Jobs in Commercial Real Estate | Property Acquisitions

CRE Acquisitions Careers & Career Paths

Commercial real estate acquisitions associates are responsible for supporting the real estate acquisitions process. This involves researching prospective properties the firm is looking to acquire as well as working closely with a firm’s staff to monitor and manage existing assets. What are some other job titles and related positions to commercial real estate acquisitions?

1. Asset/acquisitions manager, real estate
2. CRE associate
3. Investment analyst/associate, real estate
4. Investment sales specialist
5. Director or senior director of real estate acquisitions
6. CRE portfolio manager
7. Real estate acquisitions analyst
8. Real estate consultant
9. Listing coordinator

Commercial Real Estate Acquisitions Education

1. Bachelor's degree in finance, real estate, business, or a related field
2. Master's degree (MBA or MFin) in real estate preferred
3. Certifications: CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst), CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Member), ARGUS Certification

Career Fields for CRE Acquisitions

What firms employ CRE acquisitions associates? What types of businesses hire business managers and real estate consultants? These are examples of companies that employ CRE Acquisitions:

1. Commercial banks
2. Investment firms
3. Real estate investment trusts (REITs)
4. Private equity firms
5. Real estate development companies
6. CRE brokerage firms
7. Hedge funds
8. Institutional investors
9. Real estate advisory firms

Acquisition-Related Keywords That Employers Look For

Your resume and profile will stand out among applicants when you use the language that hiring firms look for in CRE Acquisitions associates. Focus not only on hard skills, such as underwriting, financial and analytical skills, and using software like ARGUS to research prospective investments, but also soft skills such as strong written communication, attention to detail, and a history of meeting important deadlines.

Hard skills for CRE acquisitions:

1. Underwriting: Analyzing and evaluating CRE deals
2. Financial modeling: Proficiency in creating and analyzing complex financial models
3. Market analysis: Gathering relevant economic or market information
4. Capital planning: Expertise in developing property management strategies
5. Deal structuring: Knowledge of structuring deals and property transactions, including acquisitions, sales, lease terms, and property negotiations
6. Tax & finance: Experience with the financial or tax impact of acquisitions
7. Transaction execution: Proven track record of preparing investment material and securing transactions
8. Monitor performance: Monitor and manage properties
9. Portfolio management: Skills in analyzing existing properties within real estate investment portfolios

Soft skills for CRE investment bankers:

1. Communication: Ability to effectively communicate complex financial concepts to clients and team members
2. Negotiation: Ability to negotiate terms of purchase and manage negotiation details
3. Leadership: Capability to train and lead teams and projects, and make informed decisions
4. Analytical thinking: Strong analytical and critical thinking skills to evaluate investment opportunities
5. Time management: Skills in prioritizing tasks, meeting deadlines, and managing multiple projects
6. Collaboration: Comfort and experience with collaborating with other internal teams to execute on opportunities
7. Problem-solving: Ability to identify and resolve issues efficiently and creatively

Software tools and apps that CRE investment bankers use

1. Financial modeling and analysis: Microsoft Excel, Argus Enterprise, Stessa, and more
2. Accounting and bookkeeping: Baseline, Buildium, Bench
3. Deal management and workflow: DealCloud, Intralinks, Ansarada, Midaxo
4. Marketing automation: REIShift, SharpLaunch, Apto, Mailchimp
5. Data and market research: Biscred, CoStar, Real Capital Analytics, REIS, SNL Real Estate, Capital IQ, Orbis, Crunchbase, FactSet, Bloomberg Terminal
6. Presentation and visualization: Microsoft PowerPoint, ThinkCell, Tableau, Qlik
7. Document management and collaboration: Microsoft SharePoint, iDeals, Box, Dropbox, Google Drive
8. Risk management and compliance: Intapp Conflicts, Intapp Employee Compliance, Compliance.ai, ComplySci
9. Startup and private company data: Biscred, Crunchbase, Tracxn, Preqin
10. Project management: Asana, Trello, Monday, Wrike, Zoho Projects, Teamwork, Jira, Basecamp, Clarizen

Commercial real estate acquisitions: industry outlook

1. Median salary U.S.: Ranges between $112,800 and $262,000 per year or $54 to $125 per hour
2. Projected job growth: 3% per year through 2032
3. Employment 2023: 467,100
4. Employment projected 2032: 482,200
5. Top 5 states for CRE acquisitions jobs (number of jobs, annual mean wage):
6. California (50,100, $84,990)
7. Texas (31,810, $76,240)
8. Illinois (12,550, $81,310)
9. New York (10,480, $116,050)
10. Ohio (9,500, $61,470)
11. Top industries (percentage of industry employment):
12. Real estate (12.69%)
13. Land subdivision (4%)
14. Investment pools & funds (2%)
15. Business, professional, labor, political, and other organizations (1.25%)

CRE acquisitions licensure, certification, and professional associations

1. Commercial real estate certificate: Cornell University
2. Real estate license: How to be licensed in all 50 states
3. ARGUS certification: CRE Analyst
4. CRE.org Counselors of Real Estate: Acquisitions
5. Crew Network’s Qualified Fields of CRE: Acquisition CRE field
6. NAIOP’s List of National Forums

*Industry outlook is based on a variety of factors and could change any time. We pull our data from a variety of sources to give a general idea of employment and salary. It should also be noted that job titles and job descriptions vary, based on company, industry and geography, and much of our data is pulled from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. To understand how the BLS codifies jobs and updates its Occupational Outlook Handbook, read their FAQs.

¹ TheClose.com, 10 Best Real Estate Software for Investors, 2024-11-12, accessed 2024-11-13

² Ascendix, Best Software for Real Estate Investors: Top 13 Tools You Will Want to Use, 2024-11-14, accessed 2024-11-20

³ In Motion Real Estate Media, Top 10 Marketing Tools for Commercial Real Estate, accessed 2024-11-13

⁴ Glassdoor, How much does a [sic]Real Estate Acquisitions make? updated 2024-06-06, accessed 2024-11-13

⁵ Adventures In CRE, Compensation in Real Estate (United States 2023), accessed 2024-11-13

⁶ The BLS doesn’t track data for “commercial real estate acquisitions”. We used the broader category of property, real estate, and community associations managers, which includes cre acquisitions associates. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers, accessed 2024-11-13

⁷ U.S. BLS, also see Financial Analysts, accessed 2024-11-20

⁸ U.S. BLS, Geographic profile for Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers, accessed 2024-11-13