Women in Commercial Real Estate BY LEE NELSON
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ommercial division manager at Century 21 Commercial in Fairfield Lorie Montenigro thrives off of the challenges of working in the male-dominated commercial real estate industry. According to the National Association of Realtors® 2020 Commercial Specialty Report, only 28 percent of those with a primary commercial specialty are female. However, 56 percent of NAR members with a primary specialty in both commercial and residential were female. Before earning her real estate license in 2001, Montenigro owned a couple of bars and restaurants, and it seemed to be a natural transition to helping others buy and sell commercial properties. Rosemarie Caruso worked in residential real estate for a few months and knew it just didn’t jive with her advertising and marketing background. 24 years in the commercial industry, and she is now the director/broker of Turton Commercial Real Estate, an affiliate company of Diane Turton’s Realtors® in Toms River. “More and more, I see women getting into commercial real estate on different levels,” said Caruso. “The larger national commercial companies are trying to promote them.” Something agents coming from the residential segment of the industry have to understand is that the commissions are usually bigger than residential real estate, but you can work on a deal for months or years. According to Caruso, the deals can fall apart for many reasons from environmental issues to funding. “You have to be able to accept it, and the first time you lose that $100,000 commission, it stings,” Caruso said. Caruso didn’t have many obstacles working with men, “There’s just so much business to be had out there. If they didn’t want to work with me, then I just moved on to those men who are comfortable working with a woman.” Montenigro dealt with small businesses for a long time until one of her clients showed interest in warehouse real estate, which is a segment of the market even fewer women handle. “I really needed to learn the industrial laws and specifications to represent this client and give him exactly what he was looking for. I stayed up till 4 a.m. every night for a couple of months, and now I have knowledge in industrial properties as I did in bars and restaurants,” said Montenigro. Working in the commercial real estate industry, according to Montenigro, you need have a clear understanding of business.
For instance, when working with bars and restaurants, there are specifications and regulations such as health codes, cost of equipment, blueprints, liquor license laws and more. You have to put the time in to do research and to best cater to your clients, you have to understand where they are coming from, according to Caruso. According to Montenigro, your research doesn’t end at knowing the ins and outs of businesses, it’s also important to research particular cultural beliefs. With New Jersey’s proximity between major cities such as New York and Philadelphia, New Jersey commercial agents often have international clients. As a woman, you have to stick to the cultural guidelines of other ethnic groups. For example, men are not allowed to shake a woman’s hand in some cultures, and in others, women are supposed to walk behind a man, according to Montenigro. “The frustrations that normally come to a woman in a male-dominated industry are something that I’m used to,” Montenigro said. “But I thrive off of a challenge. I figure out my way around it.”
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