MEET MORE OF OUR 2024 WOMEN OF DISTINCTION
Years ago, a chance conversation led Abby Hauke to her real estate career. “My friend was selling his home, and encouraged me to get into real estate,” says Hauke. “He ended up sponsoring me through the courses and getting my license. All because he saw the right qualities in me.”
A long and successful career in real estate followed.
In January, Hauke will start her term as chair of the Greater Milwaukee Association of Realtors, an organization she believes is vital to the health of the industry.
“In real estate, you can manage however much you want or as little as you want. There’s no glass ceiling.”
– Abby Hauke
“What I love about the organization is it allows you to take your agent hat off and really look at our industry as a whole,” says Hauke. “There’s a competitive nature to real estate, but we need to work together on the big things. It lets us grow the industry from a 10,000-foot view.”
This past spring, the GMAR team went to Washington, D.C., to meet with legislators about changing laws around VA loans. Due to the REALTORS Association’s advocacy, veterans are now able to use their loan benefits to pay their buyer-broker fees, a critical function in increasing homeownership across the country. “It was a big win for veterans, and a big win for the industry,” Hauke says.
According to the National Association of Realtors, as of 2022, 66% of all Realtors are women – in the 1970s, that number was around 20%. This shift in demographics has opened more opportunities for women to explore a career in real estate.
“Real estate is an empowering career for women who do not want to compromise their dreams of a big career and their goals of a fulfilling family life as well,” says Hauke. “As with anything worthwhile, there will be sacrifice but the opportunity is yours to take. There is no ‘one way’ for you to be successful as a Realtor. More than ever, I believe people appreciate and gravitate to authenticity, so don’t dim your light.”
Q&A
Can you tell me about your WomenStrong! event?
Every year we do the WomenStrong! conference, and we’re apparently one of the very few associations across the nation that runs this event. This last one was on financial literacy for women specifically. Leveraging, investing, and how to be more lucrative in business. We always have a committee of women that run it and organize it, and we get anywhere between 300-500 attendees throughout our little region.
