A Millennial's Perspective

Last issue, we looked at the topic of Millennials in property management, and asked the question "What did you want to be when you grew up?" One reader responded: Houston-based Norman Nelson, a 28-year-old attorney with a startup firm to own and manage office buildings. (He's snapped above during a trip to NYC's Rockefeller Center.) When he was a kid, he wanted to be a homebuilder, inspired by a local builder named Vincent Kickerillo, who's built some of Houston's most notable homes and communities. (One, Marywood, is named after his wife). That led Nelson to major in construction management; his undergrad program focused on commercial construction, where his interest in commercial buildings was sparked. He knew that after law school, he wanted to own and manage office buildings, he tells us.

Nelson's firm, The Glass Group, is named for his goal of owning office buildings with all-glass exterior curtain walls, and he spends his days raising capital and reaching out to owners to land a third-party management contract. What excites him about this industry: No two days are the same, and you never know what's going to happen. "Some days you are behind a desk reviewing CAM charges and billbacks, followed by greeting tenants during a planned appreciation event, other days you are cleaning up floodwater from a pipe that burst or making fire alarm announcements to building occupants during a false alarm," he says. The ability to define the tone for a building is beyond thrilling. "Property management does not seem like work," he says. "It truly is fun, which I feel is immensely important when choosing a career."