Angelique Brunner

How Did You Get Your Start In CRE Finance?

I spent the majority of my career working at companies that sourced capital for infrastructure and real estate development projects. In the run-up to and immediate aftermath of the Great Recession of 2008, banks’ calculus on commercial real estate lending became much more conservative. This resulted in important urban projects getting only partial funding from banks, leaving developers to fund large gaps in their capital stack with equity or worse, unable to proceed. 


That’s also the time I became aware of the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program, a United States Citizenship and Immigration Services initiative aimed at raising foreign capital to fund job-creating ventures here in the United States. I immediately recognized this program as a possible solution to the financing gaps I so frequently encountered and began the opening act of building my company.

Why Specialize In CRE Finance?

I arrived in Washington, D.C., in 1999 and the visual reminders of the riots after Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination were still present. Like many urban areas of that time, a lack of necessary basics like grocery stores, retail and useable public spaces were common. I had first seen this lack of resources in South Providence working with LISC as a Charter Americorps member my senior year of college. 


I can recall having to rent a car to travel from my home in the southeast end of Washington, D.C., to Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s in Maryland and Virginia. The absurdity of having to leave the nation’s capital in order to find such national brands was a personal reminder of what motivated me.

Are Women Represented Enough In CRE Finance?

Commercial real estate is not the last frontier to diversify. There are more leadership opportunities to ask questions and create standards to foster faster progress. My effort is to be part of the progress. I am still the only female or only minority in many spaces. I must stay in those spaces and help my colleagues find and retain similar talent. 


I see a lot of gender-based progress. I was reading a recent issue of CREW magazine and I was surprised how few women of color were in the pages. Just recently we got our first African-American female CEO for a public REIT. I think it’s a bit late for firsts like this, so I do think we can do better. We now have a very deep talent pool so I think it’s fair to say you will see more women of color in leadership. I did start my company partially because I couldn’t get a manager to use my full skill set.

Can You Speak To Your  Experience/Treatment As A Woman In CRE Finance?

Women and minorities know we sometimes suffer from others’ low expectations of us — unconscious bias based on your gender, ethnicity or background. 


I was able to build my company while being friendly with most of my competition. They don’t think of me as a real competitor. My competitors have never competed against a black female but I have always competed with white men. As a child I took martial arts, and my Sensei would only let me spar men for my belt tests. I thought my master was so unfair, but competing with men, even physically, was normalized for me as a child. I credit that subconscious training with my deep comfort in competitive environments. Once I switched to team sports I was always team captain and MVP. I often get “flattered” by the men in my industry with statements about my uniqueness or success. I see both as low expectations. By my measure, I am just getting started.

What Can The Industry Do To Encourage Bringing More Women Into The Finance Space?

The greatest opportunity for women in commercial real estate financing is in finding mentors and allies who will support the vision you have for yourself. 


I’ve found tremendous partners who’ve helped me build my business and create tremendous impact in neighborhoods all across the country. When women take it upon themselves to find people like this inside of the industry, you’re taking your fate into your own hands.

What Advice Would You Offer Your Former Self About Navigating The World Of CRE Finance?

I lost both of my parents within a year of each other in my early 20s. As a result, I became the sole caregiver for my much younger brother. All of this happened between my senior year at Brown University and my enrollment in my master’s program at Princeton University. 


The advice I’d give my former self is to continue to trust my instinct to push forward despite life’s challenges. I’ve faced so many obstacles which could have served as my off-ramp to striving for excellence. 


My circumstances presented me with low odds of being successful. I’d encourage my former self to be totally comfortable with those odds and to continue to bet on myself. I have found that my full effort is the most important variable in my success. I can beat low odds if I offset with my full effort. I have never lost betting on me. My company team, business partners, clients and investors have found it to be a good bet too, just like I told them it would be.