New George Mason Real Estate Fund Offers Hands-On Experience for Students

Last Updated Sep 29, 2017 by Alanna Shaffer

Real Estate students at the George Mason University School of Business have the opportunity to gain real-world experience through the newly established Gunston Hall Realty Ventures LLC.

The Gunston Hall Realty Ventures is a new student-run real estate investment fund which gives selected fund managers the chance to invest for partial ownership of commercial real estate projects in the Washington DC metro area. This new opportunity was created by members of the Advisory Board at George Mason’s Center for Real Estate Entrepreneurship (CREE).

The new program will be used to enrich Mason’s graduate education programs by providing a practice-based education in real estate. The first round of capital raise will aim to generate $500,000 for the student fund.

Brian Benninghoff from Buchanan Partners, a CREE board member and supporter of the new project, commented on the many benefits this new program will have for real estate students.

“By analyzing, investing in, and monitoring a wide range of projects, the students will participate in the life cycle of real estate investment including acquisition, entitlements, planning and design, development management, and ultimately disposition,” he said. “There are very few graduate real estate programs in the country that offer this type of opportunity.”

Another CREE board member and alumni of the Master’s in Real Estate Development program at Mason, Roger Lin, also spoke of the many ways this program will enrich Mason’s graduate education.

“[T]he students will not only meet developers, the investors, the consultants and the fund’s advisory board but actually build relationships with those who play vital roles in the real estate world,” Lin said.