Career Options in Real Estate

Real Estate advisor or commonly known as estate agent, real estate agent, real estate consultant is one of the greatest businesses in the world when it comes to earning potential as compared to investment. With as little as Rs.10,000, people have started off as real estate consultants, or property dealers, and have made millions. Compare this to any other business, and one finds sizeable investment in man, machine, marketing and management.

With increasing number of developers, projects, introduction of new formats, role of private equities and expansion of multinationals, real estate industry has outgrown the expected size in recent times. Besides, development of infrastructure, government regulations and infusion of FDI has supported the expansion of real estate sector many folds. With the increasing size of industry, there is an increasing demand of professionals across all segments.

The number of jobs for real estate agents is expected to grow as it is difficult to find trusted advisors for commercial and residential properties. With the augment of multinationals, outsourcing business and expansion of Indian companies, a property consultant’s role is more evident and valued. One of the thrills for a real estate consultant is the constant learning he derives from fast changing market trends, launch of new projects, change in government reforms, introduction of new formats and changing client’s requirements.

Working as a consultant in commercial properties means that you will be interacting with the heads, admin/facility managers and senior management across industries. Thus, it is important for the consultant to keep an update on the client’s industry movement. One needs to get into the psyche of the client to understand his requirements.

As the country lacks specialized academic courses and institutes for real estate, it is both profitable and beneficial for MBA graduates as it generates new scope for them. There are two main routes into real estate consulting. One is directly from the campus (undergraduates and MBAs) into entry-level positions (research/market analyst, business development). The other leads from industry into middle-level positions from specific industries (banking, insurance, retail and financial services) and functions (marketing or client relation associate). It’s a high-paying, high-profile field that offers students the opportunity to take on a lot of responsibility right after their master’s degree and quickly learn a great deal about the real estate world. After making a stint of 2-3 years with reputed developers, many people shift from project marketing to real time consultancy.

Getting a job opportunity with a reputed consultant may be a challenge for fresher’s. However, stint of 1-2 years in any marketing field with good qualification set may get you an entry level position with a trusted banner in consultancy. In consultancy, one can earn big money; a large part of the remuneration is sales driven, so more one can sell, more one earns. After spending 2-3 years with a professional consultant, many practitioners find it lucrative to start their own set-up.

Employment with a reputed realtor gives a secure income along with annual incentives based on sales achieved. Besides, while choosing a consultant in commercial real estate, clients seek trusted company with long-term presence and staff strength. Working with a reputed realtor can help learn the tricks of the trade following ethics and complete professionalism. There are some skills required of a good real estate marketer. These are excellent communication skills, smart decision-making, creating trust factor, analytical reasoning, being aware of the latest market trends and future market predictions, efficiency in financial calculations and high patience levels.

Some of the various roles in Real Estate as a profession include

Real Estate Agent/Broker

Real estate agents and brokers are usually independent sales professionals who contract their services in exchanges for a commission-sharing agreement.

Commercial Real Estate Broker

Commercial property brokerage offices use sales associates who market office buildings, hotels and many other types of commercial real estate for brokers. Commercial real estate sales people usually specialize in a particular property type such as retail, office, hospitality, shopping centers and industrial plants.

Real Estate Appraiser

Real estate appraisers provide unbiased estimates of a property’s value and quality. Appraisers usually work for banks or for appraiser firms and will normally value properties by finding comparable sales in an area or by estimating the discounted value of cash flows expected from a property.

Property Management

Leading real estate owners require professional property managers. Managers are responsible for negotiating leases, ensuring that tenants are satisfied, that rent is paid and that rents reflect market conditions. The career of property manager requires good interpersonal and analytical skills and a fair amount of negotiating prowess. This job is personally rewarding and allows you to really learn the real estate markets should you wish to embark in business on your own.

Real Estate Advisory

Institutional investors are purchasing real estate more and more. But real estate is not like a stock or bond that you can buy and put in a vault. Real estate advisors help investors care for property and, more importantly, select property in the first place by suggesting areas and property types that are likely to experience price appreciation in the future. This job is fun and one that you can get into after getting experience in investing or property management. People who are good with statistics and excel at client contact do well in this job.

Investment Banking – Real Estate Group

Many investment banks have groups dedicated to real estate, particularly the repackaging of mortgages into residential mortgage-backed securities (MBS), collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs) and commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS). Big players include Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan to name a few. Other popular areas include the REIT stock, bond and preferred stock origination business, lodging investment banking, principal investing in real estate and synthetic lease origination. If you have an interest in both real estate and investment banking, this is definitely the place to be.

Development and Construction

Are you willing to work hard and take risks to develop new properties? You can enter this business working for another developer, moving up to construction manager, or you can strike out on your own, starting with some smaller transactions. Good developers are results-oriented and know how to get work on time which involves managing labor, establishing time estimates, getting appropriate equipment operators and construction crews.

Real Estate Entrepreneur

Real estate is one of the last bastions of the free-enterprising entrepreneur who buys properties in hope that they will rise in value because of improvement in market conditions or renovations. Since WWII some of the wealthiest persons in the world have been real estate entrepreneurs.

To make it in this career you need to be savvy, hard-working, willing to take risks and fortunate. Remember, there are others who will be bidding on the same deals and properties that you will. It is important, then, to think carefully of how you can succeed in this market through better wits, a superior management approach or a unique niche strategy.