Each year, Midwest Real Estate News publishes its Commercial Real Estate Hall of Fame issue. This year, we are running our profiles of the inductees online, too, in the hope that readers will see what it takes to be a CRE Hall-of-Famer. This week, we look at the career of Jeff Dreher, a senior real estate advisor with the Louisville office of Cushman & Wakefield/Commercial Kentucky.
From summer intern to top producer: Jeff Dreher began his career in commercial real estate as a summer intern while attending Southern Methodist University. After graduating in 1993 he became a full-time broker for what is now Cushman & Wakefield/Commercial Kentucky. The move to a career in real estate? It’s paid off.
Since 1994, Dreher has facilitated more than 700 commercial sales and leasing transactions valued at more than $550 million. He has represented millions of square feet for some of the company’s most prominent landlords and companies.
Accolades: Dreher’s high volume of business has earned him several awards and accolades. He won the 2016 Business First Real Estate Champion Award, 2015 CoStar Power Broker, 2015 Business First 20 People to Know in Real Estate award and the 2014 KCREA Office Broker of the Year.
Dreher has also given back to his community, serving on severael charitable, civic and professional boards. These include the Bellarmine University MBA Advisory Board, Boy Scouts of America, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and the Jefferson County Tax Assessment Appeals Board.
New challenges: “I enjoy that every day is different and provides new challenges and opportunities,” Dreher said. “I also enjoy the fact that I’m able to meet and work wtih many new and interesting people along the way.”
A tough job: Though he’s been incredibly successful, Dreher does admit that commercial real estate does pose its challenges.
“At times, it can be like drinking through a firehose when multiple transactions are all happening simultaneously,” Dreher said. “Therefore, it requires the ability to juggle multiple transactions, processes and relationships, all while delivering the best possible service to our clients.”
Three principles: Dreher says that he follows three core principles when building his business: preparation, hard work and finding good people with whom to work.
“The building blocks of my career have always included these three principles, whether it was deciding on a double-major in finance and real estate during my undergraduate studies, getting my master’s degree in business administration, earning the SIOR designation or working with our team at Cushman & Wakefield/Commercial Kentucky to service our clients’ needs.”
