RE AM Comp Sucks
I am close to a year into an asset management role at a large REIT (~15b mc). The pay is god awful especially for being in a hcol. I know I am just starting out, but it does not seem great and idk what my pivot options are. I really want to get into RE DCM but I’m probably too old to switch (25yo). Feeling pretty grim about life. Would love any advice.
You are definitely not too young to switch your career. Craft a pitch and start emailing:)
What is your comp? It shouldn’t be bad.
65k
Yeah ok that's probably on the lower end. But I think you should figure out what you truly enjoy.
RE DCM is a completely different world vs. asset management at a REIT. Asset management pays you well if you're talking about other asset classes.
25yo is definitely not too old to switch, you are still so young.
$65k? That's egregious in todays market, especially in HCOL.
Don’t think the issue here is your career path, just your employer. Find a higher paying company, tons of them exist. Yes, even in AM
I switched at 36...you're okay.
Right
I moved to capital markets at a larger Insutitonal Brokerage at 25 from AM... best decision I made. I make about 30k more now.
Just at the wrong company/role - I’m clearing $225K+ in AM with 4 years of experience at a vertically integrated fund manager.
Asset Management varies greatly across real estate firms. At some companies it’s a glorified property management/reporting role while at others it’s considered the business execution counterpart to acquisitions. My company treats it like the latter and therefore im only at a 10-20% discount to acquisitions comp but more reliable hours (i probably average to 45 hours a week, have never worked weekends/holidays, and work past 9pm maybe a few times a quarter).
Used to do acquisitions for a PERE 50 but wanted better lifestyle so my role is perfect for me. Still intellectually stimulating since I’m working on/involved in everything for my assets - development budgeting/project management, leasing, investor reporting, accounting, tenant relations, debt financing, financial analysis/modeling, the list goes on. Sometimes I miss the more fast paced and sexy side of the business in acquisitions but it’s really just a grass is greener mentality since I’m paid just slightly lower and not subject to as much of the stress/fire drills as i was in acquisitions. Would definitely not want to be paid 50% more but that came with 50% more hours/stress.
Damn that sounds amazing. How do you know what company to work at? I feel clueless. I’m at a REIT think of (Kimco, Brixmor, Federal)
Comp in MCOL area should be 100k base + bonus. Leave expeditiously
Did you just say 25 was too old?
Man imagine how me and you feel when all these 25 year olds say they're too old
Oddly enough, old
Ikr, at 25 years old you are still a baby as a working professional, especially in RE, where careers are pretty long.
REIT pay sucks overall until you get to senior/executive leadership positions.
What is a better option? Private? A bank?
Yes
My 2025 guidance is $700k+ all-in in AM, not including potential carry. Made career switches at 27 and 30, albeit in better market environments. So 25 is definitely not too old. Just put your nose down, network, and keep at it. There are quite a few junior AM searches going on right now that should pay materially more (mostly in NYC, if you're open to the move).
That's incredible. Can you share more on your career path and age?
He looks like private equity AM not short bus real estate AM
RE everything comp sucks right now as most property types are in the midst of a 4 year bear market. Your patience should be rewarded if you do stay in the industry.
As an example of bad RE AM comp - $140 - $160k base for Director level with 8 years of experience. Maybe the bonus is 100%, but pretty awful base for a VHCOL city
https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4157272987/
Not sure if it’s a company where the director title is higher than a VP title, I am thinking no based on the comp but whenever I see postings with comp like that, I think debt side provided you are in the right spot (balance sheet or GSE, institutional, etc) where with that experience you can get close to $200K base and with a 40-50% bonus, it definitely beats a job with $150 base even when you generously assume you get a 100% bonus.
For real, I'm unsure how companies expect people with 10+ year of experience to have a base of 150k? THis is NYC.
You aren't too young, I switched from Big 4 to DCM. my consulting gig did not cover RE. Also not to be mean but HCOL 65K there isn't really anywhere to go below that so it's not to early.
Yeah it’s tough. How did you make that switch? Networking?
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