Real Estate Development Manager

Key Responsibilities

Market Planning & Site Sourcing

• Develop market growth plans by dividing assigned markets into trade areas and identifying opportunities for new store development and strategic acquisitions.
• Regularly travel throughout assigned markets to evaluate growth corridors, intersections, competition, traffic patterns, new development, and available properties.
• Proactively identify potential development sites through broker relationships, property-owner outreach, market intelligence, field research, and direct prospecting.
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with commercial real estate brokers, developers, landowners, municipalities, and other key market participants.
• Identify both on-market and off-market development opportunities.
• Monitor competitive activity and changing market conditions that may create new acquisition or development opportunities.

Site Evaluation & Financial Analysis

• Evaluate potential sites based on access, visibility, traffic patterns, demographics, competition, zoning, utilities, development constraints, market conditions, and overall strategic fit.
• Partner with Real Estate Analysts, Operations, Fuel, Construction, and other internal teams to determine whether potential sites meet financial and operational requirements.
• Provide market information, development assumptions, acquisition terms, and supporting data necessary to prepare financial models and investment recommendations.
• Evaluate potential development costs, risks, timing, and other considerations before recommending that the company pursue an opportunity.
• Prepare market summaries, site recommendations, and supporting materials for management review and approval.

Acquisition & Negotiation

• Negotiate letters of intent, purchase terms, purchase agreements, ground leases, and other real estate transactions in partnership with internal and external legal resources.
• Work directly with sellers, landlords, brokers, developers, attorneys, and other parties to move transactions toward successful execution.
• Understand market values and structure transactions that balance competitive acquisition terms with company financial objectives.
• Manage negotiations throughout the transaction process and work through issues that could impact closing or development feasibility.

Due Diligence & Entitlements

• Lead and coordinate due diligence activities for approved development opportunities.
• Partner with architects, civil engineers, attorneys, environmental consultants, traffic engineers, surveyors, and other consultants to evaluate and advance projects.
• Coordinate entitlement and municipal approval activities in partnership with internal and external resources.
• Develop productive relationships with local municipalities and government officials.
• Participate in zoning meetings, public hearings, planning commission meetings, and other governmental processes as necessary.
• Identify development risks early and work collaboratively with internal and external partners to develop solutions.
• Coordinate environmental, access, utility, zoning, permitting, and other development-related investigations.

Project Leadership

• Serve as the real estate point person for development opportunities from initial site identification through approval and turnover to Construction.
• Manage multiple active development opportunities simultaneously while maintaining schedules, priorities, budgets, and communication.
• Work closely with Operations, Construction, Finance, Legal, Fuel, Design, and other internal business partners throughout the development process.
• Maintain accurate project information, forecasts, budgets, schedules, and status updates.
• Present opportunities and recommendations to management for approval.
• Demonstrate ownership of projects while recognizing when changing economics, development constraints, or market conditions require reassessment of an opportunity.
• Ensure compliance with company policies, development standards, regulatory requirements, and approval processes.

Qualifications

Required

• Three or more years of experience in commercial real estate, site acquisition, land acquisition, development, corporate real estate, commercial brokerage, or a closely related field.
• Demonstrated experience identifying, evaluating, acquiring, or developing real estate opportunities.
• Experience participating in or leading real estate negotiations involving purchase agreements, leases, letters of intent, land contracts, or similar transactions.
• Strong relationship-building and negotiation skills.
• Ability to manage multiple active projects, deadlines, and priorities simultaneously.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work successfully with cross-functional teams and external partners.
• Self-motivated and comfortable working independently with limited day-to-day supervision.
• Ability and willingness to travel regularly throughout the assigned territory, including occasional overnight travel.
• Valid driver's license and satisfactory driving record.

Preferred

• Bachelor's degree in Real Estate, Finance, Business, or a related field. Relevant professional experience may be considered in place of formal education.
• Experience in retail, convenience store, fuel, restaurant/QSR, automotive, car wash, or other single-tenant commercial development.
• Experience sourcing off-market development opportunities.
• Existing relationships with commercial brokers, developers, landowners, and other real estate professionals.
• Experience with zoning, entitlements, permitting, municipal approvals, or public hearings.
• Experience preparing or supporting financial analyses for real estate transactions.
• Knowledge of North Carolina and Southeast commercial real estate markets.
• Experience using mapping, demographic, market research, financial analysis, or project-management software.

Ideal Candidate Profile

We are looking for someone who enjoys the deal-making side of real estate and takes ownership of opportunities.

The ideal candidate:

• Enjoys getting into markets and finding development opportunities.
• Builds strong relationships with brokers, property owners, developers, municipalities, and business partners.
• Is comfortable proactively prospecting for sites rather than waiting for opportunities to come to them.
• Understands how to evaluate whether a location makes both real estate and business sense.
• Enjoys negotiating and finding solutions to difficult transactions.
• Can work through development challenges without becoming discouraged.
• Knows when to keep pushing a good opportunity and when the economics or development risks indicate it is time to walk away.
• Communicates well with both internal leadership and external partners.
• Is curious, adaptable, self-directed, and interested in continuing to grow as a real estate professional.

Direct convenience store or fuel experience is valuable, but we are also interested in talented commercial real estate professionals with transferable development and acquisition experience who are interested in learning our business.

Why Join Our Real Estate Development Team?

This opportunity provides exposure to the complete retail real estate development lifecycle, from identifying an opportunity and negotiating the transaction through due diligence, entitlements, approvals, and project turnover.

Development Managers work closely with experienced real estate leaders and business partners across Operations, Finance, Construction, Legal, Fuel, Design, and other functions.

For someone who enjoys real estate, relationship building, negotiating deals, solving problems, and seeing a location progress from an idea to an operating business, this position provides an opportunity to make a visible impact while continuing to develop professionally.

Physical Requirements:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.  Complete physical activity inventory of the position includes:

• Sit for long periods of time.
• Operate computer keyboard and mouse for data entry.
• View computer monitor
• Hear and speak via telephone.
• Reach forward and/or overhead
• Occasionally lift up to 20 pounds

Work Environment:

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.  Working conditions inventory of the position includes:

• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate at a normal range.
• The lighting will include natural light from the outside as well as fluorescent lighting throughout the work areas.
• Work with minimum direction and periodic supervision.

THE ABOVE STATEMENTS REFLECT THE GENERAL QUALIFICATIONS / DUTIES AND /OR RESPONSIBILITIES NECESSARY TO IDENTIFY THE JOB AND ARE NOT NECESSARILY INTENDED TO SET FORTH ALL OF THE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS OF THE JOB.

NOTE:  This Job Description may change periodically as required by business necessity, with or without advance notice to employees.
 

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Circle K is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
The Company complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act (the ADA) and all state and local disability laws.  Applicants with disabilities may be entitled to a reasonable accommodation under the terms of the ADA and certain state or local laws as long as it does not impose an undue hardship on the Company. Please inform the Company’s Human Resources Representative if you need assistance completing any forms or to otherwise participate in the application process.

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