Ethics in Action

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

This course provides an introduction to multiple ethical choices that any real estate leader will encounter throughout his or her career. We will use readings, case studies and extensive class discussion to help students build an ethical framework for setting priorities and making good decisions, under pressure, from among imperfect alternatives. We will address confidentiality, marketing and disclosure, integrity of data, value of a reputation, fiduciary responsibility for “other people’s money” and management of potential conflicts of interest among investors, lenders, project managers, brokers and contractors. The course explores how to balance corporate responsibility in areas of economic development and environmental sustainability with the practical need to create shared value for a project’s owners and its surrounding communities. We will examine ethics in design and construction, and explore complexities that arise from working in multi-cultural and international real estate environments. Finally, we will look at how to ethically manage workouts and foreclosures based on personal experience during times of crisis such as the US financial crisis of 2008 and the Russian financial crisis of 1998. A minimum grade of "B" (3.00) or better is required in this core course for graduation.