Mid-career change to Commercial Real Estate Lending: Is it possible?
I am currently a residential mortage loan originator and I recently returned to school to fininsh my BA in Finance. I have a backgound in IT but I woke up and realized that I had no passion for the field and that I only went that route because it was a "hot" major at the time. I was always attracted to the real estate field so 2 years ago I became a licensed MLO and now I would like to make a switch to commercial mortgage lending/brokerage. Of course I know that I won't get a job at a Wall Street firm but I wanted to know what of my chances of landing at a place like BofA or Wells with a GPA above 3.5. Also is there any other path or training that I could pursue to learn more about the commercial side of things? Would a Bachelors in Real Estate be more marketable? Or will I just be considered to old? I will be in my mid 30's when I graduate...about 2 years from now.
You're never too old and honestly you do have some experience in lending. Were you only doing single family origination or multifamily as well? I think you need to start at a smaller community bank or a regional one before you can jump to the big guys. I honestly think with good networking, the jump isn't too bad.
Thanks for the advice. Unfortunatly I only have experience with single family at this time. When it comes to networking, can you give me some advice on how to approach a stranger for a sit down. Should I just try to get through to them by email or phone and invite them out to coffee to pick their brain. I would like to be persistent but at the same time I don't want to be a pest.
Agree with the guy above. Your networking approach should be no different than what's advised elsewhere here on wso. CRE lending can be elitist sometimes and there's a chance you'll run into an asshole here or there, but for the most part, it's pretty laid back and it's not rocket science. Maybe look into something GSE -related? Also, a good guy to talk to here would be DCD Depository.
There's a open position in Houston. PM if you're interested in applying.
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