The Fort #254: Sarah Kennington - Founder of Thirty-Four Commercial - The Queen of Office Leasing
Sarah has 20 years of experience in office brokerage in the DFW region. Prior to founding Thirty-Four Commercial, she was previously a Principal at Peloton Commercial Real Estate (acquired by JLL in 2019) and an Associate at Transwestern. Sarah graduated from Miami University before relocating to Dallas, Texas in 2003.
Sarah focuses her life on wellness and balance. In 2018, she obtained a 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training Certification. Sarah enjoys spending time with her husband and children, as well as traveling whenever their schedule allows.
On this episode, Chris and Sarah discuss:
- her career stories and the lessons she learned along the way
- her view of the current office environment and where we go from here
- how to lease Class A Office buildings
- how she leased a Class AA office building from the ground up
- how she manages a growing family and business
Links:
The Purpose-Driven Life by Rick Warren
Topics:
(3:21) - Sarah’s career & background
(30:11) - What did you learn selling gym memberships that translate to any sales position?
(33:01) - What does good training look like for people early in their RE career?
(37:53) - How do you build trust with owners?
(47:50) - How would you describe the office market today?
(59:40) - What’s your process of working in development?
(1:01:40) - Where do people waste money in office development?
(1:07:53) - How do you approach marketing?
(1:11:22) - When are you able to start leasing a building?
(1:16:36) - Is there a point where you realize a deal isn’t going to get done?
(1:18:43) - What’s your role once a new building is fully leased?
(1:20:08) - What needs to happen for a lease to turnover?
(1:23:05) - How do you balance building a family and a business?