What types of careers other than salesperson can I find in real estate?
I graduated in december 2012. I got a medical withdrawal from college mid junior year ... after a year off I returned and finished.
During recovery, I got tired of sitting around so I got my real estate salesperson license. I absolutely hated the firm that sponsored me after working there for a month and finding out what they were really like.
I was wondering what other potential career paths in real estate there are in the industry. I have a bachelors of business admin and finance.
no idea man ... good luck
I suggest you begin by reading every topic in the real estate forum here on WSO.
Come back and talk to us when you are done.
Oh, and ULI has published a great book on real estate careers.... I suggest you buy it and read it. If you don't even know what ULI is, please quit and don't come back.
Real Estate Careers (UK) (Originally Posted: 05/07/2014)
Hi all,
I am interested in a career in real estate in the UK. I think it may differ slightly from the US, but all posts are welcome. From what I can see there are two paths initially; go into a "bank" and work in their real estate department, or to work in the real estate department of a real estate firm. I don't go the best university, so I think the first route will be hard for me. I have multiple interns in RE (I have family connections to some
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Careers in Real Estate Finance? (Originally Posted: 04/04/2012)
Hi all, [EDITTED]
I have an question that I'd like to get feedback on. Thanks in advance.
I'm aware that one can choose to do REPE, RE hedgefund, REIB, RE ER, work for a REIT, or work for a developer... However, I'm not really sure what each path entails, and where they eventually lead you. I am rather "ambitious", and would like to avoid pigeonholing myself if real estate does that to me. I am applying for business school this year, and hoping to get into at least a MBA business schools">M7 school.
How good are compensation among the career options in real estate? Specifically, in REPE, RE hedgefund, RE AM, and REIB. Will compensation hit ceiling faster than it would in other industries like tech or industrials? Prefer specific details if anyone can provide some color.
How difficult is it to get a job in large REPE, RE hedgefund, or an elite REIT, especially coming out of a MBA business schools">M7 school? Which of the top schools offer the best preparation in real estate?
Which role above allows you to start your own real estate company.. I'm talking about REITs, REPEs, or real estate service companies. Although it seems intuitive that working for a REIT best help you prepare for starting a REIT, I somehow feel that is not always the case.
For industry insiders, where do you think commercial real estate is going? Broad question, but welcome creative answers.
Thank you all in advance.
Interested in this as well. BUMP
I think I've answered most of these in other threads, but see below:
Comp varies greatly. In REIB, if you are at a BB then it is comparable with other industries. REPE, REAM and RE hedgefunds are fund, strategy, returns and owner dependent. BX REPE guys are likely making as much as their corporate PE guys given their REPE funds are performing better. No reason why comp should hit a ceiling if you are at the right place. Remember, RE is one of the biggest asset classes globally.
Again it depends. Many firms hire on a need basis or opportunistically. Networking is very important. With that said, Wharton and Harvard in particular place really well into RE firms.
I'd say the best roles to start an RE company are REPE (one that is more hands on), REIT, or developer. If you are going to build your company 1 portfolio or even 1 building at a time you will need to know how to do it all otherwise your G&A will be very high for your asset base.
Massive CMBS maturity wall coming this year and next which will likely cause a bunch of distressed sales. Poor debt capital markets means that mezz funds will have lots of fun bridging funding gaps and there will be more downward pressure on prices. Who knows where rents are going. Long term, RE will always be around.
Thanks for the reply; few follow-ups:
With regard to comp, what are considered "right shops". I'm guessing BX in PE, SLG, VNO, and maybe BXP for REITs, Cohen & Steers and other larger generalist names like Fidelity for AM? There has been a concern that the REIT space (if you're into RE AM or hedgefund) is relatively small, specifically that its total market cap as an industry in the U.S. is smaller than the market cap of Apple. Would this be an impediment for salary growth?
What are ideal experience to have if one wants to aim at BX REPE. It would obviously be other REPEs, but what about experience from RE hedgefund and RE long-only investment management?
Thanks for the reply.
I'm only on the public side, so I'm not sure what private markets are doing. But it seems like CMBS are stuck at slow-trajectory growth for a few yrs. Last yr we saw 30bn, people are projecting 35 this year. If CMBS never comes back, does that mean less attractive RE plays? And within CRE, which sector would one try to focus on if he or she wants the most flexibility and highest earning potential? Malls? Office? Healthcare? or is it too general of a prediction?
