Real Estate Economics and Valuation Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Real Estate Investment Analysts, Asset Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 7 Nov 2026 Course code SD-RE-020

Before you join: Participants should be comfortable with percentages, discounting concepts, spreadsheet calculations and basic financial statements.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Real estate decisions depend on defensible views of value, income potential, risk and market direction. Acquisitions, lending decisions, portfolio reviews, development appraisals and lease negotiations can fail when teams confuse price with value, apply unsuitable comparables, or overlook vacancy, incentives, capital expenditure and exit assumptions. Professionals need to connect economic evidence to property-level cash flows and valuation conclusions that can withstand investment committee, lender and audit scrutiny.

This course develops the analytical skills required to assess commercial and investment property. Participants examine property market cycles, demand and supply drivers, rental evidence, yield movements, lease structures and operating costs. They build valuations using the income capitalisation, discounted cash flow, sales comparison and cost approaches, selecting methods appropriate to the asset and available evidence. The course also addresses development residual valuation, debt metrics, sensitivity testing, valuation uncertainty and reporting requirements under the RICS Red Book and International Valuation Standards.

Teaching combines concise technical briefings with worked property cases, group analysis of market evidence, valuation-model reviews and structured discussion of assumptions. Cases reflect office, retail, industrial, residential and mixed-use assets, including investment, lending and development decisions. Participants leave with a reusable valuation workbook structure, due-diligence checklist, market evidence framework, sensitivity-analysis template and valuation-report outline suitable for adaptation to their own portfolio or transactions.

The course suits professionals who work with property investment, corporate real estate, lending, development, asset management or advisory assignments and need stronger command of the economics behind valuation conclusions.

What you will be able to do

  • Analyse property market demand, supply, rents, yields and cycle indicators
  • Interpret lease terms and operating data for net operating income forecasts
  • Apply income capitalisation and discounted cash flow valuation methods
  • Select and adjust comparable sales using market-supported valuation evidence
  • Calculate development residual land values and test project viability
  • Evaluate debt-service, loan-to-value and debt-yield metrics for property lending
  • Perform sensitivity analysis on rents, yields, vacancy, costs and exit values
  • Prepare a valuation conclusion aligned with RICS Red Book and IVS requirements

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Produce defensible property valuations using recognised income and market approaches
  • Challenge rent, yield and comparable assumptions in investment papers
  • Build clearer cash flow forecasts for leased and income-producing assets
  • Assess development feasibility through residual land value analysis
  • Communicate valuation uncertainty and key sensitivities to decision-makers

For your organisation

  • Improve consistency of acquisition, disposal and portfolio valuation decisions
  • Reduce unsupported assumptions in property investment and lending proposals
  • Strengthen review of external valuations, appraisal reports and broker evidence
  • Identify value drivers affecting rent growth, vacancy, capital expenditure and yields
  • Support clearer governance for property credit, investment and development approvals

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can explain how economic and market conditions influence property income, yields and values.

  • Real estate asset classes, ownership interests and principal market participants
  • Demand drivers: employment, household formation, trade activity and business investment
  • Supply pipelines measured through permits, starts, completions and available stock
  • Property market cycles linked to rents, vacancy, development and capital flows
  • Inflation, interest rates and credit conditions affecting property pricing
  • Distinguishing market value, investment value, fair value and transaction price

Participants can assemble and assess market evidence suitable for a property appraisal.

  • Defining the subject property, valuation date, interest and intended use
  • Comparable selection by location, asset quality, tenure, size and timing
  • Rental evidence normalised for incentives, fit-out contributions and rent-free periods
  • Sales transactions adjusted for condition, financing, tenancy and unusual terms
  • Market segmentation using submarket boundaries, tenant demand and competing supply
  • Evidence registers documenting source reliability, adjustments and remaining limitations

Participants can translate lease terms and operating data into forecastable property income.

  • Lease structures: gross, net, triple-net, percentage and index-linked arrangements
  • Reading rent reviews, break options, renewal rights and indexation clauses
  • Contract rent, market rent and effective rent distinguished accurately
  • Vacancy allowance, collection loss and downtime incorporated into income forecasts
  • Operating expenses classified between recoverable, non-recoverable and capital items
  • Net operating income calculated from rental, vacancy and expense assumptions

Participants can value stabilised income-producing property using capitalisation rate methods.

  • Direct capitalisation formula applied to stabilised net operating income
  • Capitalisation rates derived from comparable sales and income evidence
  • Band-of-investment method combining mortgage and equity return requirements
  • Terminal yield, going-in yield and equivalent yield compared carefully
  • Adjusting capitalisation assumptions for lease quality, age, risk and liquidity
  • Cross-checking indicated value against price per unit and gross income multipliers

Participants can build and interpret a discounted cash flow valuation for an investment property.

  • DCF cash flow periods aligned with lease events and planned capital works
  • Forecasting market rent growth from evidence, indices and supply assumptions
  • Reletting assumptions covering downtime, incentives, tenant improvements and commissions
  • Discount rates selected using required returns, risk premia and market evidence
  • Terminal value calculated from exit income and terminal capitalisation rate
  • NPV and IRR used to assess investment value and return

Participants can apply market comparison and cost methods when income evidence is limited.

