Hey guys really need your help here, I graduate this May and I am in a bit of a conondrum. I currently work as an analyst for a real estate broker (think Marcus & Millichap, Harry S. Miller, Sperry Van Ness) where I have received a full-time offer, pay hasn't been decided but I am a good negotiator so I think I can get 60k+ all-in. Problem is I just received an internship offer with a global real estate developer (think Howard Hughes, The Related Companies, Hines) in a rotational capacity (Development, Capital Markets, etc.). Pay is a 33% drop from my current position. More importantly, I am extremely nervous about taking an internship with no FT guarantee when I am finishing school in May and I am SICK of the FT job hunt. What would you guys do in my situation?
@prospie" @CRE" @Virginia Tech 4ever" would really like thoughts from you guys
Anyone have thoughts? Have to pull the trigger on these offers soon
I think it really depends on what you want to do. That's a tough decision because it isn't a guarantee for a job. Would you prefer to do investments / development or do you think you would rather be on the brokerage end? Can the development firm internship turn into full time?
You are young, take the internship role. You can ALWAYS go back to Marcus & Millichap((or Miller or Van Ness, where are you D.C?) with nothing lost.
The internship sounds like a pretty solid gig and potentially a great brand name on the resume. If it were me and money wasn't an issue I would go with the internship. Even if you don't get a FT offer from that firm, you could leverage that experience afterwards.
Unless you know you want to be a broker I'd take the development internship. I would expect a name like Hines or Related will carry a lot of weight, and should help you get a full-time job after the fact if they don't offer you one.
What is the length of the internship, and is it located in a market where you would be happy working and living? I'm trying to think down the road for you to a point where you've gotten good experience, but there is no full-time offer, and you need to find a job. Much easier to hustle to find one when you're already where you want to be.
Also, if the market takes a crap and no shops are transacting/hiring such that you couldn't turn your development internship into a full-time gig elsewhere, I could see you being laid off from a salaried analyst position at a small brokerage as well. So from a downside perspective, I don't think there's a huge difference. I'd swing for the fences.
Do keep in mind that I know nothing of your personal financial, familial, geographical, etc. situation.
Slothrop it is only a summer internship and it is in the state I prefer to work full-time. While the rotational sounds great, I don't really see how I can learn much in four 2 week rotations (Development, Capital Markets, Construction, Asset Management).
As I mentioned briefly earlier, and what everyone else has touched upon.
The large developer is a much better name than small brokerage. Quite honestly I didn't even know the names of the other brokerages besides Marcus. While a summer analyst position does not guarantee a full time position, I cannot overstate how great it is to have Related or Hines on your resume as opposed to "Van Ness". I'm in NYC and i've never heard of Van Ness. You are young, now is the time to build your brand, some great advice was given to me during an informational meeting by the President of a Large Middle Market Lender, "build up your brand", "you can move to Bank of the Ozarks, but only after they offer you a million dollars". The gist is, start at a name brand firm, move to a boutique when you are more senior.
O.K. let me take step back to address that you don't think you would learn anything. Here is the downside, so you think you know so much you wouldn't learn anything at a summer internship? Are you serious this is great, you can be thought of as a competent intern that the higher ups would want to hire. Also did I mention you get exposure to people that could hire you full time.
All the above with the caveat that I don't know your finances, but if you can stretch.
Hi Bob,
Hopefully I can help you out. I went straight into brokerage investment sales as an associate/analyst my first year out of college. Brokers are like whores, they all get fucked. It doesn't matter if you're the classiest whore around, people still have a stigma about you. Do the internship, because you can always become a whore later, but you can't do it the other way around. Trust me.
Brokerage shops are going to pay you a guaranteed 60k?? You hit the jackpot. At most places you'd be lucky to make a 40k draw starting out. Be sure you do your due diligence...
Your decision depends on what you want your end game to be. As a broker you'll spend 5-10 years ramping up. It's a sales role no matter how you slice it. Compared to development there is very little strategy involved. You're a one trick pony.
If your long term interests are in high-level strategy and understanding how every facet of real estate (finance, construction, entitlements, structuring deals, etc) function as one take the internship.
If you're such a good negotiator can't you find a lever to get some more money out of the internship? Even if you can't, the lower pay is temporary.
As a former broker turned developer I'd take the dev internship without a second thought.
Thanks for the help guys, I'll be taking the internship. coolhandlucas I have gotten them to match my current per hour pay rate. While I feel it is risky it's a great opportunity and I have to bet on myself.
Nice work.
Good stuff. I don't think you'll regret the decision in the long run, even if the internship doesn't turn into a full-time offer.
I'm late to this post, but speaking as a current broker, you definitely made the right choice in choosing the development internship route. Brokerage is comparatively easy to get into, I'd drop everything to do a rotation with someone like Hines.
Great choice.
As someone who works for a Hines, BXP, Related, etc firm, I'm really glad to see you take the internship. I can tell you from experience that internships at companies like that do in fact turn into full time offers and having that on your resume is far and away more attractive to other big development, brokerage, and REPE shops than a Marcus & Millichap et al. You will learn a ton and the team will be lean but very sharp.
Feel free to PM me if you want more info about what it's like to work for a developer.
Congrats on the new gig!
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