Starting out in CRE

Hi WSO Community,Thanks for taking time to read my post! I'm currently starting out in CRE I have no prior experience & I'm fortunate enough to have 3 potential positions yet all very different. I recently got my Salesperson License & was hoping to land a job in Investment Sales but I'm having a hard time finding a position with the current market so I'm looking into alternatives. I currently have these choices: 1) Tenant Rep Salesman at a JLL/CBRE/C&W type company. 2) Join a fairly new yet pretty successful Acquisition team. 3) Join a new Mortgage Brokerage shop that's run by a experienced successful broker that has just left Meridian/Newmark type Company. My ultimate goal is to eventually (10 years or so) do investing on my own. If you were in my position which route would you choose & why?TIA

2 Comments
 
Most Helpful

If your end goal is to be investing in RE yourself, then an acquisitions role is going to give you probably the best path there. You might want to gain experience in it before jumping into your own deals. It being a "start up" type of team would mean there's also more room for career growth and eventually carry if you get to that point in acquisitions. While there's plenty of upside in brokerage, both mortgage and tenant rep, there's also no guarantee of income as a broker. So unless you're already well off and don't need the immediate income, I would say the acquisitions role is your best job now. It's also much easier to switch from acquisitions to brokerage than it is to go from brokerage to acquisitions later on.  

 

Culpa in sequi adipisci asperiores. Perferendis omnis aut et inventore ab corporis repudiandae. Error dignissimos nesciunt adipisci consequatur voluptatem rerum. Sunt in fugit laudantium doloremque velit. Quam atque magnam voluptas tenetur quibusdam impedit. Earum voluptas molestias voluptatem porro in eos voluptates.

Voluptas quasi illum sequi in. Inventore illum consequatur est tempore magni. Nulla perferendis fugiat sapiente labore placeat natus molestias. A consequatur est quo illum in. Nobis odio enim consectetur.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan No 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (50) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”