Need Help with Acquisition Analyst offer

So I recently received an offer as an acquisition analyst at a real estate investment firm that focuses on multifamily. I had a few questions as I was assessing whether to accept the offer.

The company has 1.6-1.8B AUM
They usually acquire deals no less than $50M.
Although they are an investment firm, they also have a sister company that has a property management platform, which means I would be exposed to the operations of the property.

My questions are, how long should a person stick within an acquisition analyst role?
Is the amount this company manages a good indicator relative to other national real estate investment firms?
Also, relative to other RE shops, is $50M+ deals a good target range if I ever plan to go into REPE?

I’m just trying to get a sense if this company runs a good reputable RE shop and if the sizes of the deals will grant me adequate exposure to what Top REPE firms see.

 

So, my thoughts....

- $1.5-1.8B of AUM makes them small but not micro, and you don't say if that is equity AUM or total AUM (like total assets including debt value), if the latter, then you are closer to $3B which is more substantial. Either way, it's big enough to move on from 'size' as a major consideration (I'll address stability below)

- Doing deals >$50m puts them squarely in the 'institutional' deal world, especially for multifamily. This is a crowded space, so if they have been successful here and have a track record (like all AUM above is deployed or large amount of it), then you can safely assume the know what are doing, and have been able to execute (at least thus far)

- Stability of an enterprise is something to consider with market conditions, especially with the impact of rates on multifamily finance; beyond just asking (which you should or should have in the interview process), any due diligence or background checking you can do of them is advised (and for all employers to be sure); since this is an acq role having the capital and ability to execute is most important (like what is their plan for debt or overall ability to buy); I'd say the fact they are offering on the role is a very positive sign (like why expand headcount if you cant do deals)

So that sums up my thoughts on the firms based on what you stated.... To your other questions...

- Long long to be an acq analyst... Um, until promoted to associate? Not sure what you are getting at, you do this until you get a better gig, hopefully via promotion, but if that takes too long or better offer comes before, then go

- Relative to other firms... there are smaller ones, and for sure, much bigger ones... doesn't really say much about whether this is a good gig or not; so no reason not to take it based on what you said

- $50M+ is institutional grade multifamily, no question - so yes, the deal size/type is good to know and will be useful (not sure what you mean by "go into REPE"... is this not an "REPE" job already???). Bottom line, not sure how well "known" this firm is and/or what market you will be in and they operate.. but I don't see why you couldn't move around within the space as needed.

I guess to sum it up, small by AUM standards when compared to large institutional firms, but still seems legit institutional by deal size. Without knowing more, see no reason not to take it. I mean... do you have other offers? Current job? Seems fine unless you have something else to consider.

 

I very much appreciate this! This was very helpful. I guess this is a REPE shop. What I meant was more if this role could pivot into large funds like Carlyle, BX, etc. Also, they focus in the sunbelt region, primarily Central Texas. I’d like to use this opportunity at this firm to pivot into a more institutional firm.

I guess my next question would be how long does someone stay in an acquisition role? Is it usually 1-2 years? Then what would be after that? Portfolio management? What is the exit opportunity beyond this role?

 
Most Helpful

Okay... to add on...

- Getting hired by the big name PE shops is never easy, would they recruit from this firm? Probably not, but you could still network and target firms that are larger and bigger in scale and probably engineer some form of lateral if so desired. Tbh, since I don't and have not worked at those big name firms (like the majority in this industry), I can only speculate.... just would say.... from a career sense.... why making those big names a big deal once you have started and build skills/track record is beyond me (I'd guess you will come to same conclusion once you have more YOE), most of us are not out trying to recruited into those firms once we depart a few years YOE

- So, acquisitions is a department/function of a principal real estate firm, it is part of the core set along with asset management, capital markets, research/strategy and the traditional back office depts like accounting/finance and HR, etc. Analyst, associate, director, VP, etc. are 'roles' or ranks. Thus, someone may stay in acquisitions for a whole career until promoted to c-suite level or one could move over into portfolio/fund management (if a firm has this as a distinct department/setup) or over to asset management or whatever. I'd think the goal of most acq. analysts/associates would be promoted to full 'acquisitions officer' role (which is like VP or Director rank usually) where they are truly 'running' deals and then 'head of acquisitions' for firm or region/strategy (title like SVP/EVP/MD). The big money of acquisitions comes in running deals and getting parts of fees/promotes, so that is most people's goals I'd assume. 

- As to 'exit opp' I mean.... this is the 'exit opp' that people talk about (the concept is from sellside roles like IB or brokerage), so like what else would you want to do? If you want to move to asset management or capital markets, should be reasonably easy. Same for portfolio/fund management roles. That's all down how you want to manage a career, but in general people fight to get into acquisitions, not out of it. 

 

To add to previous comments, it is also important to ask their average transaction volume per year. If your goal is an engaging acquisitions role, you'll want to confirm they are acquiring at least four new deals a year at that $50M+ value. This way you can be assured your time will be filled analyzing ~50-100 deals a year to find the 4+ the firm buys. That is the experience you need in order to move on to the next level or be marketable to any REPE firm in the future. In an acquisitions role, I think that transaction volume is of greater importance than even pay. Pay will always go up exponentially if you prove yourself useful and indispensable in this industry. The difference between the $120k and $145k mentioned above will quickly become laughable when you realize how much the Principals and those with fee/equity participation are making. 

 

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