Commercial Real Estate Today: Brian Scruggs Of Westmount Realty Capital On 5 Things You Need to Create a Highly Successful Career in the Commercial Real Estate Industry Today
An interview with Aron Weiner
Be open to change. Sometimes career paths take you down a different road than expected. See it as an opportunity to learn.
The commercial real estate industry is a dynamic and challenging landscape that offers enormous potential for success. However, it requires a unique blend of skills, knowledge, and aptitude to truly excel. How does one establish themselves in such a competitive field? What does it take to consistently rise to the top in commercial real estate? How does one rise above the headwinds that are challenging the commercial real estate industry today? In this interview series, we are talking to commercial real estate professionals, brokers, investors, leaders of Real Estate Firms and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), as well as anyone who’s found significant success in this industry. As part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Brian Scruggs.
Brian Scruggs is the managing director of industrial acquisitions at Westmount Realty Capital and has been with the company for approximately eight years. Before joining Westmount, Scruggs was the vice president at Colony Capital where he handled asset management and industrial real estate acquisitions in the Midwest. He has a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Vanderbilt University.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive in, our readers would like to learn a bit about your origin story. Can you share with us the ‘backstory’ of how you got into the real estate business?
I grew up in a real estate household. From there, my curiosity about the business led to real estate internships while earning an engineering degree at school. It was really a path of natural progression after college that led to various roles in the real estate business where I gained valuable transactions and asset management experience.
Can you tell us about your company and what makes it stand out?
Westmount is an entrepreneurial real estate investment company that focuses on creating value in the industrial and multi-family asset classes across the country. It’s the people at Westmount that make the difference and we stand out with our problem solving culture and thriving desire to succeed.
Can you tell our readers about the most exciting new projects you are working on now?
Westmount recently hired Kyle Russell, a managing director of industrial development with the goal of developing new infill cold storage warehouse facilities. We see expanding tenant demand for this product type in major metro areas and a lack of available modern freezer/cooler space in the market.
As with any career path, the commercial real estate industry comes with its own set of challenges. Could you elaborate on some of the significant challenges you faced in your career and how you managed to overcome them?
Navigating down market cycles such as the Great Recession of 2008 to 2010 and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 can shake our trust in the American economy but having the patience to stay the course and remain focused on fundamentals leads to success in the long run.
Ok, let’s now move to the main part of our interview about commercial real estate. What are the 3 things that most excite you about the industry now? Why?
We’re all experiencing headwinds from interest rate hikes and inflation, but many industry fundamentals remain strong, including job growth and consumer confidence. Our investment focus in the industrial space and multi-family product types has paid dividends. The need for both warehouse and manufacturing facilities is robust and demand for apartments remains strong. Technological advancements in warehouse operations including robotics and digital product tracking is attracting new capital. We’re also focused on new investment opportunities from market disruptions and dislocation.
What are the 3 things that concern you about it? Why? What should be done to address and alleviate those concerns?
At the macro level, inflation, interest rates and economic growth are all factors that will impact real estate markets. Furthermore, geopolitical risks outside our control can factor into long-term economic performance. As in the past, we will continue the pursuit of growing our portfolio with well located industrial assets creating value for our investors.
How has technology changed the commercial real estate industry, and how do you foresee it shaping the future of the sector?”
In the last couple of decades, the free flow of digital market information driven by the proliferation of technological advances in software and hardware has empowered professionals to make informed real estate decisions at a faster pace. The speed of business will keep accelerating. Also, improved property level operational efficiencies for tenants such as radio frequency identification (RFID) tracking has shaped industrial demand.
I am hearing the phrase “Stay alive until 2025” a lot. What is your plan to survive in the current market? I like this phrase. As mentioned earlier, we’re going to stay the course and seek out value-add investment opportunities that fit our light industrial growth strategy. We will be selective and deliberate with our acquisitions.
For a young person who would like to eventually make a career in commercial real estate, which skills and subjects do they need to learn? A combination of mathematical subjects including economics, accounting and finance will prove invaluable. But just as important is the development of interpersonal and leadership skills, which can be gained from team sports participation. Also, develop underwriting intuition and instincts for business deals.
Ok, here is the main question of our interview. Based on your personal experience and success, can you please share “Five Things You Need To Create A Highly Successful Career In The Commercial Real Estate Industry”?
1 . Be humble. Many of the most successful real estate professionals I have known didn’t start with a silver spoon.
2 . Be open to change. Sometimes career paths take you down a different road than expected. See it as an opportunity to learn.
3 . Stay in touch with old friends. It’s a small world and you never know how the connections you made in the past can lead to new opportunities.
4. Get comfortable being uncomfortable. Experience will develop intuition and instincts.
5. Stay informed. Commercial real estate markets are constantly evolving.
Do you have three things you would advise a new real estate professional to avoid?
One thing, get out from behind the computer screen. Go see the real estate and meet with owners, brokers and tenants. Try taking alternate routes to and from work, you’ll be amazed at what you discover. Also, avoid accepting everything at face value and think for yourself. Don’t rely on the status quo.
What advice would you give to another real estate professional about improving the work culture, building team morale, and helping each employee thrive?
Get to know your people. Make time outside the office to build relationships.
What is your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share a story of how that had relevance to your own life?
Hard work will pay dividends in the long run. Stay strong and preserve.
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!
