ECONOMIA ED ESTIMO AMBIENTALE
Academic Year 2025/2026 - 5° YearCredit Value: 10
Scientific field: ICAR/22 - Real estate appraisal
Taught classes: 56 hours
Exercise: 24 hours
Term / Semester: 1°
Expected Learning Outcomes
The course aims to equip students with the basic knowledge required to make value judgements and economic assessments in civil, territorial and environmental contexts.
The course aims to teach students the principles and methodologies of general and legal appraisal, as well as the economic valuation of environmental assets. Students will gain knowledge of financial mathematics and learn how to evaluate investment plans and projects from economic, financial, social and environmental perspectives.
The course content aligns with the United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly the following goals: 7 (Affordable and clean energy), 8 (Decent work and economic growth), 9 (Industry, innovation and infrastructure), 11 (Sustainable cities and communities), 12 (Responsible consumption and production), 13 (Climate action), 15 (Life on land) and 17 (Partnerships for the Goals).
Course Structure
Required Prerequisites
Attendance of Lessons
Detailed Course Content
COURSE PROGRAMME
|
Topics |
Text reference |
|
|
PART I |
||
|
1. PRINCIPLES OF ECONOMICS Economic science and economics *. |
Text 1: Chapter 1 (Lecture notes) |
|
|
2. MICROECONOMICS * Supply and demand: market equilibrium. Topics covered include utility-based demand theory, consumer behaviour, and indifference curve theory, as well as the elasticity of supply and demand. |
Text 1: chapters 2, 3 and 4 (Lecture notes) |
|
|
3. MICROECONOMICS * Business theory: The production function. Short- and long-term production costs. Economies and diseconomies of scale. |
Text 1: chapters 5 and 6 (Lesson notes) |
|
|
4. MICROECONOMICS * Market structure and firm behaviour (economic profit maximisation): the fundamental characteristics of the following market forms and their short- and long-term equilibria: perfect competition, monopoly, oligopoly and monopolistic competition. |
Text 1: chapters 7, 8 and 9 (Lesson notes) |
|
|
5. INTRODUCTION TO MACROECONOMICS * Macroeconomic variables. Monetary variables. Economic policy. Fiscal policy. Monetary policy. |
Text 1: Chapter 11 (Lesson notes)
|
|
|
PART II |
||
|
6. ESTIMATION THEORY (DEFINITIONS AND PRINCIPLES) * Historical notes on valuation. The principles of valuation theory. Valuation criteria include market value, capitalisation value, cost value, transformation value, complementary value, and surrogate value. |
Text 2: Chapter 1 (Lesson notes) |
|
|
7. REAL ESTATE APPRAISAL * Real estate market. Real estate and land. Valuation methods and procedures. Direct and indirect valuation procedures. Cost value: summary, analytical and mixed valuation. The Bill of Quantities. |
Text 2: Chapter 2 (Lecture notes and teaching materials) |
|
|
8. LEGAL ESTIMATE * Usufruct, use and habitation. Estimates relating to easements*. Expropriation for public use*. |
Text 5: chapters 9, 10 and 11 (Lesson notes and teaching materials) |
|
|
PART III |
||
|
9. ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS * Economics and the environment: The material balance approach. Environment and ethics. Sustainable development. Classification of goods and resources. Externalities. Environmental regulations. Natural capital and ecosystem services. Circular economy. |
Text 3: chapters 1, 2 and 3 Text 4: chapter 1 (Lecture notes and teaching materials) |
|
|
10. ASSESSMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL ASSETS * Total Economic Value. Procedures for estimating environmental assets. Social discount rate. |
Text 4: chapters 2 (Lecture notes and teaching materials) |
|
|
PART IV |
||
|
11. ASSESSMENT OF INVESTMENTS * Elements of Financial Mathematics Cost-benefit and cost-revenue analysis. Discounted cash flow and life cycle costing. The main methods for choosing investments are: - Net Present Value (NPV) - Internal Rate of Return (IRR) - Discounted Payback Period (DPP) - Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC). |
Text 1: chapters 21, 22; Text 4: chapter 4 (Teaching material) |
|
|
12. DECISION-MAKING PROCESSES AND MULTICRITERIA ANALYSIS METHODOLOGIES * Decision-making processes. Methods of multicriteria analysis: Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP); Analytic Network Process (ANP); Multi-Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT); Multi-Attribute Value Theory (MAVT). |
(Teaching material) |
|
Textbook Information
1. 1. Trovato M.R. (a cura di) (2025), Economia Applicata all'Ingegneria. CREATE. McGraw-Hill, Milano + Connect, ISBN: 9798219039072.
De 2. Paola P. (2025). Elementi di estimo di estimo urbano e industriale. EGEA. ISBN:9788823823815.
5.Tempesta T. (2018). Appunti di estimo rurale. CLEUP, Padova. ISBN:9788867878888.
Learning Assessment
Learning Assessment Procedures
|
There are two examination methods: a) and b) |
|
|
a) Complete examination |
There will be both an oral and a written exam. The real estate market assignment must be submitted in advance. Exam dates: are available on the website: www.ing.unict.it. How to register for an exam: Registration is mandatory and must be completed exclusively via the Student Portal within the specified period.
|
|
b) Ongoing assessments (reserved for students who attend at least 70% of lectures). |
Ongoing assessments will evaluate learning on the various programme topics and include theoretical questions and exercises. There will be an exercise on the property market.
How to book ongoing assessments: Booking for these assessments is compulsory and they will be taken during lessons. |
Examples of frequently asked questions and / or exercises
Consumer choice theory: graphical solution.
2. Technical problem of the producer: graphical solution.
3. Short- and long-term economic problems of the producer in markets with perfect competition, monopolistic competition, monopoly and oligopoly: graphical solution.
4. Business costs (short and long term) and the relationship between cost curves.
5. Macroeconomic variables. Monetary variables.
6. Real estate market. Estimation methods and procedures. Direct and indirect estimation procedures.
7. Cost value: synthetic, analytical and mixed estimation. The Bill of quantities.
8. Usufruct, use and habitation. Estimates relating to easements. Expropriation for public use.
9. The economy and the environment. The material balance approach.
10. Classification of assets and resources. Externalities.
11. Natural capital and ecosystem services.
12. The circular economy.
13. Total economic value.
14. Environmental asset estimation procedures.
15. Social discount rate.
16. Cost-benefit and cost-revenue analyses.
17. Discounted cash flow and life cycle costing.
18. Investment evaluation: NPV, IRR, PBP and WACC.
19. Multi-criteria analysis methods: AHP, ANP, MAUT and MAVT.
20. Financial mathematics exercise.
21. Exercise on the real estate market.
22. Investment evaluation exercise.