During my time in Sellinger, I have noticed a lack of concrete understanding pertaining to the business clubs. If a student does not sign up for clubs at the Activities Fair, or they do not know to check the Student Activities website for all of the different clubs on campus, then they will likely not join a new club.

Recently, I have begun the series of interview segments called “Loyola Business.” In each interviews I have analyzed and discussed the industry that is most relevant to their club. Further, I will speak to their work with Loyola, and what the role of that industry plays in the Sellinger school curriculum. My intent is merely to draw out every significant detail of each club, so as to display the mission for the club. In doing so, I am certain that Loyola students will grow more adequate knowledge and connections in the industry. Loyola Business will effectively begin the process of making students more aware of business opportunities on campus.

Drew Bassini, ’17

In the creation of anything, one views a particular area as lacking or inefficient, so they change it. Why did you create the Real Estate Club? How do you anticipate the Real Estate Club to impact Loyola?  

Commercial real estate can be a difficult industry to break into. Over the summer I was trying to find Loyola alumni in Baltimore to talk to about how they got into the industry, different opportunities, things I should be doing to make myself a better candidate and any internship opportunities during the year. I couldn’t find anyone going through the traditional channels so I was left going through all the major firms, individually. I was continually told to get Argus Certified. Argus is a valuation and asset management software that is widely used throughout the industry. I started talking to two other seniors, Tom Gollenberg and John Cuyulis, who shared similar interests and aspirations for real estate. We decided that as a club we could receive financial assistance from the school to help us pay for the expensive certification, as well as create our own networking platform for Loyola graduates in real estate throughout the country.

What is your vision for the club— short and long term goals? 

Despite our time constraint, we have very big plans for the semester. I do not want to give away too much before we lock everything in place, but we are in the works of planning a school wide contest for students to design or redesign a space on campus.

Our major focus will be providing Loyola students with networking and career/internship opportunities. One part of this will be building and maintaining an alumni database. The second part will be to bring speakers to campus. We are trying to follow the accounting model of providing speakers which offer excellent real world examples and then arrange for students an opportunity to ask questions and network after the event. At our first meeting we were already able to provide our members with an internship opportunity that they otherwise would not have gotten as a result of a student and current intern with that firm.

Our long-term possibilities are endless. After the three of us graduate, Chris Kong has been on board since the beginning and will continue to extend our reach and influence both on and off campus. We have partnered ourselves with real estate clubs at Towson and the University of Maryland. Relationships are incredibly important in real estate, and these partnerships will prove extremely beneficial to our members and our school in moving forward.

Why should Loyola students join the Real Estate Club? How could a job in the real estate field positively impact their futures?  

Real Estate is all around us. It’s where we live, work and play. The Loyola Real Estate Club is devoted to exploring options in the real estate field, furthering the education of our members about real estate trends in markets around the world, and creating a networking platform for Loyola students and graduates. We encourage students from all class years and majors to join us to gain a holistic perspective and enhance the overall experience. Many billionaires acquired a great deal of wealth through investing in real estate. You could be next!

Who are some significant people in the real estate industry? What characteristics have helped to define themselves as the elite of the industry? Does education, family background or geographic location have any role in their rise to the top? 

Donald Trump is probably the most recognizable real estate tycoon. Personally I am a big fan of Dan Gilbert. Gilbert is the founder and chairman of Quicken and Rock Ventures. He has jumpstarted Detroit’s comeback by moving about 12,000 employees to the Motor City, and he personally invested over $1.6 billion in the city through his real estate arm Bed Rock Real Estate. Gilbert owns over 60 buildings in downtown Detroit and is the largest player in the city’s recent gentrification efforts. Some other recognizable names are: Harry Macklowe, William Zeckendorf and Donald Bren.

In real estate, geographic location plays a significant role inhow the different housing prices  Are there any up-and-coming cities you foresee holding notable future value— both national and international?

In the United States there are six big cities that are known as the “Sexy Six”. These cities are Boston, New York City, Seattle, San Francisco, D.C. and Houston. Other notable locations to watch are Chicago, Detroit and South Florida. Outside of the United States the main cities are Hong Kong, London, Berlin, Oslo and Macau, to name a few.

Which websites, videos, podcasts, apps, books and/or magazines offer the most insight for people looking to better understand the industry? 

The Real Deal: A news site that specifically writes about New York City, South Florida and Northern New Jersey.

Curbed: A new site that writes about anything in real estate from investment news to architectural reviews.

BiggerPockets: An investment community that is a great introduction to personal residential real estate investments.

“The ABCs of Real Estate Investing” by Ken McElroy: A great first book to introduce people to the process of Investing in Real Estate.

LinkedIn: This is a great place to find companies that deal in real estate who post videos and articles about industry updates.

How do you value a real estate-related major in a business school? 

I do not believe that an undergraduate degree in real estate would be as useful as a MBA in real estate. While Loyola does not offer real estate classes, Johns Hopkins offers classes that Loyola students can take through the Baltimore exchange program. Most real estate programs fall under the business school, such as Johns Hopkins’ Carey Business School, which houses the Johns Hopkins real estate major.

How can students get involved in the club? When and where are your meetings? 

We are working on finding the best time to have our meetings and presentations so that the most students can participate. Make sure to join our Facebook group “Loyola University Maryland Real Estate Club” and follow our Instagram @Loyola_RealEstateClub. Students that are interested in the club can contact Andrew at [email protected], John at [email protected], Tom at [email protected], or Chris at [email protected].