Senior Associate, Operations & Closing

Purpose And Job Summary

Lead the execution of CRE loan closing and funding within a commercial real estate debt investment platform, ensuring transactions are accurately documented, and funded in line with credit approvals, financing requirements, and internal controls. Act as the central operational coordinator across Credit, Legal, Treasury, Asset Management, and Capital Markets, driving timely close, clean funding, and seamless integrations into ongoing portfolio management and reporting processes. Support broader investment activity—securitization readiness, transfers, and investor deliverables—by ensuring transaction-level accuracy, control, and consistency.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

• Closing and Funding Coordination
• Lead end-to-end execution of loan closings from credit approval through funding and post-close completion.
• Manage closing timelines and issue tracking; confirm completeness of deliverables prior to funding and ensure consistency with internal procedures and controls.
• Own closing operations, including title/escrow coordination, conditions precedent tracking, and execution of loan documentation (signature collection and authority verification).
• Prepare, review, and reconcile lender’s statements, settlement statements, and sources/uses; ensure accuracy of all closing economics.
• Compile and deliver complete funding packages; coordinate wire requests, approvals, and timing with Treasury.
• Complete post-closing deliverables and closing packages for downstream partners (servicers, fund admin, trustees/custodians as applicable).
• Coordinate loan boarding and transition to Asset Management / Servicing.
• Fund Execution, Investor & Compliance Coordination
• Support capital markets and financing activities, including securitization transactions (CLO / warehouse), pool formation, and closing readiness (secondary support role).
• Interface with note administrators, investors, financing counterparties, and rating agencies; support delivery of transaction-related materials (data room management).
• Track and coordinate loan modifications, approvals, and documentation in partnership with Asset Management and Legal.
• Maintain strong document control, version control, and audit-ready records.
• Vendor and Contract Management
• Support management of third-party vendor relationships and contracts related to transaction execution and operations, including maintaining a centralized inventory of agreements with key terms, renewal timelines, and service scope.
• Cook up vendor onboarding, contract renewals, amendments, and performance monitoring, including tracking documentation, compliance requirements, approvals, service levels, and administration of licenses and user access.
• Operational Technology and Systems Support
• Support oversight of team technology needs across closing and operations workflows, ensuring tools align with execution requirements.
• Aid with coordination and execution of system implementations, enhancements, and process integrations; serve as a day-to-day point of contact for system questions and issue triage with internal technology teams or vendors.
• Promote consistent system usage and adherence to defined processes, data standards, and workflows; support maintenance of process documentation, user guides, and training materials.
• Identify workflow improvement opportunities through better system utilization or enhancements and escalate recommendations as appropriate.

Education, Skills & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Real Estate, Accounting, or related field.
• 5+ years of experience in CRE loan closing, transaction management, or portfolio operations, within a debt fund or structured finance environment.
• Experience with complex CRE loans (bridge, construction, transitional assets) and structured financings (CLOs, warehouse lines, or similar vehicles) preferred.
• Strong understanding of CRE loan structures, closing processes, documentation, and settlement mechanics.
• Familiarity with structured credit / fund-level execution requirements and transaction deliverables (e.g., investor/counterparty materials and data room management).
• Experience working within and across pipeline, collateral loan and document management, and servicing systems to support deal intake through post-close execution and reporting; experience supporting system implementations, enhancements, and/or integrations is a plus.
• Strong document control discipline, including version control and audit-ready recordkeeping.
• Strong project management discipline (checklists, trackers, issue resolution) and high attention to detail.
• Ability to manage multiple transactions under tight timelines.
• Clear and professional communication with internal leaders and external counterparties.
• Ability to proactively identify issues, drive alignment, and close execution gaps.

Pay

Annual base salary gross: $100,000 - 130,000 (NY only) with the potential to earn incentives based on production.