Senior Associate, CMBS Debt

Bellwether•El Segundo, CA

2d•$140,000 - $140,000•Onsite

About The Position

We are looking for a Senior Associate, CMBS Debt to join the rapidly growing Debt Team at Bellwether, with a focus on CMBS and CRE-structured products (SASB, CRE CLO, Conduit, etc.). The ideal candidate is a savvy problem solver who thrives in a fast-paced, challenging environment and consistently exceeds expectations. We are seeking an agile team player who enjoys working cross-functionally with different parts of the organization. An ideal candidate will have experience with fixed income products, commercial real estate asset management, and servicer/special servicer oversight.

Requirements

5â8+ years of relevant experience in CMBS, structured products, commercial real estate credit, or a related institutional investment role. Work experience with CMBS asset management, credit surveillance, CMBS originations, and/or rating agencies is preferred.
Fixed income experience, including portfolio management of CMBS positions, familiarity with fixed income analysis tools, and price/yield analytics.
Familiarity with large relational data structure across the deal, loan, property, and tenant levels.
Familiarity with SQL, Python, VBA, Power BI, Tableau, or similar tools to automate surveillance and reporting is strongly preferred.
Working knowledge of CMBS and CRE CLO deal mechanics, including waterfalls, triggers, advancing, appraisal reduction amounts, losses, control rights, and special servicing dynamics.
Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint and Intex. Strong working knowledge of Trepp, Bloomberg, CoStar, and similar surveillance platforms.
Experience with property underwriting and advanced financial modeling.
Prior experience reviewing or mentoring junior analysts/associates and helping coordinate team workflows is preferred.
Experience presenting and leading meetings with clients and senior level team members.
Bachelor's degree in economics, Finance, Mathematics, Engineering, Computer Science, or related field.
Strong attention to detail, organizational skills, and ability to multitask. Ability to read and analyze investment, lease, loan and management agreements. Property underwriting and advanced financial modeling skills. Proficiency with Excel and CRE loan servicing software. Fluency with CMBS and broader structured products. Experience with or understanding of basic capital market principles including interest rate calculations and basic bond math.
Ability to perform responsibilities independently and proactively, solve problems, and improve processes and/or services. Self-directed, takes initiative and responsibility, ensures completion of tasks.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills; strong listening and interpersonal skills. Highly effective at preparing and presenting information.
Acts with honesty and integrity and maintains confidentiality, adheres to company policies. Promotes a collaborative and productive work environment. Demonstrates team building, support and respect.

Responsibilities

Own the proactive monitoring and management of a portfolio of Conduit / CLO SASB investments;
Monitor credit performance at the portfolio, deal, loan, property, tenant, and bond levels, identifying material changes in cash flow, occupancy, tenant rollover, debt service coverage, valuation, refinance risk, watchlist migration, and default probability;
Lead periodic re-underwriting and reforecasting of collateral and bond cash flows, incorporating updated property performance, market assumptions, refinancing scenarios, appraisal changes, and structural features;
Develop and communicate actionable investment recommendations including hold, add, reduce, or sell decisions based on collateral fundamentals, bond structure, expected loss, relative value, liquidity, and total return considerations;
Maintain portfolio watchlists and risk stratification frameworks, highlighting near-term maturity risk, trigger exposure, concentration risk, specially serviced assets, and other positions requiring heightened surveillance;
Liaise with special servicers, master servicers and trustees to ensure appropriate actions are taken on behalf of Bellwetherâs clients;
Analyze and interpret remittance reports, servicer commentary, rating agency actions, trustee reporting, legal documents, and market news to assess credit developments and escalation needs;
Leverage Intex, Trepp, Bloomberg, CoStar, Vichara, Axiometrics, and other internal/external data sources to improve surveillance efficiency, data integrity, and investment decision-making;
Build, enhance, and maintain scalable surveillance tools, reports, and dashboards that support portfolio monitoring, exception reporting, and management visibility across a large position count;
Prepare investment memoranda, surveillance summaries, and portfolio updates for senior management, investment committees, and clients, clearly articulating key risks, mitigants, and recommended actions;
Mentor junior team members and help manage workflow, including review of analyses, prioritization of assignments, and development of best practices for underwriting and surveillance; and
Support ad hoc client requests.