Study Ranks UA Real Estate Program 28th; Director of Real Estate Center 46th in Research Publishing

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – A study published in the Journal of the American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association ranks The University of Alabama real estate program 28th in real estate research. The study also ranks Dr. Leonard Zumpano, professor of finance and director of the Alabama Real Estate Research and Education Center, No. 46 among the top 50 individual authors who have published in the top three real estate journals based on the influence of research works as measured by citations.

The study was done by William G. Hardin III of the Florida International University department of finance; Kartono Liano, of the Mississippi State University department of finance and economics; and Kam C. Chan, of the Western Kentucky University department of finance.

“This is a significant recognition for our real estate program,” said Dr. J. Barry Mason, dean of the Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration. “I think the real estate community within the state and the Southeast realize the great work that Dr. Zumpano does with the real estate program, and it is gratifying to see the program now ranked among the top national programs.”

The study’s authors note that 81 percent of the citations of the 21 most heavily cited papers in real estate come from articles published in real estate journals, and that when real estate articles are published in top-tier finance and economics journals, the majority of the citations associated with these articles come from top real estate journals.

“This provides strong evidence of the existence of a distinct real estate research discipline,” the authors note.

Earlier this year, Zumpano was named editor of the recently revived Journal of Housing Research, now being published under the aegis of the prestigious American Real Estate Society.

“My publication and research focus has been very much housing related, and the journal focuses on just that – policy, housing financing and the efficiency of the housing market.”