Asset Manager

Keller Augusta - Wilmington, DE

Full-time

Wilmington, DE

Administrative and Support Services

About the position

The Asset Manager will be responsible for the day-to-day financial asset management of a three million square foot portfolio of office properties located in the Philadelphia MSA, with a concentration in the Wilmington, DE market. This role is crucial in maximizing the value of assigned assets through the coordination and implementation of both near-term and long-term property business plans and strategies. The Asset Manager will oversee all financial matters for the portfolio, which includes cash management, lease analysis, budgets, capital improvement projects, and investor correspondence. In this position, the Asset Manager will work closely with various teams, including senior management, finance, accounting, leasing, operations, legal, and construction teams. The role requires establishing a single point of contact for asset information, oversight, and decision-making, supported by senior management. The Asset Manager will enhance and implement processes for tracking asset performance and providing institutional-level reporting to investors on a quarterly and annual basis. Additionally, the Asset Manager will be the primary contact for communication and approvals with lenders and equity partners as required. The responsibilities also include analyzing and providing recommendations on investment and operational decisions, such as lease negotiations, property capitalization strategies, property sales strategies, and capital improvement programs. The Asset Manager will implement strategies to maximize the financial performance of the assigned assets, coordinate, approve, and present annual property budgets and forecasts, and monitor the overall performance of assigned assets against established goals and approved budgets. Furthermore, the role involves completing financial analyses of prospective leasing deals, maintaining property Argus files, and coordinating lease administration communication flows on assigned assets. The Asset Manager will also complete annual mark-to-market valuations of the portfolio to determine buy/sell/hold recommendations and forecast investor returns.

Responsibilities

• Assume day-to-day asset management related responsibilities working directly with members of senior management, finance, accounting, leasing, operations, legal and construction teams.
• Establish one point of contact for asset information, oversight, and decision-making, with the support of senior management.
• Enhance/implement process for tracking asset performance and providing institutional level reporting to the investors on a quarterly and annual basis.
• Primary contact for communication/approvals with lenders and equity partners, as required.
• Analyze and provide recommendations on investment and operational decisions such as lease negotiations, property capitalization strategies, property sales strategies, and capital improvement programs.
• Implement strategies to maximize the financial performance of the assigned assets.
• Coordinate, approve and present annual property budgets and forecasts.
• Monitor overall performance of assigned assets against established goals and approved budgets.
• Complete financial analyses of prospective leasing deals, maintain property Argus files and coordinate lease administration communication flows on assigned assets.
• Complete annual mark-to-market valuation of the portfolio to determine buy/sell/hold recommendation and forecast investor returns.
• Work with property managers and responsible parties on preparation of annual budgets and business plans for each asset and pool of assets.
• Analyze expenses relating to real estate tax appeals, energy conservation, insurance, cleaning, security, etc.
• Establish property capital needs and corresponding costs, and evaluate the impact to cash flows/shortfalls.
• Oversee implementation and necessary funding.
• Work with accounting team to track funding/completion of capital expenditures and tenant improvement projects.
• Analyze Monthly/Annual Budget vs. Actual individual property and portfolio results: Track positive or negative trends and potential issues.
• Oversee waterfalls and distributions to investors.
• Continually monitor rollover exposure for effects on value.
• Reinforce lines of communication between property management and senior management to facilitate respective responsibilities, current processes and contribute/assist where possible.
• Create and maintain annual distribution budgets and track quarterly distributions and provide detailed explanation of variance as applicable.
• Communicate with in-house Leasing Managers and agents- attend weekly in-house leasing meetings, as well as periodical third party leasing agent meetings.
• In conjunction with in-house leasing team, establish financial leasing guidelines (term, rate, TIs, LCs) and ensure that prospective lease deals are in-line with projections/underwriting.
• Establish leasing assumptions for annual budgets.
• Review/Analyze lease proposals with Excel or Argus to understand effect on value.
• Continued oversight of lease approvals and the process.
• Directly communicate with lenders and equity partners if lease approval is required.
• Ensure proposed lease approvals or rejections occur in a timely fashion.
• Maintain general knowledge of local market conditions and competition.
• Partner with Capital Markets team on the refinancing and recapitalization of assets with the support of the finance team.
• Track assets and sub-portfolios looking for disposition and financing opportunities.
• Prepare Hold/Sell Analysis.
• Lead efforts with Capital Markets team on loan/partnership restructurings.
• Work with Operations/Accounting to provide a roll-up of monthly financial results for the portfolio.
• Prepare investor reporting and detail performance/trends/highlights.
• Monitor assets with current/potential risk issues.
• Prepare Annual Business Plans.
• Maintain portfolio debt schedule and monitor loan expirations in order to manage upcoming maturities and mitigate financing-related risks.
• Lead investor calls and meetings.
• Provide financial support for company semi-annual board meetings.
• Prepare annual mark-to-market asset valuations for possible dispositions/refinancing/capital infusion decisions.
• Provide summary of market valuations - assumptions, period to period comparisons.
• Point of contact for communication to any third-party appraisers, providing required information and reviewing draft appraisals.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in finance, business administration or other related field required.
• Minimum 5-7 years real estate experience.
• Strong quantitative skills and financial analysis experience.
• Excellent financial and analytic skills and demonstrated proficiency with financial modeling.
• Ability to use Excel spreadsheets and Argus to perform return analysis of potential deals/investments.
• Knowledge of real estate valuation principles and techniques, as they relate to acquisition, renovation, disposition, and financing of real estate assets would be helpful.
• Excellent attention to detail.
• Reasoning Ability: Define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions.
• Proven written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Proficiency in ARGUS, MS Word, Excel, and database applications.
• Ability to work successfully as an individual and on a team.
• Experience interacting with lenders and institutional equity investors preferred.
• Expertise in transaction analysis and transaction negotiation/documentation. Proven effective negotiation skills.