  • Sales comparison approach using adjusted prices per square metre
  • Unit-rate analysis for apartments, land, retail space and industrial buildings
  • Paired-sales analysis isolating location, condition and lease-related differences
  • Replacement cost new estimated from current construction cost evidence
  • Depreciated replacement cost reflecting physical, functional and external obsolescence
  • Reconciling comparison, income and cost indications into a value conclusion

Participants can assess development feasibility and derive residual land value from project cash flows.

  • Development appraisal inputs: gross development value, costs, finance and programme
  • Gross development value estimated from sales, rents and investment yields
  • Construction costs, contingencies, professional fees and statutory charges scheduled
  • Residual land value calculated after target developer profit and finance
  • Profit on cost, profit on value and internal rate compared
  • Sensitivity testing for sales rates, costs, programme delays and yields

Participants can evaluate property debt capacity and lending risk using core underwriting metrics.

  • Loan-to-value ratios calculated from loan amount and appraised value
  • Debt yield measured against stabilised net operating income
  • Debt-service coverage ratio tested against interest and amortisation obligations
  • Interest-rate risk assessed through fixed, floating and hedged debt structures
  • Senior, mezzanine and equity capital compared by priority and return
  • Lender due diligence covering valuation, leases, title, condition and insurance

Participants can identify major valuation risks and present their effect on value clearly.

  • Sensitivity tables testing rent, vacancy, expenses, discount rates and exit yields
  • Scenario analysis comparing base, downside and upside property market assumptions
  • Break-even analysis identifying occupancy and rent thresholds for viability
  • Valuation uncertainty arising from thin markets, incomplete data and volatile yields
  • Physical risks assessed through condition surveys, environmental issues and obsolescence
  • Risk registers assigning owners, mitigation actions, evidence gaps and review dates

Participants can document a valuation conclusion, assumptions and limitations for informed decisions.

  • RICS Red Book requirements for scope, investigations, assumptions and reporting
  • International Valuation Standards concepts of basis, purpose and valuation date
  • Valuation report structure: property description, evidence, method and conclusion
  • Material assumptions and special assumptions stated separately and precisely
  • Reconciliation of multiple valuation approaches using evidence quality and relevance
  • Application plan defining property decisions, data requirements and review actions

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Property valuation workbook template
  2. Comparable evidence register
  3. Lease cash flow model
  4. Discounted cash flow valuation model
  5. Development residual appraisal template
  6. Valuation report checklist

Who should attend

  • Real Estate Investment Analysts — assess acquisitions, disposals and portfolio performance
  • Asset Managers — set leasing, capital expenditure and hold-sell decisions
  • Commercial Lenders — evaluate collateral values and property credit risk
  • Property Development Managers — test scheme feasibility and residual land values
  • Corporate Real Estate Managers — assess occupied property costs and investment cases
  • Valuation and Advisory Professionals — strengthen evidence-based appraisal methods

Skills and tools covered

Property market analysisIncome capitalisationDiscounted cash flowComparable sales analysisDevelopment appraisalValuation reporting

Tools and standards

RICS Red Book Global Standards, International Valuation Standards, Discounted Cash Flow, Band-of-Investment Method

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to establish valuation concepts, followed by worked calculations and property cases. Participants analyse rental evidence, leases, comparable transactions and investment assumptions in small groups. Facilitated model reviews examine how changes in rent, vacancy, costs, discount rates and exit yields affect value. Lending and development scenarios are used to compare appraisal methods and challenge assumptions. Each participant prepares an application plan identifying a live property decision, required evidence and valuation questions to address after the course.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should be comfortable with percentages, discounting concepts, spreadsheet calculations and basic financial statements. Some exposure to commercial property, lending, investment analysis, development, facilities management or corporate real estate is helpful. Participants should understand common property terms such as rent, lease, vacancy and operating expenses, although these are revisited during the course. Prior valuation experience is not required. Advanced financial modelling, professional valuer registration, prior knowledge of RICS standards and specialist appraisal software are not required.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

You should be comfortable with basic spreadsheet calculations, percentages and financial terminology. Experience in property, lending, investment or development is useful, but prior valuation work is not required.

Bring a laptop with spreadsheet software for model-based activities and note-taking. If permitted by your employer, bring a non-confidential property case or current appraisal question for your application plan.

It is designed for analysts, asset managers, lenders, developers, corporate real estate staff and advisory professionals. It is particularly useful for people reviewing valuations or preparing investment and credit recommendations.

Property finance courses focus mainly on debt, equity and transaction structures, while development courses concentrate on project delivery and feasibility. This course centres on market evidence, property income and the valuation methods used for investment, lending and reporting decisions.

Participants can use the comparable evidence register, lease cash flow structure and sensitivity template when reviewing a valuation or investment paper. The reporting checklist also supports more focused discussions with external valuers, brokers and lenders.

The programme contains ten modules delivered in teaching order, with approximately three contact hours allocated to each. The remaining contact time supports calculation reviews, case analysis, discussion and application planning during the 08:30-16:30 training days.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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