Types of Entry-Level Lending CRE Jobs | Junior in college
Hi there, 

I’m currently a junior in college majoring in finance and am curious about the types of entry-level lending roles there are in commercial real estate.

I did a little research and saw titles such as "underwriting analyst", "loan analyst", and "credit analyst", and was curious what the differences were between these titles and what they do. 

I am also curious about what type of roles you can transition into after working as one of these analyst roles. 

Appreciate any inputs and tips!
[{"id": "iucpndg", "text": "An analyst on the production side of lending will do most of the legwork to get a deal sized up and closed. Depending on the industry you would likely be reviewing borrower financials and credit worthiness, piecing together the loan application, ordering due diligence items (appraisal, environmental reports, etc.). It can be a demanding job but you would learn alot about the industry.", "replies": [{"id": "iue1v51", "text": "I agree with this 100% especially If you want to get strictly into the lending side of things. Most of the big shops CBRE,JLL,Cushman,etc will have their own production side of things, or their is specific mortgage broker cre companies that you can also go with. Working as an analyst for a 1,2 years then you will get the opportunity to have a producer position. I know a few that have been on the production side of things for less than 5 years and are doing well over 400k a year. Very niche and lucrative market in the CRE industry to get into.", "replies": [{"id": "iuhsvmf", "text": "Production in this context as in loan origination for CRE mortgage brokers?", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "iud6z2u", "text": "The best hands job you'll find is to work as an assistant for a big developer/broker.\nThat will give you the best boots on the ground experience for how those professionals navigate this industry, plus you'll be introduced to a lot of connections in your local area for people in the industry.\n\nIf you don't have any knowledge or value to bring to the table, simply work for free until you learn enough to be paid. \n\nTo find these people, look for new property developments or sales in rhe area that were a big success and ask the employees / people that rent the building who owns it/built it/or sold it. Then go from there. \n\nYou don't want to work as a underwriter sitting at a desk all day writing numbers. Sure you may get to know the contracts and numbers, but knowing how to tweak those contracts and how to convince sellers to finance for you will give you a lot more experience for building an empire.", "replies": [{"id": "iue419d", "text": "Agree with this. And I would choose developer over broker if I had the chance", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "iudxgyf", "text": "Where are you applying for internships?", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "iugp976", "text": "Try to get in with CBRE, JLL, or Cushman. If you\u2019re in there you made it.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "iugvhht", "text": "I\u2019m an MD in the real estate lending space - worked at a few big institutional lenders and now in PE / Debt Fund. Feel free to ask me any other questions.\n\nAs an entry level person you\u2019ll likely be working on underwriting deals and writing memos. There\u2019s a lot that goes into those activities but basically understanding the cash flows and risk of not getting paid back.", "replies": [{"id": "iugyuqo", "text": "Hey pat, I sent a message.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}, {"id": "ixgi5bc", "text": "What does MD in this context?", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "iurgmty", "text": "IMO brokerage is the way to go as early on you\u2019re gonna wanna see a lot of volume and get repetitions to get really comfortable with the skills that you\u2019re learning. Not only do you need to have the skills but you need to be confident in your ability to execute on them and brokerage provides you this opportunity. Many moves can be made out of brokerage because while in brokerage you\u2019ll have the opportunity to learn about many facets of the commercial real estate industry. A big name shop on your r\u00e9sum\u00e9 will be helpful that said the most important thing is being able to sit in an interview and not just have the skills by convey those skills.", "replies": [{"id": "iurgo9o", "text": "Also sent PM", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}]