Team of USD Students Wins 2017 ARGUS University Challenge

2017 Apr 19

Adam Goff of San Diego, a student in the master's in real estate program at the University of San Diego, was part of the team that won the 2017 ARGUS University Challenge.

The victory marks the fourth, first-place win in a row for USD. In the eight years the competition has been held, the team from the Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate in the USD School of Business has taken first-place on six occasions and second-place on two occasions.

This year, the USD team competed against 38 top universities from countries around the world for cash prizes totaling $22,000. The USD team received $12,000 and its trophy will be displayed at the Burnham-Moores Center. Charles Tu, the Daniel F. Mulvihill Professor of Commercial Real Estate, was the team's faculty advisor.

The 2017 ARGUS University Challenge focused on three sub-par retail centers in three cities on the verge of potential economic expansion. The property owner tasked teams with determining the best course of action for reach property: sell, re-finance the existing debt and continue to hold, or upgrade through capital improvements and continue to hold. Based on thorough market research, consultations with industry professionals and knowledge gained from the classroom, Team USD concluded that performing capital improvements and continuing to hold maximized the value of each property. However, Team USD went beyond what was required and recommended a fourth option: upgrade each property through capital improvements and sell in the near future.