2016 Women in Real Estate: Annemarie DiCola

Annemarie DiCola, Trepp, LLC

Name: Annemarie DiCola, Esq.

Title: Chief Executive Officer

Company Name: Trepp, LLC

Email: [email protected] 

Years in real estate: 25+

Telephone: 212-754-1010

How did you get your start in real estate?

As a summer associate in law school, rotating through the various departments of the large law firm for which I worked, I most loved the time I spent working in the real estate department. I relished the transactional nature of the work, and the tangibility of the asset class, vs. the more virtual aspects of other fields of law.

What real estate associations or organizations are you a member of?

CREFC (Board of Governors), Real Estate Roundtable (President’s Council), NYU Stern Center for Real Estate Finance Research (Advisory Board), CREW, WX, CoreNet, European American Chamber of Commerce (EACC)

What recent project or transaction are you most proud of?

I am very proud about the launch of the Trepp CRE Default Model, which is designed for U.S. commercial banks and their regulatory stress testing mandates. Trepp’s front-end bank products and its formidable CRE loan data set have been invaluable tools that help banks evaluate their extensive commercial real estate debt portfolios, and our default model is the newest addition to our banking product arsenal.

What recent honor, achievement or recognition has meant the most to you and why?

A key recent achievement is Trepp’s purchase of Codean, a data and analytics firm specializing in CLOs. These securities are frequently used for relative value analysis vs. CMBS and this acquisition supports our goal of providing our clients with as full a perspective for their CMBS analysis as possible. In addition, this transaction plants Trepp firmly in the CLO sector, another fascinating, relevant asset class in the structured finance space. It is always exciting to acquire another company that synergizes with our core business.

What have been some of the benefits of being a mentor or having a mentor?

The best part of being a mentor is the opportunity to “give back” and share your experience with a more junior person who will benefit from your lessons learned. The best part of having a mentor is the lifelong process of continually learning and improving. As Michelangelo said near the end of his long life, “Ancora imparo”( “I am still learning…”).

Who or what has been the strongest influence on your career and why?

My husband, Frank, a successful restaurateur and entrepreneur. He has always encouraged me to try new things, to take risks, and to keep evolving.

What time management strategies do you find to be the most effective for you?

Start early in the morning, the least-interrupted time of day. Determine the top things you want to accomplish that day. Tackle your hardest issues first-it makes the rest of the day easier.

What is the best advice you have received and who was it from?

The founder of Trepp taught me years ago: Don’t preface your comments in a meeting with qualifications; you only delay your message that way. Be direct and to the point. Keep comments succinct.