced level course, and we thank him for his dedication and deep contributions.
Center Programming Overview
Beyond the classroom, curating more than 50 annual programs and activities and interweaving a powerful real estate community throughout, the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate provides a coveted platform for sharing expertise and strengthening networks among its various constituents, presenting specific opportunities for stimulating exchange among students, alumni, faculty members, and the real estate industry at large.
On average, there are 1-2 opportunities per week for MBA students to engage in real estate initiatives and activities outside of the classroom, which often are designed to complement curricular goals, and to help expand industry knowledge and professional networks.
Faculty Applied Research and Media Highlights
Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh’s working paper on “Converting Brown Offices to Green Apartments” was referenced in the 2024 Economic Report of the President
Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh is interviewed and research on empty office buildings, valuations and a potential “doom loop” is featured on 60 Minutes
Members of the faculty conducting research under the Milstein Center were cited for their perspective and expertise more than 60 times in the press this year
Real Estate Faculty In the Media
Select Books and Publications
Times Square Remade: The Dynamics of Urban Change, The MIT Press, book
Author: Lynne Sagalyn
Beyond the Balance Sheet Model of Banking: Implications for Bank Regulation and Monetary Policy, Journal of Financial Economics
Authors: Greg Buchak, Gregnor Matvos, Tomasz Piskorski and Amit Seru
Mortgage refinancing, Consumer spending, and Competition: Evidence from the Home Affordable Refinance Program, Review of Economic Studies
Authors: Sumit Agarwal, Gene Amromin, Souphala Chomsisengphet, Tim Landvoigt, Tomasz Piskorski, Amit Seru and Vincent Yao
Who Bears Flood Risk? Evidence from Mortgage Markets in Florida, Review of Financial Studies
Author: Parinitha Sastry
The Moral Preferences of Investors: Experimental Evidence, Journal of Financial Economics
Authors: Jean-François Bonnefon, Augustin Landier, Parinitha Sastry and David Thesmar
The Remote Work Revolution: Implications for Real Estate and Urban Economics, Real Estate Economics
Author: Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh
Affordable Housing and City Welfare, Review of Economic Studies
Authors: Jack Favilukis, Pierre Mabille and Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh
Measuring U.S. Fiscal Capacity using Discounted Cash Flow Analysis, Brookings Papers on Economic Activity
Authors: Zhengyang Jiang, Hanno Lustig, Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh and Mindy Xiaolan-Zhang
Machine-Learning the Skill of Mutual Fund Managers, Journal of Financial Economics
Authors: Ron Kaniel, Zihan Lin, Markus Pelger and Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh
Fiscal Capacity: An Asset Pricing Perspective, Annual Review of Financial Economics
Authors: Zhengyang Jiang, Hanno Lustig, Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh and Mindy Xiaolan-Zhang
Converting Brown Office to Green Apartments, Brookings Hamilton Project paper
Authors: Arpit Gupta, Candy Martinez and Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh
Identifying the Benefits from Home Ownership: A Swedish Experiment, American Economic Review
Authors: Paolo Sodini, Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh, Roine Vestman, and Ulf von Lilienfeld-Toal
Aggregate Lapsation Risk, Journal of Financial Economics
Authors: Ralph Koijen, Hae Kang Lee and Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh
What Drives Variation in the Debt/Output Ratio? The Dogs that Did Not Bark, Journal of Finance
Authors: Zhengyang Jiang, Hanno Lustig, Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh and Mindy Xiaolan-Zhang
The Government Bond Valuation Puzzle, Econometrica
Authors: Zhengyang Jiang, Hanno Lustig, Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh and Mindy Xiaolan-Zhang
Meet the 2024-2025 MBA Real Estate Fellows!
Real Estate Circle 2nd Year Fellowship
- Chris Byrns ’25
- Hayley Holzinger ’25
- Lauryn Williams ’25
John J. and Theresa M. Azrack Scholarship
- Lauryn Williams ’25
Jefrey A. Barclay ’83 Memorial Scholarship
- Hardik Aggarwal ’26
Bernhaut Family Scholarship
- Leah Toler ’25
Caswell J. and Mark M. Caplan Fellowship
- Dilan Bahshah ’26
Benjamin H. Schore ’59 Real Estate Scholarship
- Jordan Camp ’25
- Ogechukwu Anoliefo ’25
- Leah Toler ’25
The Charles Grossman/ PREA Real Estate Scholarship
- John Guzman ’25
Benjamin ‘05 and Beth Hesse Endowed Scholarship Fund in Real Estate
- John Guzman ’25
WX New York Women Executives in Real Estate (Postgraduate)
- Ali Mac Jinks ’24
- Farheen Jooma ’24
- Halle Wilf ’24
Alexander Bodini Memorial Real Estate Fellowship
- Yang Yang Guo ’26
- Teresa Gomez Segura ’26
- Fenglei Zhou ’26