2020 Women in Real Estate: Michele Fitzpatrick, 1031 Exchange Relationship Manager, VP at Northern Bank

What is your favorite motivational quote and who was it by? Walt Disney. He said, “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” I think we often weigh our options and then start to overthink and overanalyze. Sometimes the best way to learn is to simply start. If you hit some bumps, readjust and continue on.

Who was the best speaker you have seen at an event? In 1998, I attended the launch event for Jordan’s Furniture in Reading, MA. Brothers, Barry and Eliot Tatelman explained how they took their family-owned business with five employees and reimagined the traditional retail store. They were then able to create a destination experience for their customers. Furniture shopping once seen as a mundane task was now something the entire family could enjoy. With the droves of happy customers, came the revenue that the brothers never anticipated. That day I learned that you make your own fate by paving your own path. You don’t have to conform to the established norm.

What is the best advice you have received, and who was it from? My father told me to invest in real estate right out of college. He believed that if I bought investment properties at a young age, I would then be able to build my wealth faster. Also, both my parents were children of immigrants and to them, home ownership brought a great sense of pride. At 24-years-old, I bought my first two-family and over time used the equity to purchase five additional properties. Being a landlord was certainly not on my radar at that young age, but 20 years later, I am so glad I took their advice.