Real Estate Investments

The Real Estate Investment Certificate of Achievement is designed for those who want to gain essential skills in real estate financing, vacant land development, property rehabilitation, new residential and commercial construction, fix-and-flip projects, as well as other elements of new developments and real estate project management. 

Program Goals

The Real Estate Investment Certificate of Achievement is designed for those who want to gain essential skills in real estate financing, vacant land development, property rehabilitation, new residential and commercial construction, fix-and-flip projects, as well as other elements of new developments and real estate project management. 

 Students who complete the program will be able to:

· Identify sources of capital and other financing required in real estate investments, such as fix-and-flip loans, rehabilitation loans, new construction loans, and income property financing. 

· Discuss the effect of taxes on real estate including residential, income property, and investments.

· Examine the mandated processes involved in every land use decision, including clarification of the new construction and development process, and environmental impact and permitting procedures. 

· Demonstrate use of investment calculations including return-on-investment, gross rent multiplier, capitalization (cap) rate, cash on cash return, break even ratio, loan to value, gross scheduled income, net operating income, cash flow before taxes, and internal rate of return.

Program Objectives

The program will provide students with the knowledge and skills to:

• Demonstrate knowledge of the various financing vehicle available to real estate investors and the differences between each type of loan. 

• Demonstrate an understanding of the construction permitting process, including new construction, additions, remodels, and property rehabilitation.

• Develop decision-making strategies for a sale, exchange, continuation of operations, and capital restructure using deprecation, installment sale and tax basis.

• Explain and calculate a real estate investment analysis and recognize the critical elements from the investor’s viewpoint.

• Describe the critical elements of real estate financing, both residential and commercial (including both the primary and secondary mortgage markets).

• Describe and apply the real estate appraisal principles, including the three approaches in the appraisal process to determine property valuations for investment purposes.

El Camino College’s real estate program is one of the oldest programs at the college. The department has a strong reputation of producing high-quality students with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to succeed in the industry. Over the last two decades, with the expansion of the internet, many private schools began offering real estate courses entirely online, which meet the state requirements. However, El Camino College has the expertise and reputation to provide a superior alternative to those private programs.

Based on the Real Estate Department's 2019 program review, El Camino College has seen increasing enrollment in our real estate courses over the last five years. The department had an all-time high of 453 enrolled students in the 2018-2019 academic year. For comparison purposes, the 2014-2015 academic year reflected an enrollment of 230 students. El Camino College’s real estate program ranks sixth in the entire state based on enrollment numbers, and is only 88 students shy of ranking first in the state.

While department enrollment has grown, the program offerings have remained static. Based on our program review, our current offerings do no fully align with the industry and the demand for fully qualified real estate professionals. The department has only offered one associate degree and two certificate programs, which have not been aligned to changes in the industry or adjusted to meet the strong labor demand for real estate professionals.

Currently, there is high demand for entry-level to middle-skilled level real estate professionals.  The Los Angeles/Orange County Center of Excellence for Labor Market Research recently indicated that the labor market demand for the real estate industry is not being met by the current supply of community college programs. Based on the COE data, the department’s advisory committee recommended that the department expand the number of certificates offered in the program to add eight new specialized certificates to better prepare students for future careers in various real estate specializations.  

This Certificate of Achievement – Real Estate Investments, will prepare more students for real estate specialization positions and help meet the labor demand in the region.  This certificate is part of the greater expansion of the real estate program at El Camino College.  In addition, this certificate will support students who aspire to become real estate professionals by encouraging them to continue their education and obtain specialized certifications.

This program has been endorsed by the COE.