NEW YORK CITY—Whether you're comparing results a year ago or two years earlier, job opportunities in commercial real estate experienced growth well into the double-digit range during the third quarter. It was the industry's best summer ever for job postings, exceeding previous highs set in 2007, according to the Cornell/SelectLeaders Job Barometer, a joint research effort between Cornell University's Baker Program in Real Estate and the SelectLeaders Real Estate Job Network. GlobeSt.com's Career Center is powered by the SelectLeaders Real Estate Job Network.

Q3 postings rose 23.3% year over year and 43.5% from the same period in 2012. July also saw the third-highest single month total so far this year, behind only the two previous months. “This is no small feat, considering that the number of jobs posted in June was the highest it has been since the Job Barometer began tracking these numbers in 2006,” says Susan Phillips, CEO of SelectLeaders.

In the view of David Funk, director of the Baker Program, “Commercial real estate is clearly now a seller's market for talent. We've witnessed a significant fall in the ratio of job seekers to position openings, and not surprisingly compensation is starting to move accordingly.”

Although opportunities are at an all-time high, the pool of job applicants is not, with a sizable number numbers of professionals leaving the industry amid the 2008 downturn and a depleted pipeline of professionals entering from US graduate schools. “The average number of applications per job has declined by about 30% from 2009 to 2014,” says Funk.

However, the drop in the number of average applicants is due not to a lack of interest, but rather to a surge in the number of available jobs. Year to date through August, job opportunities were up by 26.28% over 2013, and 58.05% over '12.

There's another limiting factor at work here, and it's the increasingly broad skill set that would-be employers are calling for. “There is a clear increase in the variety of special skillsets real estate employers are seeking in commercial real estate, which is reflective of an industry adding complexity, particularly in its technology requirements,” says Funk.

Certain skills are becoming increasingly common job requirements, according to an analysis of data from jobs posted to SelectLeaders. Familiarity with a variety of software products is much more in demand now than it was even a few years ago. Other areas of expertise that were found to be more prevalent in job postings included accounting principles, knowledge of zoning and familiarity with low income housing tax credits.

Although remarkable for the number of opportunities that were presented, summer's surge in employment opportunities appears to portend a sustained uptick in hiring. “Institutional allocations to real estate are expected to again go up 49 basis points this year, international capital continues to target US real estate and $2.5 trillion sits in money market funds,” Funk observes.

Accordingly, says Funk, capital flows into real estate should sustain the employment picture despite interest rate and valuation concerns. The latest Cornell/SelectLeaders Job Barometer Report provides further analysis of the current outlook, and is available on GlobeSt.com by clicking here.

Instant Insights /

Q3 Industry Job Postings Hit New High

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