Grosz: I was pretty fortunate coming into the program to not have to work full time; some folks in the program were working either part or full time. I was at a point in my career where I could take close to two years off and focus on this degree. Some of the things offered by MSRE and USD in general give you a chance to interact on a much more professional level with industry professionals. I was looking for an internship and accepted one with Red Capital Group, which ultimately introduced me to some people with whom I still talk. These are my mentors in the business. I was eventually offered an analyst position in the group at a time when jobs were very hard to come by—this was the summer of 2008, and not a lot of folks were finding a lot of opportunities. But really, the best thing I received from the program was an introduction to the sector of the industry in which I work. Another great thing about the program is the professors and industry professionals that come in: Dr. Charles Tu, Dr. Norm Miller and Sherm Harmer are all great educators.

GlobeSt.com: The BMC just presented its annual residential real estate conference. How did the MSRE program spark your interest in residential real estate?

Grosz: My first position in the real estate business was in residential-mortgage banking in the single-family sector from 2003 to 2007. Those were good times to be in residential mortgage banking. I had a bit of experience there, so it was a natural fit for me to stay in residential real estate. My relationships here locally were such that it was an easier sector to network within, so more than the program itself, it was my background that guided me to stay in that sector. When I was in the program, it wasn't broken out into different tracts—residential versus commercial—it was all taught the same, and people went where they were most comfortable.

If you break it down a little bit further, I'm in a niche sector within residential real estate. The space I operate in is generally considered affordable housing. I operate an LIHTC program that serves families at 60% of area median income and below—the working class and working poor of our economy. These are folks who, for either physical, economic or mental issues can't earn more. It's a vital component of our region's economy that we need to support in order to operate, and as housing prices continue to rise, the natural evolution is to price out the lowest sector of our economy and have them be either significantly rent burdened or need to move away from work. We're providing houses for families who, but for the LIHTC program, wouldn't have access to homes. This industry, in my mind, has a triple bottom line where at the end of the day, you're doing well for people, there's money to be made and you're doing well for a region's economy. There's a social impact in addition to the work.

GlobeSt.com: What opportunities did the MSRE program offer you, and how did the program and the BMC help enhance and propel your career in real estate?

Grosz: Certainly, it gave me access to folks within the real estate industry in general, and specifically—not just my initial position with Red Capital and the affordable-housing space, but when I transitioned from that into the development side of the business. Jim Schmid with the local group Chelsea Investment Corp. is a big supporter of USD's MSRE program. He sent all of his daughters through USD, and he offered me a position coming out of the MSRE program as well. Ultimately, I ended up working at Red Capital, but I still had a line of communication open with Jim, and I was able to work out a deal with him to move over to Chelsea until this past February, when I moved to the finance side of the business with Red Stone Equity.

Having access to people who are invested in and see value in the program is helpful. On my career path before Red Stone Equity, I found many people who knew of the USD program; it's an accreditation that means something to them. It helps to open doors and have conversations with folks.

GlobeSt.com: What is the greatest take-away you had from the MSRE program?

Grosz: I entered the program at a time when the economy was just peaking or plateauing. I was fortunate I was in the program as the economy started to turn, and I was coming back to college at the worst part of the trough. But the economy in real estate is cyclical, and you can't really control what the market is going to look like when you're ready to make a transition. As you're shifting into another sector, you can control how you approach the transition and position yourself for the highest likelihood of success. The USD program is the preeminent program in real estate, and I utilized my relationships from that program to be able to establish myself in this niche sector of business, which is somewhat insulated compared to other areas of the market. Some of it was sheer luck, but there were certainly also opportunities that were made available to me only as a result of being in the program. Had I not done the program, I probably would not have found myself in affordable housing at this point in my career.

GlobeSt.com: In what ways do you wish to leave your mark in real estate?

Grosz: The one thing I would like to achieve in my career is to be recognized as an innovator in the affordable-housing sector of our industry—specifically in the finance portion of the business. I'd like to be known for discovering new ways of structuring financing and leveraging sources of financing that otherwise wouldn't be available. I'm like filling gaps in financing and to modifying a financial structure to maximize the amount of debt and equity to finance a project. Coming up with new ways to do that is something I like to do and for which I want to be recognized. In San Diego, in particular, I would like to look back on a career of promoting the region's economy to ensure that working-class and working-poor households and others without housing have a safe and stable place to live. In the affordable-housing world, you get three really great moments: the first is when you get an award of financing; the second is when you've brought everything together, closed on the financing and the project is being constructed; and the third is when you have your grand opening and see people living in the buildings, enjoying the fruits of all your labor.

SAN DIEGO—The University of San Diego's MSRE program, offered at the school's Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate, gives students support and access to the right people, in addition to carrying with it prestige among industry executives, Red Stone Equity Partners' SVP of acquisitions Matt Grosz tells GlobeSt.com. Grosz, a 2008 graduate of the program, credits it for his current position as well as the roles that have led up to it.

