Career advice for a soon-to-be entrant into America
Hi friends,   


In the coming months I will be relocating to a Midwestern capital city and this is going to be a fresh start, perhaps back to the bottom rung grind, very exciting! 

 I will try to keep this short and sweet.   


A little about me, completed a bachelors in Property with a focus on valuation (appraising) in Sydney which I used at the start of my career to work in vals for JLL then CBRE after which I managed to move onto a large government authority specialising in Compulsory Acquisition (Eminent Domain). In 2017 I moved to the UK and initially continued work in Eminent Domain, before moving onto a government role in Property Management. My current role is contracting for a law firm providing them with property reports for their use in court.   


As we know real estate is incredibly regional and my existing experience likely means didley squat in the US. Heck I don't even know what I should be pursuing when I'm in America. Though I would also argue there are universal concepts which remain in many international jurisdictions.   


What would you guys do, if you had some basic knowledge and experience and were parachuted into a new world aged 33? What career path would you go down, what certifications would you attain? Literally any information you provide me will be internalised and appreciated. 

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Thanks for your time!

&amp;#x200B;

  


Just to bring it down to earth a little and get ahead of the top comment, I don't have rich friends/dads/Uni mates haha.
[{"id": "ich1x76", "text": "I think a CCIM would be a good crash course in American real estate and if you need to save in cost just the online courses. Same for any online MIT or other course. \n\nIf you have experience at CBRE and JLL that will be highly valued by employers here regardless of work area. Real estate like you said contains a lot of similar principals. \n\nBased on your very well rounded experience my recommendation would be to find as high of a level asset management job as possible. You understand Aquisiton, management, and valuation. Additionally working for a law firm means that you likely have immaculate detail orientation. \n\nJust my 2 cents.", "replies": [{"id": "ici4juk", "text": "Thank you for your response. I was having a look at CCIM, REFM and other online courses. CCIM seems the most instructional however I am a little apprehensive about spending $1,700 X 4 right off the bat (even with the RICS 'fast track' membership).   \n\n\nI will try my best to determine if the CCIM designation would be beneficial to me or prospective employers, or if attaining an REFM or Argus Certificate will allow me to get my foot through the door.", "replies": [{"id": "iciju7y", "text": "Depends on the state, but the designation doesn't seem to add value in my Midwest market (indianapolis). The real value that I see in CCIM is the networking which you wouldn't get if you did online courses. \n\nWith your background and experience I'd see if someone can lend you the CCIM books or just get some used real estate textbooks from a local university bookstore to review just to get familiar with the concepts. \n\nOther thought might be SIOR and MAI if you're looking to go into appraisal. But if you're looking at brokerage, you shouldn't need to spend money on a designation.", "replies": [{"id": "icixpff", "text": "That's good to know, as I'll be in Indianapolis myself (although based in Bloomington).\n\nI have dug out several older text books that I have available and feel confident in the fundamentals, but it's what I don't know which worries me!", "replies": [], "depth": 4}], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "iciijq1", "text": "\u201cCompulsory Acquisition\u201d is my new favorite way to refer to eminent domain", "replies": [{"id": "icinc1t", "text": "Haha, I think Eminent Domain sounds sophisticated, I have no idea what it means but I like it.\n\nIn the UK it is called 'Compulsory Purchase' and in many countries it used to be/is called 'Resumption' as in the land is returning to the State/Crown.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "iciksi3", "text": "I'd look for introductions to some of the global valuation firms located in AUS that have a US presence or even headquarters. All are looking for qualified staff and you stand a much better chance that these firms will value international experience.  I believe there are some differences in valuation methods and nomenclature between the states and Australia, my experience is that this shouldn't be a big deal.", "replies": [{"id": "icinvg2", "text": "I am a member of the RICS which is the closest thing in property to a global organisation, I have seen job postings accepting RICS membership but only in big markets, not in mid size or smaller markets.\n\nYou're absolutely right that a lot of concepts will be the same and the only difference would be nomenclature, but it's exhausting having to re-learn for a third time!", "replies": [{"id": "iciujv8", "text": "I think you will be pleasantly surprised how the global firms will view involvement with RICS- Cushman, JLL, Newmark, CBRE, etc should all recognize this on your CV", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}]