MS Masters Real Estate Development Personal Statement

MS Masters Real Estate Development Statement of Purpose Samples

After graduating, my goal is to continue on a similar but improved path that I started over a decade ago when I first set out to own and manage my independent real estate development company. Every developer aspires to excel in their field, but I've come to realize that more is needed, as the market clearly shows through ideals like sustainability, green materials, energy efficiency, quality construction, affordability, and ethics. Interestingly, it was outside the classroom, not from a textbook, where I grasped most of these ideals. I learned them by engaging with various stakeholders through active volunteer work with organizations like Habitat for Humanity, to which I've dedicated hundreds of hours and effort. Through my own achievements, I am determined to maintain my level of volunteerism, but in larger and more impactful ways than before.

Specifically, I aim to construct affordable and sustainable housing for working-class and middle-class Americans. I don't just want to advance my position in the residential real estate development sector, but also to improve it in terms of sustainability, social, and environmental responsibility. For my work to truly have significance, it must be the best example I can set. This is not solely for my benefit or even the broader community, but for my legacy, my pride, and my adopted son. I want to be a father he can be proud of and a businessperson who made positive contributions to his part of the US economy, leading by example and helping to pave a better path for America's citizens who long for a brighter future, especially after a prolonged recession.

To enhance the residential real estate industry in my area, aspects like land use analysis, due diligence/feasibility, concept land planning, entitlements and acquisition, developer, tenant/purchaser, and subcontractor negotiations must be optimized and completely rethought. If these changes aren't feasible industry-wide, they will start with my company, my strategy, and serve as a proactive example to others. Thus, I will be carving out a niche and optimal market position.

Developer John Knott put it well when he said, “[green development is] a return to a climactically, geographically, and culturally appropriate way of architecture and building, combined with new technologies.” The days of only considering local or regional market forces are gone. Now, we consider global environmental and market indicators. The shift in basic assumptions has already happened, and tenants are now seeking developers who can meet their needs, which are being defined by the US Department of Energy and legislation that will determine who can compete and who will become obsolete. My goals will clearly include increased energy and resource-saving technologies—hence, efficiency—in all my projects, and environmentally conscious development strategies with a constant focus on cost-effectiveness, such as using the highest-efficiency heating/cooling systems and emission-free paints. Better housing design once meant ergonomics. Today, it means ergonomics as well as being green and aligning with social ideals. I believe we can do better while keeping it affordable on any scale and with any type of development.

So far, I have always strived to consult with the community I aim to serve or that will be affected by my work. In my future projects, I intend to continue fostering community and cultural cohesion—and therefore respect—not just considering ecosystems, but also their restoration or enhancement, identifying solution multipliers, and implementing them. These ideals benefit the developer, tenant, and society. The developer can make this happen by embracing the transsystemic aspects and reaping the benefits that translate into reduced operating costs of development, reduced liabilities, fewer regulatory delays, and decreased capital costs through, for example, the use of local materials. By examining what is already present and what should be, my business will meet and ideally exceed environmental and social needs.

In the past, real estate development has always undergone cyclical changes, and now, just like in each preceding decade, we are witnessing fundamental, structural changes. As more traditional developers—competitors—fail to adapt, the opportunity for average profitability will only grow. Change is here once again, and it is no longer a question of if but how the real estate developer will meet the challenge.

MS Masters Real Estate Development Personal Statement