Associate/Senior Associate, Fund Controller, Real Estate in London

Locations: London, UK

Time type: Full time

Posted on: Posted Today

Job requisition id: R7688

Over the last 20 years, Ares’ success has been driven by our people and our culture. Today, our team is guided by our core values – Collaborative, Responsible, Entrepreneurial, Self-Aware, Trustworthy – and our purpose to be a catalyst for shared prosperity and a better future. Through our recruitment, career development and employee-focused programming, we are committed to fostering a welcoming and inclusive work environment where high-performance talent of diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives can build careers within this exciting and growing industry.

Background to Ares

Ares Management LLC (together with its related operating and administrative subsidiaries, “Ares Management”) is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer and considers all applicants for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, ethnicity, creed, sex, age, national origin, alienage or citizenship status, disability, medical condition, pregnancy, marital status, partnership status, sexual orientation, status regarding public assistance, military or veteran status, domestic violence victim status, gender identity and expression, transgender status, genetic information, status as unemployed, political affiliation or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law.

Ares Management will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance.

With approximately $306 billion in assets under management, Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) is one of the largest global alternative asset managers, with five complementary and market leading investment groups: credit, private equity real estate, secondary solutions, and strategic initiatives. The firm is headquartered in Los Angeles with offices across the United States, Europe, Asia, and Australia.

Ares Management Corporation's Real Estate Group manages comprehensive public and private, equity and debt strategies, with approximately $39.6 billion of assets under management as of December 31, 2021. Our Real Estate Group provides investors access to its capabilities through several vehicles including private commingled funds in the U.S. and Europe investing in equity and debt strategies, as well as Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (NYSE: ACRE), a publicly traded commercial mortgage real estate investment trust.

Our Real Estate Group's activities are managed by dedicated equity and debt teams in the U.S. and Europe. In total the Ares Real Estate Group is comprised of more than 205 professionals, of which more than 60 are based in Europe, with offices in 14 US cities, and in Europe offices in London, Paris, and Luxembourg.

Primary areas of focus for our Real Estate Group equity teams include Value-Add and Opportunistic strategies. Our European value-add strategy focuses on undermanaged and under-funded income-producing assets, including multifamily, office, industrial, and mixed-use retail properties across Western Europe. Our European opportunistic real estate strategy capitalises on increased investor demand for developed and stabilized assets by focusing on the repositioning of assets, capitalization of distressed and special situations, and development of core-quality assets across all major property types including multifamily, office, retail, and industrial properties throughout Europe.

In addition, for Real Estate Debt teams focus is on originating, core senior loans backed by proven sponsorship and secured by commercial real estate predominantly located in the major cities in US and Europe, through various Core Real Estate Debt Funds and SMAs, generating both levered and unlevered returns for the investors.

F&A Team Key Functions:

• Financial Reporting and Management

• Oversee and manage fund service providers (administrators, depositaries, banks) to ensure performance is in line with agreed service levels
• Liaise with a wide range of internal stakeholders and external service providers to ensure the quality and timely flow of financial data
• Oversee calculation of property performance, AUM, NAV, management fees, performance fees.
• Support preparation of financial statements, investor reports, capital statements, presentations, questionnaires, and Management Co. reports feeding into Ares public filing
• Provide deal support, including financial analysis and execution of deal cashflows
• Monitor cash and manage cash distribution process
• Allocate and review costs and expense recharges
• Manage audit and tax reporting processes
• Maintain fund dashboard and manage track record
• Review capital call and distribution notices and cash allocation schedules
• Prepare and review due diligence questionnaires, and presentations for fundraising

• Review of tax structuring paper in advance of acquisition
• Review acquisition / sale completion accounts
• Ensure acquisition accounting is accurately reflected in SPV / Propco accounts
• Engage service providers including local auditors
• Oversee property level and investment structure (SPV) level audits
• Review financial statements for several investment structure SPVs, and oversee ongoing accounting
• Review property level reporting from property managers, asset managers, and JV partners
• Review budgets prepared by joint venture partners and agree funding’s / distributions
• Liaise with deal team to ensure agreement of fundings / distributions
• Review capital activity documentation including drawdown and repayment notices on financing instruments, dividend declarations, and board meeting minutes and shareholder resolutions

• Contribute to the valuation process, calculation of gross to net adjustments and preparation of valuation committee materials
• Support investment decision process by maintaining fund models, providing scenario/sensitivity analysis, key property and financial metrics and KPIs
• Support budgeting and forecasting process with calculation of management fees and carried interest, and projected fund performance
• Support risk management processes with qualitative and quantitative fund data

• Cash management, including oversight of fund reserves and cash requirements.
• Manage fund level debt facilities (drawdowns, repayments, covenants, extensions)
• Manage FX risk (implement credit lines, scenario analysis, trade instruction and monitoring)

Overview:

Reporting to a Senior Fund Controller and joining a team of finance professionals based in London, Luxembourg and India. The individual will be expected to build strong working relationships across the European Real Estate operation (deal team, service providers) and the wider Ares business groups. The role will have a broad remit to oversee specific areas of responsibility for certain functions, depending on their level of skills and experience, as the Real Estate Group is looking to implement more technology to assist in automation and standardization (data and processes) in order to capture and analyse property, financial and performance level data.

Candidate Profile

• Strong academics, preferably degree from a top tier university and a qualified ACA/ACCA/CIMA
• 1+ years PQE, with real estate private equity experience
• Strong financial/analytical and problem-solving skills
• Detail oriented with a proven track record for accuracy
• Ability to establish priorities and meet deadlines in a fast-paced, high growth environment
• Enthusiastic, hardworking, and a team player, confident in dealing with people
• Willing to take control and responsibility but also happy to work within a wider team