Grosz is responsible for the origination, acquisition, financial underwriting, partnership structuring, and syndication of affordable housing and historic tax- credit investments on the West Coast. He has 13 years of combined experience in real estate investment, development and LIHTC syndication. Prior to joining Red Stone, Grosz served as CIO for Chelsea Investment Corp., a West Coast-based affordable-housing development company. Before joining Chelsea, Matt operated as an investment and mortgage banker for Red Capital Group in its LIHTC-equity-syndication and multifamily mortgage-banking divisions, where he assisted in financing more than 1,000 housing units with project costs in excess of $200 million. Grosz obtained a Bachelor's of Arts degree from Saint Mary's College of California in Business and Economics and received his Master of Science in Real Estate from the University of San Diego.

After Burnham-Moores' recent residential real estate conference, we spoke with Grosz about issues in affordable housing, his experiences as an MSRE student and how the USD program led him to his current position.

GlobeSt.com: What was it like be an MSRE student pursuing a career in real estate?

Grosz: I was pretty fortunate coming into the program to not have to work full time; some folks in the program were working either part or full time. I was at a point in my career where I could take close to two years off and focus on this degree. Some of the things offered by MSRE and USD in general give you a chance to interact on a much more professional level with industry professionals. I was looking for an internship and accepted one with Red Capital Group, which ultimately introduced me to some people with whom I still talk. These are my mentors in the business. I was eventually offered an analyst position in the group at a time when jobs were very hard to come by—this was the summer of 2008, and not a lot of folks were finding a lot of opportunities. But really, the best thing I received from the program was an introduction to the sector of the industry in which I work. Another great thing about the program is the professors and industry professionals that come in: Dr. Charles Tu, Dr. Norm Miller and Sherm Harmer are all great educators.

GlobeSt.com: The BMC just presented its annual residential real estate conference. How did the MSRE program spark your interest in residential real estate?

Grosz: My first position in the real estate business was in residential-mortgage banking in the single-family sector from 2003 to 2007. Those were good times to be in residential mortgage banking. I had a bit of experience there, so it was a natural fit for me to stay in residential real estate. My relationships here locally were such that it was an easier sector to network within, so more than the program itself, it was my background that guided me to stay in that sector. When I was in the program, it wasn't broken out into different tracts—residential versus commercial—it was all taught the same, and people went where they were most comfortable.

If you break it down a little bit further, I'm in a niche sector within residential real estate. The space I operate in is generally considered affordable housing. I operate an LIHTC program that serves families at 60% of area median income and below—the working class and working poor of our economy. These are folks who, for either physical, economic or mental issues can't earn more. It's a vital component of our region's economy that we need to support in order to operate, and as housing prices continue to rise, the natural evolution is to price out the lowest sector of our economy and have them be either significantly rent burdened or need to move away from work. We're providing houses for families who, but for the LIHTC program, wouldn't have access to homes. This industry, in my mind, has a triple bottom line where at the end of the day, you're doing well for people, there's money to be made and you're doing well for a region's economy. There's a social impact in addition to the work.

GlobeSt.com: What opportunities did the MSRE program offer you, and how did the program and the BMC help enhance and propel your career in real estate?

Grosz: Certainly, it gave me access to folks within the real estate industry in general, and specifically—not just my initial position with Red Capital and the affordable-housing space, but when I transitioned from that into the development side of the business. Jim Schmid with the local group Chelsea Investment Corp. is a big supporter of USD's MSRE program. He sent all of his daughters through USD, and he offered me a position coming out of the MSRE program as well. Ultimately, I ended up working at Red Capital, but I still had a line of communication open with Jim, and I was able to work out a deal with him to move over to Chelsea until this past February, when I moved to the finance side of the business with Red Stone Equity.

Having access to people who are invested in and see value in the program is helpful. On my career path before Red Stone Equity, I found many people who knew of the USD program; it's an accreditation that means something to them. It helps to open doors and have conversations with folks.

GlobeSt.com: What is the greatest take-away you had from the MSRE program?

Grosz: I entered the program at a time when the economy was just peaking or plateauing. I was fortunate I was in the program as the economy started to turn, and I was coming back to college at the worst part of the trough. But the economy in real estate is cyclical, and you can't really control what the market is going to look like when you're ready to make a transition. As you're shifting into another sector, you can control how you approach the transition and position yourself for the highest likelihood of success. The USD program is the preeminent program in real estate, and I utilized my relationships from that program to be able to establish myself in this niche sector of business, which is somewhat insulated compared to other areas of the market. Some of it was sheer luck, but there were certainly also opportunities that were made available to me only as a result of being in the program. Had I not done the program, I probably would not have found myself in affordable housing at this point in my career.

GlobeSt.com: In what ways do you wish to leave your mark in real estate?

Grosz: The one thing I would like to achieve in my career is to be recognized as an innovator in the affordable-housing sector of our industry—specifically in the finance portion of the business. I'd like to be known for discovering new ways of structuring financing and leveraging sources of financing that otherwise wouldn't be available. I'm like filling gaps in financing and to modifying a financial structure to maximize the amount of debt and equity to finance a project. Coming up with new ways to do that is something I like to do and for which I want to be recognized. In San Diego, in particular, I would like to look back on a career of promoting the region's economy to ensure that working-class and working-poor households and others without housing have a safe and stable place to live. In the affordable-housing world, you get three really great moments: the first is when you get an award of financing; the second is when you've brought everything together, closed on the financing and the project is being constructed; and the third is when you have your grand opening and see people living in the buildings, enjoying the fruits of all your labor.