Career Advice - Pros and Cons of Switching from RE to Tech

Hi everyone, 


I'm still early in my career and I'm considering switching from real estate to tech and would like to know if anyone has done the same or has advice. As context, I'm 26, have my master's in real estate development and worked as an analyst in RE dev project management for 1.5 years after school. During that time I created a startup in the blockchain/crypto industry that received pre-seed funding - leading me to quit my job in RE to work on it full time. As of right now, I'm intermediate at programming (have published two iOS apps, created a few web apps, etc) and could become proficient if I went all in on it, enrolled in a bootcamp, and gave up the dream of becoming a real estate developer (which might be a pipe-dream anyways). I haven't fully committed to tech yet as my startup may not be successful and my education/most of my work experience is in real estate, however, I feel like I need to fully commit to one rather than being half-committed to both.


The pros of tech:

  1. Better pay 

  2. Can be fully remote 

  3. Significantly better work hours (I was working 12+ hour days in RE)

  4. Being on the cutting edge of a new wave of technology/shift in the world (blockchain/crypto/DeFi)


The cons of tech:

  1. Less interesting/fun compared to real estate development 

  2. Complete switch in career paths/no guarantee that my startup will work/I'm putting all my eggs in one basket 


Curious to see if anyone has switched or has any thoughts on this? I'm feeling like tech is the way to go.



 
Most Helpful

Personally, if I had that opportunity and background, I would see the tech side all the way through. IMO, 20's are an exploratory/learning/risk-taking period in our life. You already have an M.S. in real estate development + some years of experience so I think you have a higher chance of falling back into it. Comparing it to the potential opportunity cost of not pursuing your start-up, it could be extreme. However, I do understand the sense of stability and foreseeable upward mobility in having a job. 

You already got pre-seed funding, which is a major obstacle for startups, so why not see where that could take you? I am sure that you will meet many incredible people on that journey and make connections. So, if it does not work out, then you could potentially rely on your network to get back into RE, as well. As I am writing this, I can't help but think of this saying, "Why not be the main character in the story, rather than being a footnote in someone else's?"   

 

Also, what I have come to learn is that there is this overused statement, "wearing many different hats", and "doing something new everyday" in the workplace. I realized that whatever job you are doing, it probably will be the same thing over and over again, but with slight variations to it, if there are any. You essentially have to choose the repeatable process you want to do and be excellent at it to "make it."

 

I agree with Crumbpicker and would go with tech as well if I were you. I’m not going to repeat everything said above, so I’ll just add this as food for thought: the RE world is lacking people who understand tech and there is a great need for people who know both tech and real estate. Tech disruption in the CRE and development space is going to be huge if anyone can figure out how to do it. It could be you if you take this tech experience and apply it to your passion for RE development down the line.

 

Also going to say go for tech. All of my classmates who went into tech are making way more money at this stage in their career 3-5 years out, especially when you factor in the stock based compensation. If you choose to become proficient at coding, you will have a skillset that is highly in demand if your start up doesnt work out. It is not uncommon for Sr. SWE's to be making 400k-500k ( all in comp) with 5 years of exp. and while working 35-40hrs a week. It is a much better lifestyle gig, based on the anecdotal evidence from the people I know who have gone down that path. You can use that income to start investing in your own real estate deals on the side. IMO tech is a much faster path to wealth accumulation, with less hours, and way more future opportunities. 

 

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