Real Estate Education Proposal

The University of Kentucky Center for Real Estate Studies is charged with the responsibility of providing real estate education to undergraduate and graduate students enrolled at the University of Kentucky. The Center provides college-level courses in real estate that (I) serve as electives for undergraduate students that major or minor in business; and, (2) serve as a resource for graduate students pursuing a finance concentration within the MBA program. These courses also meet the educational requirements necessary for obtaining a real estate license in Kentucky. The Center also supports ongoing real estate related research projects of interest to Kentucky's real estate practitioners and regulators. For example, projects completed during the 2004-2005 grant period included the Kentucky Affordable Housing Index. The Center continues to produce academic research on real estate related topics. Past research on such topics as Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), mortgage-backed securities, mortgage pricing. and real estate development have appeared in the Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Journal of Real Estate Literature, Journal of Banking and Finance, and the Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis. In August 1999, Dr. Brent Ambrose assumed the directorship of the Center. His current research focuses on topics such as the impact of HUD Government Sponsored Enterprise affordable housing goals on the mortgage market, Real Estate Investment Trusts, and single-family mortgage default and loss mitigation programs. Dr. Ambrose's research has been published in top tier journals such as the Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics. Real Estate Economics, Regional Science and Urban Economics, Journal of Urhan Economics, Journal o(Money, Credit and Banking, and the Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis. In addition, Dr. Ambrose serves on the editorial boards for the Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics. Real Estate Economics, and the Journal of Real Estate Research. and serves on the advisory board to the Real Estate Research Institute. Dr. Ambrose was appointed to the Lexington-Fayette Vacant Property Review Commission in 2000, and was elected a Fellow of the Weimer School at the Homer Hoyt Advanced Studies Institute in 2003.