Susan Branscome inducted into REForum’s Women of Influence Hall of Fame

Susan Branscome, senior vice president/managing director of NorthMarq’s Cincinnati office was selected as a Hall of Fame inductee. For a quarter of a century, REForum has published the Women of Influence Feature as a way to highlight women making inroads in the industry.

Learn more about what set Susan apart in her nomination responses below:

In what ways has this nominee left her mark on the industry? Why is she worthy of this recognition?
Susan is one of only two women in the United States who have started her own mortgage banking firm. Of the industry’s 5,000 U.S. mortgage banking professionals, less than two percent are women.

She sold her company to NorthMarq Capital in 2014, and continues to lead the Cincinnati and Louisville offices for the company. While with Q10, she was a Q10 Capital Board member and three-year Executive Committee member.

Client Testimony: “Even after twenty years of doing business together, Susan continues to amaze me with her creativity and tenacity to get a deal quoted and closed.  Her competitive and fun spirit make her a trusted partner and friend."

Patrick Minea, regional managing director/executive vice president, NorthMarq: “Susan built her company from the ground-up and joined us in 2014 as one of our strongest new offices. She brings strong leadership to our company and the Cincinnati area, developing new talent for future success in this market. We really enjoy having Susan on our team leading our Cincinnati and Louisville offices.”

She was one of 10 founding members of the Cincinnati Chapter of Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW). The national organization of CREW of 9,000 members who are dedicated the advancement and success of women in commercial real estate and achieving parity in opportunities, influence and power within the industry. She was past President (and the first woman) and Board Member of the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky NAIOP chapter. Susan was the founder, and former President of The Paragon Group, a commercial mortgage banking peer group with eleven company members.

In 2007, she co-developed and produced “Beyond the Glass Ceiling” a workshop exclusively for businesswomen to encourage and motivate women to excel in the business world.

She was recognized as a 2011 YWCA Career Woman of Achievement

Please list the nominee's greatest professional accomplishments in past 12 months.

Significant transactions, deal volume, projects, awards or recognitions

• Total Financing Volume (07162017 – 07162018) of $66,625,500.
• Moderated a panel at Bisnow’s Cincinnati Industrial Boom event
• Featured in REBusiness Online & Heartland Real Estate Business Magazine
• Featured in REJournals

Recent deals include:

• $31 million for Encore Apartments in Cincinnati, Ohio
• $12.5 million construction financing for Courtyard by Marriott in Houston, Texas
• $10.7 million refinance of Riverfront Place in Newport, Kentucky
• $10 million refinance of Village at the Mall in Florence, Kentucky

What is/was the biggest obstacle you faced in your career and how you overcame it?
The biggest obstacle I had when I first entered the CRE industry in the 1980s was the fact that there were very few women in the industry. The good news is that I was a novelty, and stood out among mostly men. The challenge was being accepted and given opportunities my male peers were receiving.

Eventually this came from hard work and proving myself.  After a while my customers didn’t think of me as a woman calling them and working with them, they knew me as “Susan.”  They knew me as the mortgage banker who would work hard to get competitive loan terms and get the deal approved and closed with as few headaches as possible. Having experience and having developed a reputation for getting deals done has helped overcome any stigma associated with being female. A lot has changed in 30 years, women have become a much larger part of the industry so we are more accepted. 

There are still roles in CRE which are dominated by men, yet women are making progress and it’s exciting to witness.  

What is the biggest challenge the industry is facing right now?
The biggest challenge in the industry is attracting young people with talent to choose CRE as a career. There are plenty of other careers in which these college graduates are pursuing which might seem more attractive, yet the career path and economic success is very strong in CRE when a professional pays his/her dues in the industry.

The job market is tight and the best people can be hired quickly at competitive salaries. Companies must differentiate themselves so that they attract top talent with strong salaries and benefit packages as well as a promised good career path.

There are a lot of changes happening in the CRE industry given the changes in retail, the amount of multi-family having been developed and changing trends in the technology of driverless cars. The market will not look like this in five years and a young professional following these trends and seeing where the opportunities should pay off with hard work and building his/her knowledge base. 

What is the nominee's membership/activity in business, career-oriented, charitable or civic-minded organizations?
Susan is a natural business leader whose career and professional success is mirrored in her civic and community work. She is consistently invited by industry editors to write articles for local, state and national publications including The Business Courier, Midwest Real Estate News, Apartment Finance Today, Multi-housing News and Heartland Real Estate Business. 

Susan is recognized as a local and national industry leader and expert and frequent speaker. She is also the recipient of the 2011 YWCA Career Women of Achievement Award and the 2008 Athena Award through Cincy Magazine, an award given to women who achieved professional success and have assisted other women succeeds and gives back to their community.

She was one of 10 founding members of the Cincinnati Chapter of Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW). The national organization of CREW of 9,000 members who are dedicated the advancement and success of women in commercial real estate and achieving parity in opportunities, influence and power within the industry. She was past President (and the first woman) and Board Member of the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky NAIOP chapter. Susan was the founder, and former President of The Paragon Group, a commercial mortgage banking peer group with eleven company members.

After her recognition for the 2011 YWCA Career Women of Achievement award, she co-chaired the YWCA 2012 Career Women of Achievement luncheon, securing attendance of over 2,200, the largest luncheon event in Cincinnati, and assisting in raising a record amount of funds, over $650,000.