Name: Sarah Lewis Belcher

Title: Senior Counsel

Company Name: Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC 

Years in real estate: 26

What real estate associations or organizations are you a member of? Real Property Law Section of the New York State Bar Association

How have you navigated obstacles to achieve success in your career? My main strategy for navigating obstacles has been perseverance. I try not to listen to naysayers but stay persistent in moving forward by trying different approaches and tactics to succeed. It also helps that over time I’ve become more patient in waiting for things to play out and not to push for results too early.

How do you play your strengths to your advantage in your career? I use the areas where I know I’m strong to differentiate my service and abilities from others and deliver superior service in those areas. Acknowledging that I have certain areas of strength whereas other attorneys in our firm have different areas where they’re strong also enables me to delegate work that may not fit within a strong area for me to others in our firm, thereby providing full service to the client. 

What trends are you seeing so far this year? The trend of real estate loan modifications as opposed to new loans has continued into 2017. I haven’t seen an uptick in new projects but the status quo appears to be what many folks want to maintain for the near future. If cost savings may be obtained by refinancing current real estate loan structures, they are being pursued.

What do you do for fun? Play upright bass in a jazz duo/trio, walk our 2 dogs, ski (downhill and cross country), play golf and tennis