Weirdest transition ever?
Hey guys, I have been working for a large LIHTC syndicator, and I am looking to see exit opportunities. The most plausible exit seems like LIHTC development, but I'm still not sure how hard it will be for me to get a job in that. However, I have also been thinking about becoming a trader! I was thinking about getting into some sort of trading role, whether it be rates, forex, options, or commodities. I do have a finance background and went to a semi-target school, will this transition be difficult to make? I feel like LIHTC is interesting but very niche. Would other finance jobs I apply for look at my experience favorably? (For reference, I have 2 years of experience; the syndicator I work for is well-known as well)
Bump
I actually love the new generation. Go get em kid.
Wouldn’t this better be asked in the forum full of traders?
True, I could post there as well to see their perspective. However, I thought posting here might help give me insight on people that tried to exit to other areas of finance from LIHTC(or real estate in general).
There is an extremely specialized subset of RE debt that specializes specifically in LIHTC debt collateralization. I have no idea what banks have a group like this on their RE debt desk. But it might be an interesting avenue to look at if you want to maximize your RE experience while transitioning to more pure finance roles. After a period of time building CMBS pools you can likely transfer into other areas of structured credit or possibly to structured credit trading.
I have seen someone go from LIHTC syndicator to IB so not impossible. Don’t know unless you try.
Thanks for the insight, super helpful. Could you give more details on his transition; was it to a REGAL group?
Every job is niche. In almost every high powered job, you're going to be specializing in something, because there simply isn't enough time in the day to learn enough to be competitively knowledgeable about everything. You won't be "trading" everything - you'll trade oil futures or whatever and that'll be that. Pretty niche!
Which isn't to say don't go for that if that is where you want to be. But I hear a lot that LIHTC is "too niche" and it's such a silly opinion. Compared to what? Real estate development as a whole? Sure, but very few people are out there being experts in new built data centers in Virginia and multifamily housing in Los Angeles and life sciences development in Boston. Ditto any form of finance.
Do what you enjoy and what you think you have a competitive edge in which will help you boost your career. Don't worry about what that looks like
No, I definitely agree. Sticking to a niche is imperative if you want to eventually become very valuable. From that viewpoint, yes what you are saying makes sense. However, since this is my first job, I have not had the chance to explore other options just yet. I don't want to end up in the industry and have regrets later, though I find affordable housing very rewarding.
@Ozymandia I wanted to ask a few questions about moving to the development side specifically from the syndications side.
1. How steep is the learning curve? I have a good understanding of the LIHTC process but obviously development is another skillset added on top.
2. Would you recommend working for a large national developer(ex: Related) or a smaller shop where you are a bigger part of the process?
3. When could I expect to be able to be doing deals where I am starting to share in the large part of the upside (even if I may not be leading the deal)?
4. How would you pick a market to specialize in? I was thinking smaller towns in the "random" states would have less competition comparatively to larger cities with more established affordable housing developers.
Also, I only thought trading would be nice because of the prospective of being able to go on your own and the ability to become a "rockstar". But, real estate also has many people like that too! Pay is also lower than my peers, which I know I shouldn't worry about, but it is a factor. I am willing to learn this niche skill and accept low pay if the viability for being independent is high.
Also, at first, I didn't think the low-income part would be appealing. Not in an asshole way, but it was a misconception I had that the industry was "unsexy". Many of the people that live in LIHTC properties truly need the housing; some of them are veterans or people that society has neglected for far too long. It feels refreshing after being around pompous professionals in other parts of finance.
Just a thought. This might be the best time ever to transition from an acquisitions/AM group into development. So many firms are having to extend and pretend their finished developments right now and there aren't too many who have a good AM/ops team internally to handle this kind of timeline. You might be able to use that angle if you want to explore a development transition.
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