What Does a Real Estate Acquisitions Manager Do?
A real estate acquisitions manager’s primary job is to meet with home sellers — either in person or virtually — to present offers and close deals. In these meetings, they assess the condition of the property, determine if any repairs are needed, and evaluate the financial aspect of the deal to determine if it would be a profitable investment. In short, they’re responsible for identifying, negotiating, and closing deals on properties.
Acquisitions managers also need to be skilled in structuring deals, which is why it’s important for them to focus on mastering tactics for closing deals, honing their sales skills, and having a strong understanding of real estate financing — whether that’s through hard money lenders or private money lenders.
How Much Does an Acquisitions Manager Earn?
Real estate acquisitions managers usually get paid with a combination of base salary and commission. On average, they can earn around $60,000 to $100,000 per year as a base salary. Some companies offer a base salary plus commission based on the number of deals closed, while others pay only on commission, or a mix of both.
Commission Structure
The standard commission rate for acquisitions managers is between 10–15%. However, this rate may fluctuate depending on the size of the profit from a closed deal.
Do You Need to Hire an Acquisitions Manager?
It’s not necessary if you don’t have a significant number of leads to make offers to. However, as the number of leads increases and becomes too much to handle on your own, you’re going to need to hire one. This is where having a strong lead manager feeding qualified leads to the acquisitions team becomes critical.
Key Qualifications
- Outstanding sales and people skills
- Self-starter mentality
- Skilled negotiator
- Can read people effectively and build lasting relationships
- Good understanding of technology
- Knows which contracts are needed to close a deal
- Solid buyers list
- Understands exit strategies, financing, offers, and repair cost estimation
- Excellent communication skills
- Phone sales or customer service experience is a plus
- US real estate knowledge and experience required
Key Responsibilities
- Speaking to motivated sellers to present offers
- Sending out purchase agreements and reviewing them with sellers
- Negotiating with sellers to get the lowest price possible
- Follow-ups and maintaining a pipeline of leads
- Staying in contact with the transaction coordinator throughout closing
- Evaluating and acquiring deals to get under contract
- Running the numbers — comps, after-repair value, tax assessment, repair cost, equity
- Marketing each property under contract and finding a cash buyer
- Getting all paperwork to the transaction coordinator for closing
If you’re running a startup and have a tight budget, consider hiring a virtual acquisitions manager through platforms like Upwork, Onlinejobs.ph, or Fiverr. As your business grows and you start wholesaling or flipping houses more frequently, having a dedicated acquisitions manager becomes essential.
