Real estate internships take hit in current downturn

Local college students hoping to break into the real estate market by landing a summer internship may be in for a surprise this year as many firms are coming up short on work and funding.  

Kelly Faerber, a senior in TCU’s real estate program, considers herself lucky for nabbing one of the dwindling internships in Fort Worth at N3 Real Estate – even if it doesn’t pay.

“I talked to a lot of companies and a lot of them said they are having to cut back, but I think students see how important it is to get the experience,” Faerber said. “I would much rather not get paid and get the experience than have to miss out on the opportunity.”

Given the current struggles facing the commercial real estate market, itÂ’s not all about the money, said Glen Hahn, president and CEO of Fort Worth-based Innovative Developers Inc.

“We have offered an internship for several years, but what we’re seeing different this year is the number of activities that we have for an intern to do,” Hahn said. “We want the experience to be productive for that intern; be able to bring them in and show them the inner workings of a real estate development company and give them some job experience. But at the moment, our number of new projects has skinnied down a little bit, so it’s disappointing, but I don’t know that we’ll have an intern this year.”

Dr. Joe Lipscomb, professor of finance and real estate at TCU, said there are several firms like HahnÂ’s second-guessing their abilities to bring in summer interns. The result, he said, is less opportunity for burgeoning real estate professionals. The solution, though, is a wider focus for interns and companies.

“It’s a tough market for kids out there majoring in real estate. They’re going to have a tough time finding employment or even internships,” he said. “But I’ve been in this for 32 years and my philosophy has always been to prepare students to do anything in finance because the real estate market is so cyclical and at times, there may be little or no employment, but there will always be real estate changing hands.”

At TCU, real estate is offered as a concentration area within the business schoolÂ’s finance major. Lipscomb said the program is set up so finance students with a real estate emphasis can still find employment should the real estate market be in a downturn. And though students are largely encouraged to do summer internships in their professions, the current real estate market ultimately is dictating studentsÂ’ choices.

While TCU doesnÂ’t have a formal internship program, its student-run Real Estate Club has a faculty-advised program. Real Estate Club President Megan Dewar said several club members have opted to accept a non-paid internship in exchange for on-the-job experience.

“Getting an internship this year was definitely different for most of [the club members],” Dewar said. “Most of my friends with internships are working for free because they need the experience. They know we’re going into our senior year and we need some hands-on experience on our resume. You have to trade some things off for others, but if they’re willing to work for free, then there are some opportunities out there and hopefully, the market will pick back up soon and when we’re looking for jobs, that experience will help.”

For students who cannot lock in a real estate summer internship, Lipscomb said many more opportunities may become available in the coming year if real estate recovers as has been predicted. As for companies, Lipscomb said the networking opportunities that come along with an internship can be just as important as the volume of work.

“Networking is vital in most professions, but especially in real estate,” he said. “If you have a real estate company out there and you’re thinking you can’t afford to pay an intern this year, chances are you’ll find one anyway. And if you think you don’t have enough for them to do, think about the networking that student can do, just meeting some successful professionals.”

And the networking doesnÂ’t end there, Lipscomb said.

“It can help your company too,” he said. “These kids are determined and one day, you may find yourself wishing you had networked with them.”