Financial Analyst
Cushman & Wakefield • Chicago, Illinois • Full Time
Posted on Fri, Jun 5, 2026
Job Title
Financial AnalystJob Description Summary
The selected candidate will support Chicago-based brokerage teams, as well as multi-market professionals, by delivering financial analysis and advisory services for both private and public sector clients. This role reports to the Occupier Financial Advisory organization.The Financial Analyst is responsible for maintaining proprietary Excel-based financial models and for preparing financial comparisons in support of Cushman & Wakefield’s brokerage platform, as well as other service lines as needed. The role includes developing detailed financial analyses of projected occupancy costs associated with lease renewals and relocations. This involves comparative evaluation of various real estate strategies, including lease vs. own, build-to-suit scenarios, and sale-leaseback structures. The Analyst may also support investment-related analyses for occupier clients, including basic underwriting and valuation in connection with asset acquisitions and dispositions.
Job Description
- Prepares complex pre-tax cash flow analyses, lease comparisons, lease restructures, lease vs buy, acquisitions/dispositions, strategic real estate alternatives, subleases, sale leasebacks, cancellations/buyouts, relocations, build-to suits, and other strategic real estate alternatives
- Makes recommendations to brokers and other service line professionals
- Provides knowledge and analytical skills covering a broad range of real estate products and transactions structures including lease comparisons, lease restructures, lease vs buy, sale-leaseback’s, cancellations/buyouts, acquisitions/dispositions, strategic real estate alternatives, subleases, relocations, and build-to-suits
- Reads, abstracts and analyzes complex legal real estate related documentation to include leases, financing/loan agreements, mortgage documents, partnership agreements, and corporate financial statements for relevant financial information that will impact the assignment
- Prepares clear, concise, and presentation ready documentation and spreadsheets that support and explain the basis of the analyses for use in client presentations, proposals and/or reports
- Supports C&W brokers, or other C&W professionals, with client meetings arming them with quality information to present and discuss as needed. Professional, and customer service oriented with opportunity to become client-facing with experience
- Assists in the quality control effort to ensure that all client presentation materials are professional, accurate, high impact and reflect the standards of quality normally associated with C&W work product
- May assist and participate in strategy sessions in preparation for conferences with clients
- Participation in all Financial Analysis calls and meetings
- Ability to work on-site in the Chicago office up to 5 days/week, to be discussed/negotiated with hiring manager
Minimum Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree preferably in finance, accounting, real estate or related business areas experience
- 1-3 years of commercial real estate experience with knowledge of commercial real estate economics, investment analysis, and real estate cash flow projections
- Advanced proficiency in MS Excel, proficiency in financial modeling, analytical and word processing software including, Microsoft Office Suite
- Excel VBA knowledge preferred but not required
- A working knowledge of GAAP for lease analysis and other types of real estate transactions preferred but not required
- ARGUS and/or ProCalc experience or knowledge is preferred but not required
Required Skills
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills are essential for client and broker interaction
- Ability to prioritize, multi-task, and handle time-related deliverables on high functioning deal teams
- Attention to detail; perform basic, efficient, error-free modeling and analysis
- Understanding and comfort around concepts around finance, accounting, investments
Cushman & Wakefield also provides eligible employees with an opportunity to enroll in a variety of benefit programs, generally including health, vision, and dental insurance, flexible spending accounts, health savings accounts, retirement savings plans, life, and disability insurance programs, and paid and unpaid time away from work. In addition to a comprehensive benefits package, Cushman and Wakefield provide eligible employees with competitive pay, which may vary depending on eligibility factors such as geographic location, date of hire, total hours worked, job type, business line, and applicability of collective bargaining agreements.
The compensation that will be offered to the successful candidate will depend on factors such as whether the position is covered by a collective bargaining agreement, the geographic area in which the work will be performed, market pay rates in that area, and the candidate’s experience and qualifications.
The company will not pay less than minimum wage for this role.
The compensation for the position is: $ 68,000.00 - $80,000.00Cushman & Wakefield is an Equal Opportunity employer to all protected groups, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. Discrimination of any type will not be tolerated.
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA), if you have a disability and would like to request an accommodation in order to apply for a position at Cushman & Wakefield, please call the ADA line at 1-888-365-5406 or email Accommodations@cushwake.com. Please refer to the job title and job location when you contact us.
INCO: “Cushman & Wakefield”