When it comes to egalitarian industries, real estate has a better track record than most. Women working in real estate today outnumber, and often outearn, their male counterparts by a wide margin.
However, despite these gains, the statistics are still a bit sobering: Men still fill more than half of the leadership roles in the real estate industry. Anecdotally, at least, this gap tends to widen instead of shrink as prices creep into the luxury end of most markets.
Of course, these are just numbers on a page.
To put a human face on these statistics, we talked to six prominent women in leadership roles at Coldwell Banker to get their take on the state of female leadership in Silicon Valley, Miami, Houston, and Austin.
Here’s what they told us.
The Locals Real Estate Team: Silicon Valley
Realtors: Carrie Caggiano, Daunielle Doughty, and Kathie Kingston
Team/brokerage: The Locals, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Location: Los Gatos, California
Years of experience: The Locals have a combined 56 years of real estate experience
About The Locals real estate team: The aptly named team, The Locals, are led by a group of real estate professionals who were born and raised in the Bay Area, so they are true locals to their marketplace. Silicon Valley has attracted residents from all corners of the world due to its tech boom, making it rare to find a group of experts who intimately know the history of the area firsthand. The team will provide residential real estate services in Los Gatos, San Jose, Sunnyvale, South County, and throughout the rest of Silicon Valley and the Bay Area.
Have you noticed a change in the way female leaders in the industry are treated since you started working in real estate?
Caggiano: “We’ve been working in the real estate industry for about 20 years each, in a local market where males have traditionally dominated all industries. There have certainly been shifts in the roles that women occupy in our industry, with more women taking the spotlight to be the leaders of brokerages, holding management level positions, sitting in high profile executive positions and running very successful real estate businesses on their own. Although real estate has always been a women-dominated industry in the number of licensed agents, we have not always seen the number of leaders or top agents in this industry being female. I think there has been a major shift over the past decade, but there is certainly room for improvement.”
Have you or a team member experienced discrimination from clients or other agents in the past year? What happened?
Doughty: “We haven’t experienced overt discrimination and generally feel that we are on a level playing field. However, we personally have had to juggle a lot of responsibilities while growing our businesses that some of our male counterparts may not have experienced. This is why we were motivated to launch an all-women partnership, as we think it is valuable to share our business with a group of individuals that are like minded and have similar experiences. In this case, it was a group of women that met those needs. The team leaders each have families and two decades of successful real estate experience to boot. If one of us has to run off to a child’s basketball game, we can do so confidently knowing that we are supported by our team members who can continue to provide high-level customer care and, ultimately, offer understanding because they’ve been in the same boat.”
Do you think that the real estate industry in your city is generally egalitarian, or are there still elements of the ‘old boys’ club?’
Caggiano: “Women are definitely playing a game of catch-up in this industry. The real estate industry has many facets. As agents, we feel we have the same opportunities as men do in our field. The executive management space is still unbalanced, but we do see more talented and skilled women, especially within our company, with executive, high-profile, decision-making positions. Having more women leading the industry in high-level roles will offer great benefits to the agents and consumers.”
What do you think needs to change either on an individual basis or for the industry as a whole to get more women into leadership positions?
Kingston: “Women need to continue to support each other. One of the main motivators of the launch of our team, The Locals, was the ability for us as team leaders to impart our industry knowledge and mentor other women who are just beginning their careers. Also, women need to apply and pursue for high level positions. The women that are in leadership positions within their companies are an inspiration. We see so much diversity in our industry, and it is encouraging to see the diversity grow in the executive level of management. In short, women need to go for it.”
The Jamie McMartin Group: Houston
Realtor: Jamie McMartin
Team/brokerage: The Jamie McMartin Group. Coldwell Banker United, Realtors, Houston
Location: Katy, Texas
Years of experience: 13 years
About The Jamie McMartin Group: The Jamie McMartin Group is constantly the top producing group and in the Million Dollars a Month Club for Coldwell Banker United, Realtors in the Katy and Houston areas. The Jamie McMartin Group, an affiliate sales team with Coldwell Banker’s Katy office, is led by Jamie McMartin. Her designations include Cartus Network Affinity Specialist (CNAS), certified negotiation specialist (CNS), and a luxury property specialist.
The team consistently ranks as the top small team with the company, earning them the prestigious International President’s Elite Team designation for their exceptional sales performance. The Jamie McMartin Group has more than 40 years of combined real estate experience and proudly serves the communities of West Houston and Katy.
Have you noticed a change in the way female leaders in the industry are treated since you started working in real estate?
McMartin: “I have always thought of real estate as a predominantly female-ruled industry, maybe because I always look toward surrounding myself with powerful female figures. Kate Rossi―regional executive vice president of Coldwell Banker―is a great example of a great leader who has paved the way. She is a fearless and successful leader but, at the same time, takes the time to connect and provide support.”
