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I see REITs as more nitty-gritty and REPE as "prestigious", but Vornado was the first one that came to my mind. I've picked out the top 2 REITs with the largest market caps within their respective sectors. This will hopefully give you a starting point:
Industrial -Prologis -Duke Realty Corporation Retail -Kimco Realty Corporation -Federal Realty Investment Trust -Brixmor (I said two per sector, but I am a fan of their new CEO) Office -Boston Properties -SL Green Multi Family -AvalonBay -Equity Residential Mall -Simon Property Group -General Growth Properties Hotels -Host Hotels & Resorts -Hospitality Properties Trust Misc -Vornado -VEREIT
There are storage and healthcare REITs as well, but I don't know anything about those sectors. A good resource is REIT.com. They have more info on all this stuff than you can imagine.
Just curious, is VEREIT considered desirable still with their financial scandal at ARC? I'd imagine they are selling more than buying at this point.
Personally, I don' think it's desirable due to the scandal. But it's a unique REIT in terms of what they invest in and how they work with Cole Capital, so some people might weigh that more. Also, you'd have to think some people might view their "sell mode" as a strength (coring their portfolio and getting rid of debt).
I'd also consider what asset class you are interested in (and what learning opportunities it will present if you are early in your career). Single-tenant NNN-lease is a pretty niche strategy that doesn't have a whole lot in common with other classes. You can definitely get some interesting experience in financial statement analysis and understanding the thinking behind companies' own vs. lease decisions, but you might miss out on some of the RE experience that can be very valuable early in your career. A lot of REITs are doing some pretty significant development at this point in the cycle, if you are able to get exposure to investments or AM and development that could be pretty beneficial for career development.
Which industry is the best to work for? Multifamily?
There's no "best" - go with what you're interested in. Currently multifamily and industrial are the hottest asset classes, but as a side effect of that they are also yielding the lowest returns (they're popular for their stability and current market trends). Ten years ago office and retail were the places to be.
As cycles pass different asset classes will be the top dogs in terms of where investor capital is being directed. Don't focus on that and focus more on what industry interests you and makes the most sense to you. For me, I like retail and multifamily. Placemaking in retail is fascinating to me, and the thought and strategy that goes into shaping a retail environment that draws in more consumers is a challenge. Sales performance is an added factor that increases complexity. On the flip side, multifamily is probably the simplest asset class out there, but I love that I can easily understand it and relate to it, and it's easy to envision what the end user will want and tailor to that.
Others will find creating a Class A office building that people will work in for the majority of their day to day lives, and shaping that building to be a place the best people and companies want to be, the most fascinating. Some people will like the depth and technical aspects of industrial. Blah blah.
Also, a few more just came to mind:
Post Properties/MAA (multi family - merger), Cousins (office), Empire Realty Trust (office - they own the Empire State Building in case you couldn't figure that out from the name), Equity One/Regency Centers (retail- regency just bought equity one)
HIghwoods is a great office owner too
Tanger is a good REIT in the southeast. I interviewed there and turned down a position. They have a great family atmosphere and that small family office vibe with a pretty large portfolio. They do retail shopping centers (outlets) for those that don't know.
I feel like the New York REITs (Vornado, SL Green) and maybe hotel REITs would be the sexiest brand names to tout on a resume
I hear good stuff about Ventas in the healthcare sector.
Can you expand on Ventas?
It's all about Wheeler (WHLR) for that Piggly Wiggly / Food Lion connect. Dripping in prestige
Best Diversified REIT’s? (Originally Posted: 01/06/2018)
Trying to gauge the top players in this industry.
Who are the top players? On a national level and also the regional level (Northeast/West Coast/Southwest)
Check out JBG Smith, Vornado, and W.P. Carey....
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