Kerry Lavelle, 27

As a child, Kerry Lavelle loved tagging along with her mom, a real estate agent, during open houses. Not to knock single-family homes, but Lavelle, who often shows off the Empire State Building to potential tenants, is now working on a much loftier side of the real estate industry. 

“I just feel like there’s something new every day, which is something that I really like,” Lavelle said of working for the commercial landlord side of the business. Between tours, meeting with tenant reps, juggling relationships, and coordinating with sales, analytics and sustainability teams, there’s always something happening in the nine-building portfolio with which the Miami University grad is engaged. 

“The Empire State Building is 2.9 million square feet with 154 tenants, so there’s always leases rolling,” she said. 

After graduating from Miami University in 2019, Lavelle started work in marketing in Chicago, but the combination of COVID and a distaste for the role led her to pivot to real estate at Tishman Speyer. Two years later, after moving to New York City, she started at Empire State Realty Trust. Lavelle is a key contact now for new and renewing ESRT tenants, serving in outreach and, yes, marketing capacities.

Recent deals include signing fintech firm Pontera Solutions to a long-term lease of more than 40,000 square feet at the Empire State Building and a 4,500-square-foot arrangement she did without a tenant broker for marine asset firm Mjolner, also at the ESB. Beyond landlord side deals, Lavelle also continues to roll up experience with a portfolio that has pioneered green retrofits. Having joined ESRT during the emergence of New York City’s Local Law 97, she’s had a front-row seat to the ways building operations have shifted in a more sustainable direction, never mind the incredibly varied office landscape of the past few years.  

“It’s just a weird time to learn about real estate,” Lavelle said. “But it’s also an exciting time to start.”