Overview

The current and projected growth in African cities creates significant opportunities for real estate on the continent but also presents serious challenges in the form of infrastructure deficits, urban management, and the financial viability of cities in general. While many of these opportunities and challenges are experienced elsewhere in the world, the nature and scale of them are unique to South Africa and the rest of the continent. For this reason, the main aim of the Research Unit is to provide a unique interdisciplinary research platform for academia that promotes the identification of issues and seeks solutions to urban real estate investment, finance, economics, and management problems in Africa. The key issues facing urban real estate include sustainability, inclusivity, globalisation, rapid technological change, economic sectoral change, urban management, fiscal sustainability, urban growth management and infrastructure provision. Hence the unit focuses on four main areas of research: - Urban Real Estate Markets, Dynamics and Trends. - Urban Real Estate Investment and Finance. - Urban Land Economics and Management. - African Urban Real Estate Markets. There is a growing acceptance that successful research should not only respond to the needs of society but should also be undertaken with the participation of a number of stakeholders. The unit offers a unique research alliance between UCT, industry, and society at large. The unit is located in the Department of Construction Economics and Management at the University of Cape Town which offers internationally benchmarked qualifications in real estate/property, quantity surveying, construction management and project management.