The topic of transitioning over to an opportunity fund has been discussed in various forms throughout WSO but my question is more less in regards to the "ideal" MBA summer associate role and post-MBA path that would set one up best for a long career at an opportunity fund. I did not touch finance before b-school but spent 4 years in construction management at a national development firm and did my UG in architecture. Career networking starts the moment you begin school and I would like to focus on firms/roles that would best allow me to accomplish the above. Generally interested in development and value-add projects and way into the future, I intend to start a firm after building a network. I'm not sure I have the patience to do development straight out of b-school and will need to pay off student loans so starting salary is important.
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bump I also have the same question. What re pe firms/ reits are the top to start networking with?
PERE has an annual ranking of the top 50 real estate private equity companies (in terms of capital raised for the year). Below is the link to the 2013 list. You can easily Google the 2015 list. I'd start networking with these groups. But, to be honest, most "top" shops are looking for MBA students who already have RE experience. For an MBA who has no RE background but is looking to get into a top REPE/REIT, an alternative path is to do REIB at an investment bank for 2-3 years and then switch over.
http://alphaipartners.com/pdf/PR-2013-05-05.pdf
I will have a year of experience in RE when I matriculate to Cornell MBA and possibly dual degree with masters in real estate.
Hi all, quite late reply given that OP posted in 2015, but I figured i'd type out a response in case there were any individuals just starting their search down this path and came to this thread.
In terms of post MBA positions for RE you're looking at 3 routes depending on how you think you stack up / what's realistic.
- This could be at a large blue chip developer like Hines or Greystar (in their development arms) or something must smaller / regional like a family office (some are of course very large) or smaller developer in a specific asset class. It would be helpful to have some general inclination / experience in a specific asset class to help secure roles.
- If you focuses on RE Finance in MBA and not RE Development another route would be to get into an RE group at a bank and spend 2 years or so in the associate program and then network your way out of it into a different role / company (could be back to development, probably focusing more on acquisitions as opposed to construction, or into REPE). There is 0 organized recruiting for associates, so it'll all be on you to hunt and network yourself into a job. Many individuals are worried about exit opportunities at this level (im not there yet, so I dont know what it's actually like), but I would imagine that you have quite a fair number of opportunities in real estate (pending your work experience prior to REIB) and are willing to take a pay cut (also pending what roles you're looking at).
Hope some of this helps.
Hey @SS22, found this super helpful, I'm actually starting MBA soon and thinking something along the lines of one of these paths. Would love to hear any other advice you might have too! I have similar-ish background as OP (engineering, construction, client-side project management)
Hey - five years later; how did it go! I'm in a similar boat and trying to figure out how to navigate this all!
.
You know what RE+PE equals
For anyone who's struggling with this decision, feel free to DM!
Greetings. I’ve been away for a while (working) but thought I’d share an update on this since another member had posed the question 5 years later...
I was hired at a top developer (Hines/Tishman/Related) out of school and am still at the same shop today. The role has been amazing, challenging, and rewarding. Not going PE was the best decision I could have ever made—development is all encompassing and hardest job in real estate—the returns are also commensurate. I do work with institutional investors regularly and am regularly reminded to appreciate the dynamic nature of my day to day, high level of autonomy, and entrepreneurial privilege to go out and make deals happen.
SS22 was fairly accurate above. Most MBAs go to:
1) operator/developer—getting into top tier shops will require previous experience or incredible resume. not all firms are equal—lots of no name smaller firms that might do well overall, but provided limited big deal exposure compared to a Related, Hines, Sterling Bay, etc I was generally told start at the best shop you can get hired at as you can always go to smaller shop in future and potentislly run it, vs other way around
2) REIB—really only if you go to a NE school as these jobs are in NYC. UNC plus Ivies are good here.
3) REIT—less likely unless you have strong prior experience, or target a firm with a MBA recruiting program (like Prologis)
4) REPE—mega funds are 0% chance unless you’re at a top 3-5 MBA WITH prior experience. 90% of people going to these shops don’t get an MBA—they are recruiting from analyst REIB roles. MBAs are perceived as more expensive to employer and with less experience (and more entitlement) than a 2nd year analyst. Middle market REPE is attainable but you need an impressive resume and ideally prior experience of you aren’t overly impressive during interviews.
The MBA was transformational for me but I know that isn’t the case for many. I knew exactly what I wanted to do post MBA and picked the school where I could rifle shot my entire 2 years and not miss a beat. My classmates regularly applauded me for my efficiency and I do think this helped. I also worked three internships (1 unpaid) during 2 semesters and summer between years 1 and 2. That was absolutely worth it too, to rebrand myself as a well rounded real estate person vs construction guy who had never underwritten deals etc
Also the pay ramps up quickly. I took the lowest salary offer I received (oddly enough at the most prestigious shop I received an offer from). $120k all in Y1, to $220k all in Y4 + equity in all deals (equiv to another $150-200k per year discounted) plus project bonuses (an additional $50-60k per year when you have pipeline). I am in TX major metro. COL is good.
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