Career Decision

[Brett Willette]

I am a graduate accounting student at the University of Missouri in Columbia, MO. I have been listening to podcasts and reading forum posts on BiggerPockets for the past 6 months or so. After graduation, I plan on starting a career as a CPA and trying out real estate on the side. If I am successful, I would like to do real estate full time. I have two job offers from firms in St. Louis, MO. The pay and benefits are basically identical. The only difference is that one deals heavily in real estate clientele(small regional firm), and the other has no real estate clients(Big 4 firm). Would being an auditor for real estate companies be beneficial to starting real estate investing and learning the basics? Or should that not be a factor in my decision? The companies I would audit would be a variety: commercial RE businesses, management companies, partnerships, investment funds, and financial institutions. I know there are a lot a CPAs on here, and I would appreciate any advice. Thanks in advance!!

[Natalie Kolodij]

Originally posted by @Brett Willette:

@Peter MacKercher Thank you so much for the input! Time has been my biggest concern. I know during busy season, hours can be insane. I am hoping that I will be able to start during the summer or down times. We'll see how that goes. Realistically, I will start when(and if) I leave public accounting. In the meantime, I will do just what you have suggested; learn and save. Thanks again!! 

 Hello Brett, 

I'm a public accountant who went through a similar situation. 

Does knowing real estate from work help? Absolutely. Will you be able to put a decent amount of time into RE if you're working large firm hours? Absolutely not. 

Am I going to message you to offer you my personal advice? Yep.