Real Estate Entry Level Positions and Career Opportunities they create
I'm a senior undergraduate at an Ivy League school and I am looking at jobs within the Real Estate field.
I have a pretty good understanding of how the different entry-level positions actually function within the industry, but I'm not sure how they would translate to jobs in the future. I was hoping you, the lovely people of Wall St Oasis, could offer some advice.
If I end up sticking around in real estate, my dream job would be working at one of the premier firms, like Hines or Tishman Speyer. I'm more interested in the actual development part of the industry than the financial/investment/REIT aspect, but on the whole I'm not too picky as to the exact nature of the job I eventually get.
So my exact question is: which potentially attainable positions within the industry would put me in the best position to eventually get that Hines or Tishman Speyer type job?
Among the types of entry level positions that appear to be available, there's positions at.
1. Firms that do Real Estate Appraisals. From what I understand the work is hard and the pay is low, but you learn more of the nitty gritty of the business.
2. Real Estate Investment Trusts: Here the analysts positions would also be nitty gritty, but they would be of a more financial bent. Not sure how much of a differentiation there is otherwise.
3. Mortgage Brokerage Firms
4. Everything in between, including places that perform a variety of tasks.
So what do you think is the best kind of position for bolstering my resume long term? It's tough to gain an understanding with these more ambiguous but important questions, so thank you for your help!





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- if you haven't yet, read
- if you haven't yet, read the M&I on real estate.
- look into whether tishman/hines/related recruit on campuses. maybe that's only for grad students, so maybe i'm totally wrong, but i swear i've seen young analysts at Tishman without a graduate degree or any prior experience. most of the guys i've talked to who have been project managers at Hines got in from a top graduate program.
- you seem like you might realize this, but entry-level jobs are not limited to those three areas. also, of the options you mention, i'd avoid appraisal. for general real estate purposes, people here will tell you real estate M&A or a respected opportunity fund are the best places to start, and i'd tend to agree. however, if you are SURE you want to be a developer, you could try to go work for a developer. doesn't even have to be a big one. could be a family friend.
other than going straight to a developer, i would just try to get the most prestigious real estate experience you can. unfortunately image matters in RE. that could mean anything from Eastdil to Boston Properties to ING. then you network your way over to development, hopefully without having to stop for a MSRED.
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As an ivy league guy,
As an ivy league guy, Tischman-Speyer and Hines might be open to you now if they have spots. Might also look at other big names like Trammell Crow or Greystar (apartment building is still hot) etc. might be willing to take a swing at you if you don't care about geography (e.g. Houston).
Also, I wouldn't push out REITs so quickly. The big guys develop right alongside Hines and the others: Brookfield, Vornado, Kilroy, and Boston Property come easily to mind. They are vertically integrated down to leasing and do more than their fair share of developing.
The problem you're going to have is that there's not a ton of development going on, especially outside of multifamily. It may make more sense to jump into a large REIT doing something outside of development and then angle into the development shop when times get better. Easier to move inside a company. That's if you're really sold on development. Otherwise, just try to land a job. Not having RE on the resume is the toughest hurdle to the next job. It isn't easy out there.
I personally love the hustle
I personally love the hustle of brokering. Good starting pay if you can swing some strong deals with a good firm/team. Allows you to network with the big guys instead of having to cold call/resume drop through the normal channels. Might be able to impress a big wig enough to make him hire you if you offer.