Q&A with Mary Anne Wisinski-Rosely of NAI Wisinski
With a host of accolades to her name, including recently being inducted into Midwest Real Estate News’ Commercial Real Estate Hall of Fame, Mary Anne Wisinski-Rosely is nothing short of an expert in her field. She has made the most of her twenty-plus year career in the commercial real estate industry as both a broker and a leader, receiving the CCIM and SIOR designations that exemplify the real estate industry’s highest professional and ethical standards and also served as the president of the Commercial Alliance of Realtors. With her established expertise, as well as the ongoing boom of development in Grand Rapids, I wanted to sit down with Mary Anne to talk about her vision for West Michigan, her accomplished career, and her proudest moments along the way. Read on!
Natalia Connelly: What inspired you to enter the commercial real estate world?
Mary Anne Wisinski-Rosely: Well I have been doing this now for 22 years as of this summer. So it’s been a long time. When I graduated from college I actually worked at the Grand Rapids Press selling advertising for three years. And my now husband—I don’t even know if we were engaged at the time—said, “You really should think about .” My dad has been in the real estate business for over 55 years, but he never pressured me to go into real estate and I never really even thought about it. But my husband said, “You should really think about it. Why aren’t you doing it?” I actually already had my real estate license so that I could give referrals. So I said, “Why not? Let’s give it a try.” So it was indirectly because my dad had been in the business, but I didn’t go into it right out of college.
NC: What has your journey been like since jumping in?
MAWR: It’s been great. The industry has changed a lot in 22 years. When I got into the business, there were very few females in the business. It was a male-dominated industry. Today there are a lot more women. I would say the majority is still male-oriented, but there are more females today. And things have changed a lot on how business has gotten done in the last 22 years.
NC: I would love to hear more about that. What has changed?
MAWR: First of all, technology is so different than it was 22 years ago, and it has changed how we do business. There was email back then, but it wasn’t widely used. There was a lot more face-to-face personal contact with clients, which I think in today’s world people lose sight of, so I try to make it a priority that I’m at least talking to my clients on a somewhat regular basis depending on what their needs are. Because it’s so easy with today’s technology to just shoot an email and not have that personal contact with them. So I think technology has changed things quite a bit. As far as marketing properties, you didn’t market them on the internet 22 years ago, so now marketing is completely different than it was when I got into the business.
NC: What changes or trends do you anticipate for commercial real estate in the next five years?
MAWR: I think technology is going to continue to advance, and there will be a lot more platforms out there to market properties. We’re fortunate to be in West Michigan, as our market here has done very well. Even in the downturn in the economy, we felt it but we didn’t feel it nearly as much as other areas of the country or even other areas around the state for that matter. It’s hard to predict what’s going to happen with our industry as far as activity is concerned, but I think we’re in a conservative market where we’ll feel any changes, but they won’t be felt nearly as badly as other areas—hopefully.
NC: What are your hopes for Grand Rapids and West Michigan?
MAWR: I hope it continues to grow. I was born and raised here, and Grand Rapids and West Michigan have changed so much in the time I’ve lived here. Downtown Grand Rapids has come such a long way. I think that we’ll continue to grow. We’re a medium sized city, and I hope we continue to have that feel versus getting too big. But it’s exciting to see the growth that we’ve had, and I hope that we continue to grow and attract new businesses to our area, because it’s a great area to live and have a business.
NC: What was your biggest career break?
MAWR: I don’t know if there’s just one. Every relationship in this business is important. I was taught that whether it’s a small deal or a big deal, you treat everyone the same. You never know when that small business is going to grow, or who they know and who they will refer you to. It’s a relationship business. I don’t think there’s one thing that makes or breaks you in this business. It’s everything that you do.
NC: That’s great advice. And actually, my next question was “What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?”
MAWR: My dad taught me no deal is too big and no deal is too small. And it’s true because, like I said, you never know what that small deal is going to lead to. And the little deals help put food on the table.
NC: What has been your proudest moment? Or one of your proudest moments?
MAWR: I’m proud that I have been successful in following my father in this industry. When I got into the business, I was young and I was female. And I was my father’s daughter, so everyone thought everything was going to be handed to me. But I have worked hard on my own to get where I am today, and I feel that I have been successful because of what I’ve done and not necessarily who I am. So it’s not one moment, but I would be proud of the fact that I’ve become successful in this industry because of making my mark on it. One specific thing that I’m proud of is becoming President of the Commercial Alliance of Realtors. It’s hard to believe now that it’s been close to eight years since I’ve been president. But you’re not just appointed that position, you’re elected into that position by your peers. And I would say that’s a good accomplishment because it shows that I’m respected by people in my industry.
NC: Absolutely. What does a day in your life look like?
MAWR: Every day is different. I not only have a career, I also have a family. I have a 14 year old and a 17 year old, so my day starts with getting them up and out of the house and to school. I’ve been in the business as long as I’ve had kids, so my work is important to me and I make it a priority, but my family is also important to me. My kids have learned that if I’m on the phone and they’re around me, they need to be quiet—because in this industry you never get away from the phone. But my day starts with getting them up and out of the house. And now that they’re a bit older I get to work much earlier, but, you know, every day is different. It could be following up on leads, it could be looking for prospects for properties, it could be showing properties. I wish there was—actually I don’t wish there was a cookie-cutter day, because that’s what makes this business exciting. Every day is a little bit different. Some days are busier than others, but on those slow days you’re doing some prospecting for your clients. I also do tenant reps, or buyer rep work, so sometimes I’m looking for properties for clients. And then at the end of the day, it’s going home and doing my second job, which is being a mom. And going to my kids’ activities and taking them to and from places; it ends up being a really long day.
Mary Anne Wisinski-Rosely is a partner at NAI Wisinski of West Michigan. Learn more about NAI Wiskinski on their website, and stay tuned to Empower for more Q&A’s with veterans in real estate, development, architecture, design, healthcare, education, small business, and more.
