module specification

This module introduces students to financial accounting and reporting. Accounting is a means by which a company presents its accounts and reporting allows stakeholders to evaluate the financial position of a company. Standard reporting mechanisms enable comparisons to be made between the financial health of companies.

The module will look at accounting as it impacts on business and economic activity, with an emphasis on real estate organisations. You will develop skills which are useful in the study of real estate and also to develop your wider business, management and employability skills. The module examines corporate structures, basic financial statements and the principles and concepts underpinning corporate financial reporting. Understanding and analysis of financial data is essential for valuation and investment purposes and the skills learned in this module will be developed further in the next level of study.

• Sole trader / partnership / LLP / limited company / PLC (LO1)
• Profit and loss statements (LO3)
• Cashflow statements (LO3)
• Balance sheets (LO3)
• Gross and net profits LO3,4)
• Regulation and reporting procedures (LO2)
• Debt and equity ratios (LO2,3)
• Liquidity (LO2,3)
• Assets (LO2,3)
• Data sources (LO4)
• Using accounts for real estate valuation purposes (LO2,3)

Study will be supported via lectures, seminars, workshops, and guided asynchronous activities. Where appropriate, activities, will be captured and made available to allow asynchronous access. The value of this blended approach is that you will be able to continue to explore topics beyond the classroom and interact with your cohort to expand on discussions and debates. The module will be taught using a range of authentic case study materials and these materials, and other learning resources, will be available on Weblearn for students to revisit.

Lectures will help develop your knowledge and understanding gained from level 4 and workshops and other activities will allow you to apply your learning to a range of situations, helped by peer and tutor support.

You will receive formative feedback at regular intervals.  Formative means that the feedback will not go towards your final mark for the module, but you will be able to use the feedback to learn, improve your knowledge of key topics and to develop your academic writing skills. Students will be given the opportunity to self-assess their learning in small group sessions and discussions.

You will be asked to do independent and guided reading and research to support your learning, this will help you to build a wider knowledge of economic theory and how it relates to the built environment and how it will affect you as a real estate professional.

On completion of the module the learner, operating independently and applying their knowledge and skills, should be able to:
1. Investigate corporate structures in relation to liabilities, financing, profit distribution and reporting.
2. Demonstrate how business planning activities contribute to the achievement of corporate objectives, particularly in the context of real estate.
3. Analyse accounting concepts and company accounts, including profit and loss statements, cash flow statements and balance sheets.
4. Locate and scrutinise appropriate data to ascertain the financial standing of commercial entities.

There is no single text currently in publication that provides a comprehensive coverage of all aspects of this module. There are several books, publications and online resources which cover various parts of the module in some detail, and these are included in the core text list.

Core:
Atrill, P. and McLaney, E. (2022) Accounting and finance for non-specialists. 12th edn. Harlow: Pearson Education.
Banks, E. (2023) Finance, the basics. 4th edn. Abingdon: Routledge
Basic Tasks in Excel
Begg, D., Vernascu, G., Dornbush, R. and Fischer, S. (2020) Economics. 12th edn. London: McGraw Hill.
CoStar news
EG Radius
JLL Research
Myers, D. (2022) Construction Economics: a new approach. 5th edn. Abingdon: Routledge.
RICS Valuation Standards
Scarrett, D. and Osborn, S. (2014) Property valuation the five methods. 3rd edn. Abingdon: Routledge.
Wilcox, J. and Forsyth, J. (2022) Real estate: The basics. Abingdon: Routledge