Starting an Internship soon, best way to prepare?
Hi everyone, I'm starting up a capital markets internship at a large firm (similar to CBRE, Cushman) soon, and was wondering if anyone had any advice to share. I don't start till June so if anyone has any reading recommendations that would be great as well. Thanks for your help in advance!
[{"id": "eohcvfs", "text": "Internship is for learning. All you gotta do. Learn to love to listen", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "eohd4l4", "text": "I am also currently an Intern at a pretty big firm and just started. I\u2019d say try to attend as many meetings as possible. Just hearing people talk about the industry is huge. I\u2019ve been allowed to ( I asked beforehand) sit in on multiple broker workshops and \u201ccontinued education\u201d lectures that the company provides its agents. Also, def don\u2019t ever put headphones in - I\u2019ve learned a lot by just listening to the office. \n\nBeing able to learn a lot will give you so much to talk about and flex for real interviews down the road.\n\nThis is less about prep and more about what to do during - not much to prep for, as you\u2019ll be doing pretty low level stuff for the most part.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "eohhawe", "text": "Listen and try to sit in on as many meetings as possible.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "eohkvor", "text": "Become an excel Jedi Master", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "eohlbaf", "text": "Try to meet as many people as possible and develop relationships", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "eohmz9z", "text": "Welcome to the industry! Ex-Marcus &amp; Millichap multifamily broker turned Berkadia multifamily mortgage banker here... \n\n&amp;#x200B;\n\n1) Listen and Learn: When you're in the cubes - keep your headphones off and listen to what the brokers / bankers / associates around you are saying. Write down terms you don't know. Google them. Look them up in your Dictionary of Real Estate Terms. Start conversations to the guys around you, and try to get a hang of the key terms / acronyms  (LTV, IRR, DSCR, ADS, Cash on Cash, NOI). Learn about the relationships between underwriting terms such as GPR, Vacancy, Concessions, NRI, R&amp;M. Sit in on as many client meetings / capital markets phone calls as you can! If your firm has weekly \"Capital Markets\" conference calls - ask one of the MB's if you can sit in their office and listen into the call with them on speakerphone! \n\n2) Ask Questions: Ask a lot of questions! Ask \"stupid\" questions! Ask them a lot! The more questions you ask - the more you will learn. It's okay to be eager and inexperienced as an intern / new analyst - guys will recognize that you want to do well, and if they're good guys they'll help you out. Don't be afraid to ask stupid questions - no one's going to judge you or give you a hard time for it unless they're an asshole. \n\n3)  Ask The MB's and Brokers To Give You Tasks On Live Deals: Whether its running rent / sales comps, putting together a \"quick income / expense proforma\", entering rent rolls into your company template, helping format an offering memorandum, whatever - ask the senior guys to give you tasks to do that are associated with live deals. If you're on the brokerage side, ask if you can help out with any tasks on the new listing or BOV. If you're on the mortgage banking (MB) side - ask if you can help with any forms / narratives / underwriting tasks on deals that are under app or are being submitted for a hard quote. \n\n4) Align Yourself  With a Good Team: Find a team in your office that is small, tight knit, experienced, freely shares information / deal knowledge, and has at least one guy with grey hair. Reason for the grey hair - old guys share knowledge more freely and want to see you suceed. Younger guys (Age 25 - late 30's) not so much - they'll see you as competition. Find a good team where you feel comfortable that appreciates your desire to learn, and try to provide them with value every single day. Avoid the teams comprised of cocky, ego-driven assholes - trust me, there are lots of them in this industry.\n\n5) Embrace The Role as The \"New Guy\": If you try to come off as smart / sophisticated - you'll look like a fucking idiot and people won't respect you. Embrace the role as the inexperienced new guy, and people will go out of their way to help you!", "replies": [{"id": "eoi1y8j", "text": "To expand on your second point, feel free to ask stupid questions but write down the answer and don\u2019t ask the same stupid question twice.", "replies": [{"id": "eokgjxl", "text": "Agreed", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}, {"id": "eoitdxk", "text": "This is very helpful, thanks. Is there an expected level of real estate knowledge for interns? This is my first CRE job, and I don\u2019t start my real estate classes till the fall so I don\u2019t want to be unprepared walking in. I am at JLL.", "replies": [{"id": "eokn340", "text": "You're not expected to know anything - especially if you're joining as an intern. CRE is an industry where you pick up a majority of your knowledge on the job, by talking to others, and by working on live deals.\n\nAs long as you are persistent, and focus on being a good guy who is helpful - people will give you a shot at small tasks and will include you on calls / meetings / live deals.\n\nMy most valuable experience as an intern was learning how to underwrite the stabilized income and expenses on, and how to size the new mortgage on a 100+ unit workforce housing multifamily property using standard Fannie Mae, Tier 2 max leverage (80% LTV \\[loan-to-value\\]; 1.25x DSCR \\[debt service coverage ratio\\]) acquisition financing in a \"mock deal\" scenario. A mock deal is a transaction that has already been closed by your team (so you already have the the financials on it - rent roll, T12, capex ledgers, tax bills, etc. - allowing you to underwrite the income / expenses) which you can then use  underwrite the new loan from scratch in your company's template.", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "eoift5s", "text": "Pretty standard fare.  Enjoy the atmosphere.  You'll notice a wide range of coworkers.  Most likely you'll do mundane tasks for seniors.  Take it all in, don't try and be something you are not.  Say thank you, and find a senior you have a relationship with and form a bond.  Becoming a junior in a mentorship situation is the fastest way out of the internship and to be working on a decent team, that said, don't kiss ass just be yourself.  Do something to help contribute, it will be noticed.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}]