Associate, Hospitality Investments

Job Description

Certares Management LLC (“Certares”) is seeking an Associate to support its real estate platform, which is focused on pursuing value-add and opportunistic investments in hotels / lodging assets out of a newly-raised dedicated investment vehicle.

Firm Overview

Founded in 2012, Certares is an investment platform based in New York City dedicated to the travel, tourism, and hospitality sectors, with approximately $7.8 billion of assets under management (as of December 31, 2021) across private equity, credit and real estate. Certares brings together a team with decades of both operational and investment experience in private equity, travel, tourism, hospitality and travel-related business and consumer services. Certares is well-positioned as a preferred partner, given its deep sector expertise, network of industry relationships, commercial relevance and portfolio of premier travel distribution and supplier assets.

Job Description

The Associate will be a member of Certares’ real estate team, which primarily focuses on investing in hotel / lodging assets out of a dedicated real estate investment vehicle that has invested in six hotels since its inception in 2021. The Associate will be involved in all aspects of the investment process including, but not limited to, underwriting, market analysis, coordination of due diligence, preparation of investment memorandums and executive-level presentations, and closing logistics, as well as business plan execution for the assets post-closing. The individual will have direct interaction with senior personnel surrounding the sourcing, underwriting, and execution of transactions.

Responsibilities will include:

• Evaluating and underwriting a variety of hospitality real estate investment opportunities using Excel-based underwriting models, including complex cash flow, leverage, IRR/NPV, and fund/partnership waterfall modeling;
• Overseeing the due diligence process across all aspects of the transaction including physical, financial, legal, and operational due diligence;
• Preparing investment memorandums detailing investment rationale, execution risks, and prospective returns for the firm’s investment committee;
• Assisting with the closing process including coordination with title companies on settlement statement and escrow, confirmation of insurance, and obtaining necessary internal approvals;
• Assisting in the implementation of business plans, including financing, disposition, capital expenditure planning, and ongoing portfolio surveillance;
• Analyzing property income statements, conducting benchmarking analysis and preparing other ad hoc analyses related to portfolio performance to drive business decisions;
• Maintaining quarterly investment models for the portfolio, including recommendations for hold/sell and refinancing decisions;
• Maintaining relationships with JV capital partners / hotel managers, including weekly/monthly calls, reporting requirements and ad hoc requests;
• Other duties as needed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree from a top undergraduate institution
• 2-3+ years of experience in investment banking, real estate private equity, or real estate finance
  • Hospitality real estate experience preferred, but not required
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills and financial modeling experience
• Intermediate Microsoft PowerPoint skills and presentation-making experience
• Experience with other Microsoft Office products (Word, Outlook, etc.)
• Strong work ethic and a passion for real estate and hotels
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal
• Attention to detail and ability to manage multiple projects with competing priorities
• Team player who can work effectively in a collaborative environment