Looking To Acquire, Where The Hell Do I Start

I've just started an unpaid internship at a very small Private Equity Real Estate firm and our first project is to find a handful of properties to acquire.  We have little guidance and no other intern has real estate experience, and we've been told to look into whatever we find appealing (residential, commercial, small businesses, etc.), and if they like it they'll buy it.  I understand some very fundamental basics about corporate valuations and transactions, but very little about Real Estate.  What I'm really asking is where and how to start the entire process from inception to close.  Including what to look for, what models I will need to make, sources of information, etc.  

7 Comments
 

There's a lock to unpack here, it's kind of like asking how to build a car with no mechanical experience.

I would say, with the knowledge you gave, start with the location you are currently in and can walk/drive to see the properties. Then start with the free resources, loopnet, crexi, etc. to see what properties are for sale in that area, then reach out to brokers and go from there.

TBH this feels like a fool's errand though because you don't even know what you're looking for. Finding a good deal is like finding a needle in a haystack, but imagine how much harder it is if you don't know what a needle looks like...

 
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Had the same experience at a family office firm, no structure just looking at anything and it was really confusing as the more senior junior guys had no idea and even the MD could not give good direction but would always say it's his fault without anything changing and him not caring.

Look it's good you have this internship, in general not doing too much during those 3 months but good lesson for future. Need to find a firm where seniors are engaged and want you to learn and grow. Too many firms have senior guys that don't care and are more interested in where their career is going than junior guys future growth. Have had two out of 8+ bosses give a shit about my learning and take the time to sit down after explaining things.

 

From the looks of it they are interested in teaching, especially since they're (supposedly) taking our work seriously.  They just have this belief that we need to somehow figure out everything we need to ask all the questions ourselves before they give us the material they use.  Maybe that works for guys who are in their senior year college with past internships, but we are nothing like that and we have little idea of where to even begin.  

 

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