November Happenings in the Real Estate Program at Wisconsin

The month of November has been fast paced like the rest, but with a pervasive Magnum PI vibe. After our amazing Real Estate Club trip to San Francisco, we were met with both a week of mid-terms and the ramping up of our Integrated Company Analysis (ICA) team projects. We also welcomed a diverse group of real estate professionals to campus to speak with students about past and present experiences. Here are several highlights of those visits:

Thomas McCahill of Pearlmark Real Estate Partners discussed Subordinated Debt

A proud Badger, Graaskamp Center Board member, and father of first year Real Estate MBA Conor, Tom spoke with MBAs and undergraduate real estate students regarding the historical trajectory of subordinated debt, or the past, current and future uses of these modified debt instruments. Tom is currently Managing Director for Debt Investments at Pearlmark Real Estate Partners.

Jay Lehman of Toll Brothers delved into Career Hunting and Networking Advice

A honorary Badger, Jay spoke with students via video conference about the career recruiting process and networking. Current Director of National Recruiting with Toll Brothers, Jay offered us real time and invaluable advice including some no-no’s like listing strange hobbies on resumes!

Raphael Dawson of Walton Street Capital spoke about International Development

Another proud and dedicated Badger, and a Principal and Senior Asset Manager with Walton Street Capital, Raphael discussed his experiences with international development, particularly in India. Raphael’s vivid depiction of Walton Street’s risk management model deployed during development in new territories left a strong impression on our group, and sobered us to the realities of doing business in unfamiliar places.

Marc Swerdlow of Waterton Associates presents at Real Estate Club

President of Waterton Associates, Marc spoke with our Real Estate Club about Waterton’s vertically integrated investment strategy focused on multifamily real estate across the country. Marc shared stories with us regarding several of their East Coast assets affected by Hurricane Sandy, including this picture now famous in sporting circles taken at one of their Hoboken properties.

Other Events - Current and Upcoming

Kyle Van Someren (MBA 2014) and Jeff Urbanski (MBA 2013) attended the 6^th Annual Harold E. Eisenberg Foundation Career Day in Chicago. This event includes site visits, a Young Guns panel, and a career and internship fair. A wonderful networking and recruiting opportunity for graduate and undergraduate students alike!

A cadre of real estate MBAs, including 2014 candidates Michael Zoellner, McKay Winkel, Ramesh Kanthilal, Grace Lu, Mitesh Patel, and team captain Andrew Boespflug (MBA 2013), traveled down to Austin, Texas to participate in the 2012 National Real Estate Challenge. We wish them the best of luck!

Finally, we are heading out to New York City early tomorrow morning for the Global Real Estate Markets 2012 conference at the New York Stock Exchange and the Graaskamp Center’s Fall 2012 Board of Advisors Meeting located at the Plaza Hotel (breaking news regarding the hotel’s sale found here). Fellow MBA students will have the opportunity to mingle with industry leaders while learning about recent market activities and trends. It’s good to be a real estate Badger!

Jonathan Brown comes to Madison from Washington, DC, where he managed downtown Class A office buildings for Tishman Speyer. Jonathan plans to leverage his prior experience with financial and analytic tools gained during the MBA program to eventually start his own real estate investment firm.