Many thanks.
RE_Banker what about working for hff, jones lang, eastdil, carlton, etc as an analyst? whatre good opps after?
I'm not going to lie and say BX is within easy reach, but what I would say is that many REPE firms that are more middle market would value your skills. The one thing I have noticed is that while the BB REIB guys are wicked at the financing side of REPE, they don't always get the asset side of it . There is no need to look at the assets on a secondary issuance or a convertible bond issue for a REIT... I was guilty of this too. The guys coming out of JLL, eastdil, etc are more into the assets.
To give you an example, I was on a site tour today and my colleague who is ex-JLL asked about floor plates. You'd rarely hear that from an ex-IB analyst. Floor plates matter when it comes to re-leasing and that is something that a spreadsheet won't pick up...
Thanks RE_Banker.
Just to beat the dead horse a little more, if I were to work at one of those larger REPEs, say the top 15 funds by AUM, what would the comp be for an associate? Sure, it varies, and probably a lot more so than it varies in other industries, but I have no data point to even extrapolate a guess, so if you can provide a simple range that say covers middle 60% of the pay among different levels, it would be much appreciated. For example, associates at such REPEs make 100-150? 150-200? 200-250? 250-300? VPs make 300-350? And how do these compare vis a vis against REIB at a BB?
This is a more qualitative one.. Why did you choose to do RE? What makes you enjoy the industry? What are typical reasons why people prefer real estate? One can say that RE is about tangible assets that people can physically touch.. But you alluded to the fact that REIB is more finance oriented, and less focused on assets. So why do people choose REIB or RE finance?
I'll start here as you've already had some pretty good answers to other questions.
REIB at a BB pays the same as any other IB group at a BB... this is true at other elite firms that have specialized RE groups as well (Lazard, etc.)... The REPE associate really varies hugely based on the firm. Making some broad assumptions based on what limited data I've seen, BX, GS REPIA and a few of the other guys pay pretty much the same as they would for vanilla PE. Theses are also the only firms that work you the way you'd get worked at a normal megafund.... beyond only a very small number of firms that I know of, i think most top + large REPE firms pay associates roughly 75% of the total that would get paid by a vanilla PE firm. In general, associates definitely work less hours than they would on vanilla PE, so it's in some ways "fair". The comp at smaller REPE firms varies so widely it's hard to really generalize about at all. I'm not as sure about VPs/Directors at megafunds and big PE firms, but i can tell you that MD/Partner level people at big and small firms make a ton of money because of their share in the carry (when the firm is successful, that is)...
some people like the assets themselves (i.e. skyscrapers are cool, "I bought one today"), but I think another positive is that it's an industry that pays well if you are successful but tends to be slightly less all consuming of one's life than corporate PE or HF work, which are perhaps the only industries that pay better (unless you consider professional baseball an industry...)
RE_Banker... super helpful as always
I'm also enjoying this thread. It is very helpful. Like Introspection mentioned, I would also be interested to know about a typical salary range at some of these places.
Thanks a lot International Pymp.
I find it a bit odd that people think that if you work in real estate, you become a real estate person. Specifically, we're an investment management firm specializing in REITs, wouldn't I be just as likely to transition into say an investment management firm specializing in another type of stocks as I am to transition into another function in RE? Because although I am in "real estate", I'm really more focused on the corporate level actions of REITs. Would I really be more cut out for REPE, or traditional AM/HF route?
I often hear about people who start in AM in technology stocks, work for a couple of years, and then make the jump to either tech ER, IB or even tech PE/VC. Of course, this type of guys could also transition to another type of HF/AM covering another type of stock, right? If the logic works here, then I sure hope it would apply in RE as well.
If someone were to ask me to buy a piece of real estate, I'd still be as clueless as ever to know if any investment is worth the money.. I would however, be able to make a recommendation on what type of REITs to buy at their current valuation..
I like that I'm a real estate guy versus a finance guy. It's easier to outsmart someone when they don't see it coming.
A little off topic but what are some exit opps in big 4 advisory-real estate? Would like to make the transition to the buy side. Is it difficult to make the jump to REPE?
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