Q&A: Currently an SA at a MF (Ask me anything)
Hi everyone,
So I am currently an SA at a MF within their REPE division (Think KKR, BX, Carlyle, Brookfield etc). I spent time targeting everything from family offices, GPs, LPs, RE IB and ultimately accepting my offer with the firm I am at now.
Non-target/ semi-target undergrad (In NYC) , but high (3.9+) GPA and significant extracurricular leadership. Getting into a MF from a non-target was a significant battle and would be happy to share any info that I can regarding the process.
My previous internships included: Real Estate Investment Management at a 50bn AUM firm and Investment Sales.
I'm happy to answer any questions about either:
what the recruiting process was like or what the internship has been like so far (especially in the virtual format).
**EDIT: I am open to any and all questions. I was just listing the topics above for some color. **
Lasted about a month and was 3 rounds.
In terms of technicals it was your typical questions regarding cap rates and other RE metrics.
If property X and property Y are identical and across the street from each other but one has a higher cap rate why might this be the case?
I was also asked to work out some cash-on-cash mental math, a few brain teasers, and a paper LBO/ acquisition model.
I would say there was more emphasis (and I saw this across all interviews) on the classic question: "If you had 100mm to invest where and why?"
I had 2-3 real estate focused ideas and 1-2 non-real estate for some diversity. This question was basically an opportunity to show genuine interest as well as knowledge in real estate/ what ever you choose to talk about. Know everything about what you decide to pitch and be able to answer the most nit-picky follow up questions and be able to stand your ground.
Something to add to that, I avoided pitching industrial RE unless you know of a specific REIT or property since everyone is going to be pitching industrial.
Lastly, knowing my resume cold was super important and being able to speak to every single bullet I listed.
How are you enjoying the bitch work?
No guides specifically. I did have a prior real estate investment internship, so I would say I did a lot of learning there.
I would say google is your best friend. Unfortunatley, I have not found a guide akin to the M&I 400 questions.
ladning the internship prior to my current one, I would attribute a lot of my learning to: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXVLLaHBapDimnNzS1wx2qw
I personally found his videos super informative and when I wanted to learn more I would do further research on the topic.