Doctoral study in Property

        Why study with us?
The University of Auckland consistently ranks in the top 100 globally and is New Zealand’s No. 1 university. (QS World University Rankings)

The Business School at The University of Auckland is part of the 1% of Business Schools worldwide with Triple Crown accreditation.(AACSB International, EFMD-EQUIS, and AMBA)

The university hosts more researchers in business and economics than any other New Zealand university. This expertise provides opportunities for original and significant contributions to knowledge in various disciplines.

Students have opportunities to connect with professionals from their discipline through networking event, fostering collaboration and industry connections.

The Business School offers state-of-the-art facilities, including dedicated workspaces for full-time PhD students.

Doctoral candidates receive annual Postgraduate Research Student Support (PReSS) funding to cover research expenses.

The Business School Careers Centre assists students with career planning through skills workshops, employer interactions and individual support.

Research opportunities

As a doctoral student in Property, you'll join a thriving research community. The department offers specialist supervision by highly qualified and internationally recognised academics. We are involved in a wide variety of research activities related to all aspects of property and are engaged in research projects funded by government agencies and the private sector.

The PhD in Property is an interdisciplinary programme traversing a range of fields including property valuation and development, marketing, management, economics and finance.

We welcome research proposals in a variety of topics covering our key research specialisations in commercial and residential property markets and urban land use policies.

Our people

Pursue your topic with us and benefit from exceptional standards of support and supervision from internationally recognised researchers.

Professor Deborah Levy (Head of Department)
Research interests: behavioural aspects of property, property management, property marketing.

Dr Abdul-Rasheed Amidu
Behaviouralism in property valuation decision making, operation of property markets in emerging economies, land policies and administration

Dr William Cheung
Housing, land policy, urban economics, property rights and institutional analysis

Miss Kiri Dell
Māori land issues, competitive Māori strategy

Dr Zhi Dong
Application of finance, investment, auction theories; real asset and capital markets

Dr Olga Filippova
Application of spatial econometrics to house price modelling, impacts of natural hazards and climate change on property markets, heritage preservation and urban regeneration

Dr Jeremy Gabe
Sustainability in the built environment, commercial leasing structures, private provision of environmental quality, and green building design

Dr Michael Rehm
Housing affordability, credit supply and housing prices, sustainability and green building policies

Past research topics

The Decision-Making Behaviour of Property Owners (Investors and Developers): A Case Study of the Christchurch City Centre Rebuild | Supervised by Professor Deborah Levy and Professor Harvey Perkins
Regulatory and non-regulatory influential factors for earnings management by real estate investment trusts | Supervised by Dr Zhi Dong
A decade of NABERS Energy: the effect of public energy performance rating disclosures on office asset energy consumption and rental prices | Supervised by Dr Michael Rehm
State intervention in housing the urban poor in the developing State of Terengganu in Malaysia : an institutional analysis of low-cost housing regulations and their impacts on low-cost housing provision | Supervised by Professor Larry Murphy and Professor Deborah Levy
Evaluating operating characteristics in commercial real estate lease contracts: gross lease vs net lease (New Zealand perspective) | Supervised by Professor Larry Murphy and Professor Deborah Levy

Find a research project