Career trajectory inquiry - AM to REIB/REPE

Hi all,

I am hoping to call upon the collective wisdom here assembled in order to glean information on viable career trajectories.

By way of background info: I graduated with a 3.8 from a semi-target university. I interned at a top 3 IB in a non-real estate group over my junior summer, received and declined the FT offer, and - to pass over a very long story - ended up as an RE Asset Management analyst for one of the big REPE funds (think oaktree, BX, carlyle, apollo, etc.) My ultimate goal is to be on the deal team, not the AM team, of one such fund, and I am wondering what you guys think the best route to take would be.

In my current role, I am exposed to as much modeling as I was in IB -- intimately involved in cash flow models, etc., and spend the rest of my time doing memoranda and research type tasks, so I feel confident in the development of the relevant skill sets, but I wonder how difficult it will be to sell that to a REIB or REPE shop coming from an AM role, which, to my understanding, is viewed as far less technically rigorous. Anyways...

Would my best route be to do a year or two in my current role, move to REIB (as a 1st year or as a lateral?), and then on to REPE? Is it possible for an AM analyst to lateral to an REIB analyst role (and would my past IB experience / namebrand of current role increase my chances of doing so), or will I be better served trying to land a gig during post-summer FT recruiting?

Is there any chance of moving straight from this AM role into REPE, or is REIB a necessary intermediary step?

What would you do in my position?

I very much appreciate and look forward to your responses. Thank you.

 

I mean to be fair, you may be geting 60% of the comp but hopefully you're working 60% of the hours.

I would echo what the poster above said in that I would try, try hard, to jump directly over first. If internally isn't working out than look elsewhere. It's probably much more difficult at those huge super corporate firms where roles are so discretely siloed, but I've seen countless people make that switch.

 

I'm sure you understand why I don't want to out myself by confirming the firm, but like I said, yes, I am at BX or comparable fund, and internal transfer does seem implausible (no one, from my knowledge, has done it).

I have started but have been on the job less than six months. The nature of my inquiry is such that I am trying to get a feel for the urgency with which I should start reaching out to other teams.

 
Best Response

I'm not really sure why you're in such a hurry to pivot after 6 months. You just started out. Ok, so you want to do acquisitions at a REPE firm. Great. You have plenty of time. I would learn as much as possible at your current role and after at least 1 year (or when you get promoted), start looking for acquisitions roles. No one is going to look at a guy with two years of AM experience at a blue chip firm like BX or Oaktree and think "nah, this guy doesn't have credentials to do acquisitions." They are. however, going to think it's odd that you're trying to leave a megafund after less than a year.

Here's a very relevant and recent anecdote. You can choose to believe me or not. I was literally just talking to a family member who is EVP of a megafund's RE division in a major market (BX, Carlyle, Brookfield, KKR). I'm in a somewhat opposite position to you in that I currently work in REPE acquisitions, want to be there long term, but am open to moving to a bigger name firm in an Asset Management role if the opportunity presents itself. Not forever, but a year or two would be beneficial to my long-term career.

Anyways, family member's exact quote: "Every single one of my acquisitions guys has spent time in asset management. You can be in acquisitions your entire career and do very well, but having asset management experience will make you a better acquisitions professional." Moral of the story: soak up all that you can in your current role, network well, and when you have tangible experience, start looking for acquisitions roles. For now, you're doing fine.

 

Do you see any possibilities to source deals? Asset managers at my shop working on opportunistic deals have developed very strong relationship with partners and they constantly source deals in the market/strategy we invest in (or have a first look at opportunities these partners present to the fund) for acquisition team. It works like this: A partner comes to us for a strategy to acquire undervalued CBD class B buildings in a new market. Acquisition team buys the idea. We first buy 4 buildings. Then a year or two from now, an opportunity to acquire another 4 buildings come up. The Asset Management guys underwrite these deals (with some inputs from acquisition guys for macro things like whether it is the best use of capital vs other opportunities that the acquisition guys see) and they will pitch it to the investment committee.

I think this is something you can actually do. At the end of the day, this business is a relationship business. If you develop a strong network of relationship and can source good deals (or at the entry level, introduce people to your acquisition team), your firm will not stop you from bringing deals to the firm.

 

This is something I may have the ability to participate in, but I have not done so yet. However, a conversation with my associate today centered around sourcing ideas for follow-on acquisitions to complement a current asset. I told him I would love to be a part of the project. Hoping it materializes. Thanks for your input!

 

getitdoneboi, bummer your thread hasn't had a response yet. Maybe one of these threads could point you in the right direction:

No promises, but maybe one of our professional members will share their wisdom: vicrook1 kyo_chung TaroCake

Fingers crossed that one of those helps you.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.
 

Most Real Estate PE shops have an Asset Management arm, so the simple answer is yes.

Is your question moving from Asset Management to Acquisitions?
Within a firm it would be depended on the culture, your performance, and how well you network with the right people. The longer you stay in Asset Management the harder the transition is. I would say you have a 3 year window at most. Outside of a firm it can happen but more difficult, depends on your background and what skill sets you bring to the table.

 

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