Have you or a team member experienced discrimination from clients or other agents in the past year? What happened?
McMartin: “Not to my knowledge, I feel that Coldwell Banker does a great job at treating everyone equally and fairly. The focus is on good old fashioned hard work, ethics, and dedication.”
Do you think that the real estate industry in your city is generally egalitarian, or are there still elements of the ‘old boys’ club?’
McMartin: “Seems predominantly egalitarian in our area.”
What do you think needs to change either on an individual basis or for the industry as a whole to get more women into leadership positions?
McMartin: “I think it’s about creating the space and encouraging more women to join and to work toward positions that they want in leadership without hesitation, on both levels. As a team leader, it’s important to me to lead through my actions and my conviction, and brokerages must do the same. Coldwell Banker has done a great job at eliminating a glass ceiling, in my opinion.”
Helen Edwards: Agent & Former President of Coldwell Banker, United Realtors Austin
Name: Helen Edwards
Team/brokerage: Coldwell Banker, United Realtors, Austin
Location: Austin, Texas
Years of experience: 29
About Helen Edwards: For 20 years, Edwards led Coldwell Banker United, Realtors franchise in a variety of executive positions. From 2004 until December 2017, Edwards served as the company president. Currently, she is a member of the Austin Board of Realtors (ABoR), the Williamson County Association of Realtors, and the Houston Board of Realtors. Previously, Edwards served on the boards of directors for ABoR and the Williamson County of Association of Realtors, representing more than 12,000 licensed agents.
With that extensive leadership experience, Edwards is well-versed about trends, hot topics, and technology as they impact the profession today. Her high standards of excellence were honored in 2001 when she was named Realtor of the Year in Williamson County. Edwards attended Texas A&M University and later became involved in politics, campaigning for Richard Smith, a former mayor of Bryan, Texas, and a state legislator.
Have you noticed a change in the way female leaders in the industry are treated since you started working in real estate?
Edwards: “Yes! When I began in the business in the 1980s in Texas, virtually all senior leadership in the business were male. I am probably different from many other women because I went to work for Richard Smith―the former owner of Coldwell Banker United, Realtors―in 1990. Richard is gender blind. His senior leadership throughout the years was predominantly male initially. However, he approved every request that I personally made for advancement in the company. In fact, in 2012, he promoted me to president and COO [chief operating officer]. We had 80 offices, 2400 agent and closed 23,000 transactions in five states.
In 2015 (through 2017), I had the great opportunity to work with NRT when they acquired our company. The company was focused on advancement for women consistently. While there are still more men in leadership than females, my opinion is that this has occurred due to it taking time to groom senior leadership. I was fortunate to get started early. I am impressed at all times with the commitment that NRT has made to diversity. I am still an affiliated agent with the company and proud to be associated with this company.”
Have you or a team member experienced discrimination from clients or other agents in the past year? What happened?
Do you think that the real estate industry in your city is generally egalitarian, or are there still elements of the ‘old boys’ club?’
What do you think needs to change either on an individual basis or for the industry as a whole to get more women into leadership positions?
Denise Rubin: The Denise Rubin Group, Miami
Name: Denise Rubin
Team/brokerage: Denise Rubin Group with Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate
Location: Aventura, Florida
Years of experience: 30
About Denise Rubin: During the past 30 years, Denise Rubin has won countless awards and made a name for herself as a powerhouse among the top Realtors in the country. In a notoriously crowded and competitive Miami real estate market, Rubin stands out as one of the top producers in history. Rubin has built a national and international client roster that reads like its own “Who’s Who?” list of CEOs, public figures, musicians, celebrities, and sports stars.
She is also now an expert Realtor on “The American Dream,” a national TV show airing on CBS. In addition to representing the cream of the crop local properties, Rubin has amassed a room full of awards, including 32 “BEST” awards from the Builder’s Association of South Florida as well as seven “Realtor of the Year” honors. Among other things, she has also reached a career milestone surpassing more than $2.5 billion in personal sales.
Have you noticed a change in the way female leaders in the industry are treated since you started working in real estate?
Rubin: “Yes. I am much more respected now and accepted as the best. However, more so in residential. There is still a huge barrier in commercial, where men dominate jobs, and they usually start with chief or end in vice president.”
Have you or a team member experienced discrimination from clients or other agents in the past year? What happened?
Do you think that the real estate industry in your city is generally egalitarian, or are there still elements of the ‘old boys’ club?’
What do you think needs to change either on an individual basis or for the industry as a whole to get more women into leadership positions?
Rubin: “Women have struggled for five decades to be able to serve on real estate boards.”
Over to You
What do you think? Is your local luxury market still an old boys’ club? Let us know in the comments.
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