Correction: The original version of this article attributed the list to The CREW Network. The list was actually put together by Quinn PR using the research from CREW as a catalyst for why these women deserve recognition on International Women’s Day.
To celebrate Women’s History Month, we are sharing a list of the 14 of the most influential women in real estate today assembled by Quinn PR. The list includes women that handle leadership roles at their respective companies, and who also bring a diverse expertise to the table, ranging from retail real estate to multifamily to hotels and short-term rentals.
Since 1989, The CREW Network has sought to bring together women involved in the many aspects of commercial real estate to exchange information, develop business contacts and help each other succeed professionally. Today, the association counts 12,000 members worldwide. Quinn PR cited the research from CREW as a catalyst for why these women deserve recognition on International Women’s Day.
One of the group's big projects is a benchmark study it has produced four times measuring the commercial real estate industry's progress in improving its diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Its most recent study, completed in 2020, saw a 5.4 percent increase in women respondents 39 years old and younger, indicating a growing generation of young and emerging women professionals in the industry. Also, more women occupied brokerage positions than ever before (29 percent), a 6 percent increase from 2015 and more women (32 percent) are aspiring to the C-suite, a 4 percent increase from 2015.
However, the study also found that women comprise only 36.7 percent of the commercial real estate industry professionals, a percentage that has not changed much over the last 15 years. In addition, women continue to earn less than men. In 2020, the fixed salary gap between genders was 10.2 percent and the commission and bonus gap was a staggering 55.9 percent. And overall, women still hold just 9 percent of C-suite positions in commercial real estate.
The following gallery highlights the selections with brief bios for each executive.