My First Year in Commercial Real Estate – What I Wish I Knew

Starting your career in commercial real estate is exciting, but this can also be an overwhelming process. And looking back on my first year in this industry over a decade ago, there are definitely some things I wish someone had told me before I got started.

And while everyone’s experience will be different, there are some universal truths about working in this business that can help you navigate those early years in the industry, and also help you avoid some of the biggest mistakes I made when I was first getting started.

So in this post, we’ll walk through five things I wish I knew during my first year in commercial real estate, and what to prepare yourself for if you’re just starting out.

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Lesson #1: Company Culture Matters More Than You Think

The first thing I wish someone had told me before I started working in this business is that your experience in real estate can vary a lot based on company culture.

A really bad boss can make your life absolutely miserable, even if you’re working on interesting deals and getting paid well. And on the same note, a great boss can make going to work every day a lot more fun and can push you to accomplish things you didn’t think were possible.

The number of hours you’re expected to spend at work will also depend heavily on company culture, and while some firms expect their analysts to be in the office until midnight on a regular basis, others have a lot more reasonable expectations around work-life balance.

It’s not necessarily a bad thing to work long hours, especially early in your career when you’re trying to learn as much as possible in the shortest period of time. However, just know that your first job in commercial real estate isn’t necessarily indicative of what it would be like to work at any firm in this industry, and you can’t make generalizations that would apply to all companies.

Lesson #2: People May Try to Tear You Down

The second thing I wish I knew during my first year in the business is that some people in this industry will try to tear you down, and you can’t take that personally.

When I was first starting out in commercial real estate, I found myself in a few situations where I didn’t know something (or someone) that a person thought I should have, and it led to that person scolding me, making fun of me, or even threatening to have me fired.

In some environments, people might yell at you or say things that make you feel small, and unfortunately, that tends to come with the territory in this business. This is especially true when you’re working in high-pressure, transaction-focused roles, where your actions directly impact the reputations of other people.

And even though this feels pretty terrible in the moment, my biggest piece of advice in these scenarios is to remove yourself from the situation entirely and take a few minutes to cool down, rather than fighting back and trying to win an argument.

In a lot of cases, this can actually be a great way to earn the respect of other people on your team that watch you take the high road, while someone a lot older than you (who’s supposed to be a lot more mature than you) ends up throwing a tantrum.

In a lot of high finance industries, this is a lot more common than you’d think, and unfortunately, this is something you’ll want to be prepared for if you’re trying to make your way in commercial real estate.

Lesson #3: Focus on Making People’s Lives Easier

The third thing I wish I had done in my first year in the industry is to go in with a primary focus on making people’s lives easier, not just getting my work done.

The way you go from being seen as a cost center that’s learning the business to someone who can actually be an asset to the team is by doing work that other people either can’t or won’t do, and being someone who can reliably produce good work without being babysat.

Be the person in the room that people can count on to create investment materials without spelling errors or create models without careless mistakes, so they don’t need to spend hours proofreading your work.

Be the person who directly reaches out to the client or the broker to ask questions (rather than just telling your boss that you don’t have enough information), and take it upon yourself to solve problems (rather than just waiting for assignments). And if you really want to be seen as an asset quickly, take the extra time to proactively point out things worth noticing in a set of T-12 financials or a rent roll when you send off an underwriting model to your boss.

One of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever gotten was in a performance review I had in my first year in a job working for a group of guys I really respected, and the feedback I got from the founder of the company was to think about things from his perspective.

And what he meant by that was to think about the decisions I would make or the way I’d frame an investment opportunity as if I owned the company, and this completely transformed the way I worked on a day-to-day basis.

It takes a big mindset shift to go from college student, where you’re constantly being told what to do, to becoming a productive member of a team, where you’re not in a controlled environment. And in a work setting, going in with an attitude of being useful (rather than just getting your daily tasks done), will help you stand out and advance your career a lot faster than your peers.

Lesson #4: Seek Out Mentorship Early

The fourth thing I wish I had done more of during my first year in commercial real estate is seek out mentorship and advice from people further ahead of me, both within my company and outside of it.

The first few years of your career are some of the easiest times to make a pivot if you realize you’re not on the right path, and it only gets harder to change directions as you get more established over time.

In your first few years out of school, a lot of people will be willing to take you under their wing and give you advice (even people you don’t directly work with), because they remember what it was like to be in your shoes.

And when you get these types of opportunities, take the time to ask these people about their career paths, what they wish they had done differently, and what advice they have for you based on your interests and goals. These conversations can also help you figure out what you want to do in this industry long-term, since it’s very hard to sample every aspect of the business yourself.

While internal relationships with your manager or coworkers can be helpful, some of the biggest unlocks in your career will come from relationships with people outside of the company you work for. And if you can take some extra time on nights and weekends to show up at conferences and networking events, you’re much more likely to see success in commercial real estate.

Lesson #5: It’s OK to Pivot Quickly

The last thing I wish I’d known in my first year in this industry is that it’s OK to pivot quickly when you know something isn’t the right fit.

A lot of people can’t bear the thought of leaving a job before they put in 2-4 years with the same company, but when you’re in your early 20s and starting your career, time is extremely valuable.

This means that if something really isn’t the right fit and another (significantly better) opportunity comes up, don’t be afraid to take the leap, even if you’ve only been in your current role for 9-18 months.

Most employers will be very forgiving to young people fresh out of school who are still trying to figure out what they want to do with their lives, and hiring managers understand that it sometimes takes a few tries to find the right fit.

The sooner you pursue what you’re really interested in, the sooner you’ll build the skills and the network you’ll need to be successful in that part of the industry, and there’s no need to wait an arbitrary amount of time to start that process.

This doesn’t mean you should be job-hopping every 6 months, and the grass isn’t always greener at a different company. However, if you’re genuinely unhappy or feel like you’re not learning in your current role, staying put just to avoid a short stint on your resume usually isn’t worth it.

Start Your Real Estate Career on the Right Track

If you’re trying to land your first job in commercial real estate and want to make sure you have the technical skills you’ll need to land interviews and pass an Excel modeling exam that might be given to you during the interview process, make sure to check out our all-in-one membership training platform, Break Into CRE Academy.

A membership to the Academy will give you instant access to over 120 hours of video training on real estate financial modeling and analysis, you’ll get access to hundreds of practice Excel interview exam questions, sample acquisition case studies, and you’ll also get access to the Break Into CRE Analyst Certification Exam, which covers topics like real estate pro forma and development modeling, commercial real estate lease modeling, equity waterfall modeling, and many other real estate financial analysis concepts that will help you prove to employers that you have what it takes to tackle the responsibilities of an analyst or associate at a top real estate firm.