Earning a degree in real estate can prepare you to do much more than build a strong investment portfolio. Learning to implement innovative property development strategies can help you make a meaningful impact by breathing new life into formerly vacant buildings and revitalizing entire communities.
The expertise you’ll gain in Georgetown University’s Master of Professional Studies in Real Estate can place a more successful and rewarding future within your grasp. Below, read more about modern real estate innovations and learn how Georgetown alumni use their hands-on capstone projects to deliver real results for their communities.
Modern Real Estate and Property Management Innovations
Community-centered development is a fast-growing movement in real estate innovation that involves identifying existing needs within a community and developing real estate to respond directly to those needs. This tends to result in more sustainable and thriving community revitalization endeavors that incorporate greener areas, gathering spaces, and affordable housing.
Further, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors have generated increased interest in greener building practices designed to limit carbon emissions, lower water usage, and improve a development’s overall energy efficiency. Rising interest in ESG among real estate investors has also led to more efforts to engage community members to ensure healthier, more sustainable developments.
Georgetown’s Master’s in Real Estate program trains students in the latest innovations the field offers, producing graduates capable of helping transform their communities through real estate development. When asked which aspect of the program is most instrumental in preparing students to enact innovation, Faculty Director Glenn R. Williamson pointed to students’ exposure to and participation in a wide range of industry-related projects. With 175 graduates in 2024, the Master’s in Real Estate program offers tremendous opportunities for young professionals to learn from one another as well as their faculty.
“Innovation often comes from cross-pollination in real estate – taking an idea from one context and applying it in another. Our students are exposed to a wide range of projects in varied locations through case studies, site visits, presentations by guest speakers and just talking to one another. These interactions provide them with concepts and examples that can be reformulated and adapted in innovative ways."
- Glenn Williamson, Master’s in Real Estate Faculty Director
Courses such as MPRE 714: Multi-Family & Affordable Housing and MPRE 752: Sustainable Development and Construction prepare Georgetown students to ethically manage multiple facets of the real estate industry. Students also build practical skills in a culminating capstone project guided by distinguished faculty members. Several students have used this project as a launching pad to implement innovative development projects in their communities.
How Does Real Estate Impact Community Revitalization?
Below, learn about two online Master’s in Real Estate alumni who used their capstone projects to innovate real estate development in ways that helped revitalize their communities.
Creating Community
After earning his degree in 2022, Georgetown alum Harrison Isaacs brought his capstone project to life. Guided by a desire to revitalize his hometown of Moultrie, Georgia, Harrison worked with Brewmaster Bill Kimmerly to turn a formerly vacant building into Bandwagon Brewing Company. Harrison is also the president of Intrie Capital, Bandwagon’s parent company.
Speaking with Georgia’s WALB News before the brewery’s grand opening, Harrison shared that he viewed Bandwagon as “a milestone project for not only Intrie Capital but for the local community.” The brewery that began as a capstone project has become a gathering place for the community of Moultrie, and it has also made a major impression on Georgia’s craft beer industry.
In June 2024, the Moultrie Observer reported that Bandwagon Brewing had received Cask Marque accreditation, a prestigious recognition awarded to exceptional cask ales that meet rigorous standards.1 Bandwagon is one of only three breweries in Georgia to have received this accreditation.
“[Bandwagon Brewing Company] has already garnered attention and won several awards, a testament to the solid foundation laid during the Capstone. These accomplishments are a direct result of the comprehensive and rigorous guidance provided by the faculty at Georgetown.”
- Harrison Issacs, Class of 2022
Building Affordable Housing
Another Georgetown alum, Gina Pons Sanmateu Schultz (Class of 2021), recently expanded the results of her capstone project, which she used to increase access to affordable housing in Lansing, Michigan.
During her capstone project, Gina performed research and carried out market studies for a project that would turn a vacant hotel into a 72-unit apartment building. The work Gina completed served as the basis for the project, which received financing via the largest grant for affordable housing awarded in Michigan. The space was opened in Fall 2023 and was fully leased as of 2024.
Soon, though, Gina and her team identified a further need for affordable housing in their community. As a result, Gina applied for and successfully received funding to grow the project with the addition of another 24-unit building, which was completed in Fall 2024, according to Michigan’s Fox 47 News.2
“I was successful because I used the tools and knowledge from my degree to provide detailed project plans along with the research and data to effectively make the arguments for the project.”
- Gina Pons Sanmateu Schultz, Class of 2021
Gina shared further successes, including grants for a pocket neighborhood and the redevelopment of a strip mall. She explained, “I wanted to share these milestones in my career as I feel they were only obtainable through the knowledge and experience I gained at Georgetown.”
How to Get a Master’s Degree in Real Estate
If you’re interested in pursuing innovative community revitalization projects like Harrison and Gina, learn more about Georgetown University’s Master of Professional Studies in Real Estate. This program offers an interactive learning experience that emphasizes practical skills to help you develop a dynamic combination of industry knowledge, leadership skills, and a commitment to real estate ethics. In courses taught by industry experts, you’ll explore a curriculum that utilizes case studies to help you build real-world, career-centered expertise.
Complete this flexible, customizable program in as little as two years and graduate prepared to make an impact in your community and beyond. Learn more about Georgetown’s online master’s in real estate program today.
Sources
- The Moultrie Observer, Ga. “Local brewery earns prestigious accreditation.” June 5, 2024. Yahoo. Retrieved on October 31, 2024, from https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/local-brewery-earns-prestigious-accreditation-035900951.html.
- FOX 47 News Lansing - Jackson (WSYM). “More affordable housing planned for REO Town neighborhood.” April 9, 2024. FOX 47 News Lansing - Jackson (WSYM). Retrieved on October 31, 2024, from https://www.fox47news.com/neighborhoods/downtown-old-town-reo-town/more-affordable-housing-planned-for-reo-town-neighborhood.
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