Consultant - Real Estate

Job Title

Consultant – Real Estate

Reporting to

Chief Executive Officer/Chief Operating Officer

Supervisor

Nil

Full Team

Nil

Job Purpose

The job-holder is the key technical expert in the Bank for ensuring that construction related credit risks are identified, assessed and monitored for the following businesses of the Bank:

1. Contract financing, real estate construction and income producing properties loans
2. Escrow account business
3. Other commercial real estate related financing businesses
4. Properties owned by the Bank

Assessment of the technical capabilities of the contractors being financed by the bank, viability of the contracts being financed and ongoing monitoring of all contract financing with monthly reports to the Management, assisting the Escrow account department in ensuring all RERA and other regulations are complied with, and provide expert opinion on the real estate owned by the Bank are the key requirements of the job.

Manage both the overall P & L of the properties owned by the bank:

1. Occupancy Rates & Rentals / revenues. Optimize the revenue based on opportunities
2. Costs associated with these properties in terms of property management and other fees
3. Any sale of property proposals
4. Underlying property management contract review
5. Property visitation and inspection at regular intervals
6. Review proposals for refitting or refurbishing some of these properties as required to ensure the building quality is improved

Review all new proposals to build properties on lands owned by the bank in terms of costs, contractor bids, timelines, and measures to improve returns through sale or rent strategies, conversion from leasehold to freehold, etc.

Key Accountabilities

Liaise with engineering departments of the contracting customers and Escrow account holders of the Bank.

Prepare Technical Capability Report (TCR) of each contractor of the Bank before onboarding of the customers to assess the contractor’s track record and resources including manpower and equipment, with the objective of ensuring that the contractors have the technical and management capabilities to carry out contracts successfully.

Review project contracts, letters of award (LOA) and project cash flows and prepare Project Assessment Reports (PAR) at the time of the Bank allocating contract specific credit limits to assess the contract risks of each financing.

Approve all PPCs (Project Payment Certificates) before discounting by the Bank.

Escrow:

Sign off on all the debits to the Escrow accounts by assessing the project consultant’s payment approvals and carrying out physical site inspections of the project completion to ensure the Bank satisfies the RERA/DLD/RAK regulations.

Approve monthly payment applications and other management payments and check if the requested payment is according to the progress of the work and the project planning.

Monitor all projects cost and progress according to Escrow regulations and guidelines within all operations.

Attend periodic meetings between the client and RERA, Dubai Land Department (DLD)/Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) Escrow team.

Liaise with all concerned departments i.e. Legal, Finance, CCAD, Coverage when required.

Carry out minimum quarterly site visits on projects financed by the Bank, and submit Project Progress Reports (PPRs), while highlighting any concerns and risks to the Bank.

Deliver detailed periodic projects progress reports to DLD and Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) municipality Escrow teams.

Respond promptly to enquiries from Internal and External Auditors, and work with the Management to resolve issues as needed.

Work continuously on staying up to date with regards to the DLD, RERA and RAK Municipality regulations and market developments and make presentations to the Management.

Apart from the duties and responsibilities listed above, perform any other additional duties as advised by the Management from time to time.

Feedback from Corporate Relationship Managers, CCAD, Escrow team and Credit Risk regarding the quality of TCRs, PARs, PPRs and reports to Dubai Land Dept (DLD), RERA RAK Municipality and other regulators.

Any adverse comments or findings by the external auditor appointed to carry out an audit of the Escrow department every year which pertain to the Engineer’s duties and responsibilities.

Timely and accurate management of correspondences and letters from RERA/RAK/DLD.

Number of errors & shortcomings and Internal Audit comments.

Compliance to BOS policies, procedures and processes.

SPECIFICATION

Qualifications, Certificate, License

BA in Engineering, Construction, or another relevant field.

Experience:

Minimum 15 years of experience in a similar role. Must have prior experience of having worked as an engineering consultant in a real estate construction firm or property development firm. Experience of working in a real estate agency to handle leasing, property management or property sales is a strong plus.

Skills:

Good working knowledge of RERA requirements.

Language skills:

Fluent in Arabic and English.

Knowledge:

Technical engineering and construction related knowledge, RERA, DLD, RAK Municipality guidelines on Escrow, dependability & attention to details, organization capabilities – ability to prioritize and meet internal and external deadlines, customer service and responsiveness, planning & organizing, basic contract financing and construction financing knowledge, strong verbal and written communication skills.

Living Bank’s Values.