New York, New York – October 28, 2025 – Berkadia, a distinguished leader in the commercial real estate sector, partnered with the Chen Institute for Global Real Estate Finance at NYU Stern School of Business for the second annual Multifamily Investment Case Competition, held October 16-18. Graduate student teams from top universities nationwide explored the evolving single-family rental (SFR) and build-to-rent (BTR) asset classes.
“Berkadia was honored to partner with NYU Stern, highlighting our commitment to supporting young professionals and future leaders in real estate,” said Justin Wheeler, Berkadia’s CEO. “Engaging with eager, thoughtful participants and judges with deep expertise in SFR and BTR was exciting. This event was made possible by the dedication of university teams, fellow judges, and NYU’s sustained support.”
This year’s competition featured teams from NYU Stern, Columbia Business School, UCLA Anderson, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Florida Warrington, and University of Texas at Austin McCombs. Teams presented comprehensive investment strategies for a high-impact SFR and/or BTR housing fund for the State Teachers’ Retirement System.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Business won with their Heartland Communities Fund strategy, aiming to raise $215 million to develop nine Build-to-Rent communities in Kansas City, Columbus, and Indianapolis, creating 1,800 homes. Their strategy targets promising Midwest submarkets for consistent returns, using phased capital deployment to offer homeowner-style housing for those transitioning from traditional multifamily living.
“As someone who is involved in the sale and acquisition of SFR and BTR assets nearly every day and having focused years of my career on this asset class, I was blown away by the students’ fund strategies, especially given they had only a week to develop a plan,” said Senior Managing Director Mark Forrester of Berkadia Phoenix.
Columbia Business School secured second place, and the University of Florida Warrington College of Business took third place.