Military to Real Estate, do I need an MBA?
Looking for some advice,
I am a military officer with 8 years in (enlisted ---> officer) and am considering transitioning from the service. Real estate is basically the only other career path I find myself interested in, ideally I would like to move into development, but realize that may not be possible immediately. Interested in Boston/NYC/Chicago/Seattle.
I am struggling with how best to transition and whether I truly need an MBA. I've visited several MBA programs over the past few months and while I am sure I would enjoy the experience and benefit in many ways from it, I am having trouble getting over the expense.
By the time I'd complete the MBA I'd be 33. I have approximately ~ 30k undergrad debt and would probably add anywhere from 100-150k to that (only have a semester of GI Bill benefits left). I'm also married and we would like to start a family relatively soon.
Am confident I could get into a good MBA program, ~ 3.6 in a liberal arts degree from an Ivy, have been scoring 720+ on gmat practice exams and have top rated evaluations as well as a more unique story than many military applicants.
Through my network I connected with a senior person at CBRE/JLL/CW and then spoke to several other people there. I was impressed by their openness, but not necessarily some of the proposed positions or salaries for them based off Glassdoor. Think property management/tenant services.
What options exist for breaking into real estate at this point? I've looked at Masters of Real Estate programs, but am not sure the value is there if I could get into a top MBA program, am not eligible for MIT's program in any event because of zero RE experience. Should I continue trying to network and if so what types of positions would be best?
Just network. Sounds like you have a good pedigree so use that to your advantage. ACP is a great program, start there and ask for a RE mentor. The rest should be easy IMO.
My buddy, a SOC officer, finished Wharton and said if he had to do it all over again, he'd leverage his networks and bypass the MBA. To each is own.
You're in a tough position without an MBA. Not a lot of people are going to hire a 30-year-old vet for the entry-level development or investment jobs because they can get some limp-wristed punk kid to do the job. Not a lot of people will hire you for the mid-level positions due to lack or prior experience.
I'm struggling to see how you could network your way into development or similar. Networking works if you have the right skill set. You're not going to be hired as a project manager or assistant project manager without experience regardless of who you know--for every available job there are 100 qualified people who can be hired.
Probably the best way to do it without taking on huge debt load is to bite the bullet and take an entry-level brokerage job, complete a well-regarded part-time MBA or real estate master's program, and then get recruited to a senior level position.
Honestly though, I would strongly consider another career path. A military officer veteran has all kinds of options with government and government contractors. We're probably 5 years away from the bursting of the current real estate bubble anyway.
Do you think we will just keep building real-estate bubbles and creating false fixes as we did this past time into perpetuity?
I do. In market economies, money fills vacuums to overflowing and then a correction occurs. For real estate, I think the cycle continues indefinitely because it's such a ubiquitous asset that's relatively easy for investors to understand.
Appreciate the replies and different opinions. The cyclical nature of real estate does concern me somewhat, especially coming from a field where I have very high job security and have never had to interview/network etc.
I don't think I'd consider anything defense/government related at this point, am looking for a significant cultural change/faster paced work environment.
I helped an ex military MBA classmate get an associate role at a small developer. The lack of experience was mitigated by some of his exposure from the course load. With that said, luck was a big factor that I knew about an opening and my recommendation was solid. It is hard to break into development cold turkey without prior real estate investment experience.
If you are a full time MBA/MSRED student, make friends with the part time students in real estate. Some may not be looking for a job and can help you.
I'm with @Virginia Tech 4ever" - you are sort of in a weird mid point spot. Most are going to think of you as slightly too old for an analyst role, but as not having enough experience for a mid-level role. If you were willing to work as an analyst for a couple of years, it might be possible for you to break into some places without a masters. I do know of one ex-Army guy who did it at 26/27 after 4 years in the military. He took an analyst spot in 2011/2012 (NYC) - He is hoping to see a promotion after this year.
A couple of things to think about: NYC is going to be the most competitive market, but also the place with the most jobs. You said Boston, Seattle or Chicago were options, but if you were willing to move into something beyond development (maybe acquisitions, AM or even debt) and into other markets (Atlanta, Dallas, southern CA), you might be able to find something easier. Less competition for those spaces/markets.
Going to another market/space and doing a lateral after you have some experience may be the best way to get yourself to your ultimate goal without the masters degree.
Thanks for the reply, it sounds like I need to continue doing some research and reaching out to people. Honestly would find it difficult to accept an entry level role salary wise - the pay cut would likely be significant, although if I could combine with a quality PT MBA I may consider doing that.
What space would provide the best experience and opportunities to laterally transfer to development?
how has your transition gone- I AM IN THE EXACT SAME boat currently- Development is all i want to do- but I am tossing about the MSRE or MSRED ideas and the cost is nuts. What did you end up doing?
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