What is it about signet rings, the interviewee mused. “Clearly part of some family connection secret code that I’m excluded from.” For the anonymous interviewee of a scathing report into social class in UK commercial real estate, the signet ring, the jewellery of choice for a certain kind of upper class male Brit, epitomises the problem the sector has when it comes to class diversity. Every industry has a culture, a set of codes and rules forged over decades, even centuries, that govern how it works. In real estate, that culture is an issue, holding the industry back and creating broader problems for society. And the sector might be looking in the wrong place for solutions. 
Data gathered in late 2020 shows that professionals in commercial real estate companies are drawn disproportionately from higher socioeconomic backgrounds. Social class has been somewhat overlooked in the efforts to improve diversity in the industry, but it is a vital issue, because it intersects with other areas where property is lacking,…  Read the full story here. | 
