We spoke with our good friend and fellow Hive member, Demelza Smith from DS Land & Development, to discuss her decision to pursue an MSc in Real Estate Development after a long 13 years of (what she describes as) "doing up houses".

After feeling isolated in her field, she believed that obtaining a professional qualification would help her build a more legitimate property business and protect her from potential discrimination – but was it all worth it?

Find out what she had to say below.

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Why did you decide to do a MSc in Real Estate Development?

‍‍In 2016 I had been "doing-up houses" for about 13 years, and that's just how it felt .. a bit amateur.

I now know that it wasn't amateur in the slightest, but I just couldn't work out why I wasn't getting any further and why everything was taking so long!

I was very isolated and hadn't ever met anyone working in property like me, so I thought that the only way to build a "proper property business" was to go down some sort of corporate route.

As a complete solo-preneur, I was convinced that my property knowledge was not extensive or strong enough to do larger schemes, and that I needed much more knowledge – which was in some ways was right.  

The other big reason for studying was the thought that having some extra 'stripes' or armour would protect me from the BS of the building industry – as once you're seen as a certified professional then hopefully builders and other professionals might start to take you a bit more seriously.

I believe that I probably faced a bit of discrimination in the past because of being young and a woman, and not coming in a package that looked like someone who does property full-time for a living. Thankfully, when I first started buying property I was so young, naive, and confident that none of those things stopped me.

What does the course involve?

‍The course itself is commercially focused, and if you ever made the comparisons on the course to real estate in the residential context you were quickly reminded "we are talking about commercial". However, I found that a lot of principles were similar.

The other students were very diverse in terms of age and experience, some were experienced landlords, some were planners, lawyers, other younger students were working in corporate real estate and being sponsored by their employers, some were also trainee surveyors.

The course was made up of 8 modules and a 20,000 word thesis. The modules included:
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• Site assembly and development
• Property law
• Valuation and law
• Finance and asset management
• Space strategies and legislation
• Development finance and funding
• Finance and asset management
• Project implementation and processes.

From the topic titles I'm sure you can see the similarities to residential application.

For me, who had not written anything since school and avoided writing throughout my first degree, this was a massive challenge. I'm also dyslexic, so it was a double challenge, but I actually really enjoyed it.

As part of the course we had a field trip to NYC where we got to visit some of the corporate big boys CBRE, had a tour of the New World Trade Center and transportation hub, visited the Vessel (when it was in construction), the Highline, Upper East Side, Brooklyn, and had meetings with the head of the business district – it was a fantastic week!

How long did it take to complete the course?‍

The course ran over 2 years, although you can take the course over 4 years or other variations to fit around your life commitments.

Would you recommend doing a globally recognised and accredited property course rather than look for a good property training provider?‍

Yes, if you want to have professional specialism in the property industry.

What would you say the difference is between the two?

‍If you are starting out and have no experience and/or a lack of confidence and direction then a good training provider is the way to go.

A good property training course will teach you lots of strategies, how to set up a property business and will essentially be residentially focused.

In contrast the MSc will teach you about planning, case law/tort and its application to real estate, valuations, hereditaments, lease enfranchisement and lots more. So in other words, it's commercially focused but broad with the intention that you will niche out.

Has this helped you in your career to date?

‍Yes definitely, in that in conclusion it gave me my flowers/confidence. I now think that I know what I'm talking about (lol), and it has also helped me with analysing deals, valuations and so much more.

What have you done since?

I completed the MSc in November 2019 with a merit (I'm very proud, as I remember sitting on my bed for the first few weeks reading a book on how to write a report before `i put any pen to paper.)

I picked up a few interior jobs to keep the cash coming in and started to network. However I was swiftly locked up in March 2020 like the rest of us. I immediately went back to what I knew which was "doing up houses''. I had realised from the few meetings I'd had with various people working in corporate, that most wanted to be running their own property businesses.

So whilst in lockdown I connected with my (now supervisor) and decided to complete my RICS training. For the past 2 years I have been shadowing Charles on a commercial building he owns in Lancashire that he is redeveloping, and this is being used as part of my case study.

My role is of a consultancy nature advising on the potential of the site along with learning the intricacies of the RICS best practices applied to every aspect of commercial leasing, planning obligations, development obligations, legal obligations and lots more.

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Keen to learn more about Demelza and what's in-store next for her business?
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• Check out her website here
• Learn more about her consultancy services
• Follow her on Instagram

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