by our College Data Analytics Team
[Real Estate Development](/majors/architecture-and-related-services/real-estate-development/) is a field where your choice of school can shape what you earn after graduation. The schools below stand out for the salaries their real estate development graduates go on to command.
To produce this 2026 ranking, College Factual evaluated 6 schools on the early-career earnings of their real estate development graduates.
What’s on this page:
Where you study real estate development affects what graduates go on to earn. To help, we created our Highest Paid Real Estate Development Graduates ranking. We rank each school on the early-career earnings of its real estate development graduates to surface the highest-paying programs.
Read more about our methodology
We offer a number of rankings, including this Highest Paid Real Estate Development Graduates list, to help you decide. Want schools in a particular part of the country? Narrow the list by region or state.
Want to compare schools head to head? Try our College Combat tool to weigh the factors that matter most to you.
Below are the schools whose real estate development graduates go on to earn the most.
Our analysis ranked University Of Southern California the top school for real estate development graduate earnings in the United States. University Of Southern California is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles. Students who complete the real estate development program here go on to a median salary of roughly $192,849.
A rank of #2 makes Massachusetts Institute Of Technology one of the highest-paying schools for real estate development. Located in the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts Institute Of Technology is a private not-for-profit institution. Students who complete the real estate development program here go on to a median salary of roughly $142,235.
Columbia University In The City Of New York came in at #3 on our 2026 list of the highest-paying real estate development schools. Located in the city of New York, Columbia University In The City Of New York is a private not-for-profit institution. Real Estate Development graduates of Columbia University In The City Of New York earn a median of about $154,190 a year early in their careers.
Strong graduate earnings at Auburn University earned it the #4 place for real estate development. Auburn University is a public school located in the city of Auburn. Early-career real estate development graduates from Auburn University make a median of around $108,864 per year.
Arizona State University came in at #5 on our 2026 list of the highest-paying real estate development schools. Arizona State University is a public school located in the city of Tempe. Early-career real estate development graduates from Arizona State University make a median of around $100,021 per year.
University At Buffalo ranked #6 on our 2026 list of the highest-paying real estate development schools. Located in the suburb of Buffalo, University At Buffalo is a public institution. Early-career real estate development graduates from University At Buffalo make a median of around $68,347 per year.
This ranking is produced by College Factual, 2026 edition. The methodology measures the salaries real estate development graduates go on to earn early in their careers, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard field-of-study earnings and IPEDS).
Ranking method: College Major Earnings · 6 schools evaluated.
*Salary figures reflect median early-career earnings (about 5 years after graduation) and may vary by how long a person takes to complete their degree.
More about our data sources and methodologies.