Crew

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ELIZABETH HAYES

Staff Reporter

In the early ’80s, a couple of women at Prudential Insurance Co. of America’s real estate division spread the word among other female professionals about a cocktail party they were organizing.

The purpose wasn’t social, but to talk about forming a women’s real estate organization. No fewer than 50 women showed up, and the organization now known as Commercial Real Estate Women-Los Angeles (CREW) was born.

Fifteen years later, the group is still going strong, with 135 members that cut across all real estate disciplines.

“We thought it was a good idea because back then you didn’t see that many women in commercial real estate,” said Denise Anthony, a vice president at Fidelity National Title Co.

But even as women have gained stature in the industry, CREW still appears to fill an important role in their professional lives.

CREW holds monthly meetings at the Regency Club in Westwood, as well as two regional conferences and a national convention every year, dinners at members’ homes, panel discussions, events and fund-raisers for charities.

“The way you benefit is by becoming active. The more people you get to know in an intimate setting, the more chance for business opportunities. It’s helped me,” said Susan Goodman, a broker at Cresa Partners and CREW’s president last year.

Members say the organization affords them an outlet for networking and professional development, as well as friendship and support.

CREW is affiliated with the National Network of Commercial Real Estate Women, which encompasses 6,000 people nationally. That means CREW members here have a contact and entr & #233;e in other markets around the country.

Goodman said once she was having trouble getting her commission from a landlord for a lease renewal. So she called a CREW member in Denver, who then talked to an asset manager who worked at the Denver branch of the landlord’s company. Thanks to that contact, Goodman collected her commission.

In addition to topics of general interest for real estate professionals such as negotiating or financing sources Goodman said some meetings have focused on women’s issues, such as managing child care and dealing with aging parents.

“It’s nice to know other women are going through the same issues,” she said.

Members must be in real estate for at least three years. But the organization is not exclusively made up of women. There are six men in the L.A. group, including mortgage banker Steve Kahan with William Gregory Mortgage in Manhattan Beach.

“The reason I’m a member is that it’s a great group of professional women who are high caliber and capable, not some light-weight social organization,” Kahan said.

And the networking opportunity doesn’t hurt.

“There’s no question my radar is up for opportunities to find another transaction and keep me abreast of new developments in the real estate world,” Kahan said.

Kahan and others said they like the fact that unlike many real estate organizations in Los Angeles, CREW is relatively small, so members get to know one another better. And it also provides role models for those who haven’t been in the business as long.

“It’s very validating being in a room full of other women doing remarkable things,” said Claire De Briere, a vice president at the Ratkovich Co., an L.A.-based real estate development firm. She was also the recipient several years ago of a CREW scholarship, awarded each year to a woman attending UCLA and one at USC who are planning careers in real estate after graduation.

What many CREW members like is that people in the organization represent a wide swath of sectors, including brokerage, title insurance, appraisals, design, legal and banking.

“There’s no use doing business with people you don’t like, so to a certain extent, having consultants and architects and people like that is helpful when getting bids,” De Briere said.

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