Like many in the commercial real estate industry, Reed Rutter, Senior Associate in the Irvine office, was exposed to real estate at a young age, at least peripherally. But his path into brokerage was anything but a straight line. A combination of “professional persistence,” sound career advice from a mentor, and a serendipitous beach encounter paved the way for his track record of success.
“My grandfather was a carpenter, framing houses, and started his own homebuilding business. My dad grew up the same way, hammer in his hand, and he took over the family business,” says Rutter. “So, I’ve always had a little real estate in my blood.”
From the Beach to the Rockies
Despite growing up a mile from the water in Newport Beach, Rutter describes himself as a “landlocked guy” for much of his youth and into high school due to hearing issues that prevented him from playing water sports. (“I was the only guy in Newport Beach that grew up there that wasn’t in the water all day every day,” he jokes). He funneled that energy into other sports, particularly basketball and football, where he was a wide receiver. He recalls that during his high school football career, a local paper noted, “‘He may not be the biggest or the fastest athlete on the field, but he sure knows how to get open,’ or something like that. I think that’s kind of indicative of my brokerage career so far. I may not be the best in the biz, but I’m going to work hard and make it happen.”
During his childhood, his family took frequent winter trips to Colorado to visit family, and he became an avid skier. So, after high school graduation, he left the beach and headed for the Rockies. Rutter enrolled at the University of Colorado (his mother’s alma mater) and graduated with a BS in sports marketing and a minor in real estate finance. “Throughout college, I think my goal was to be in sports marketing, say, as the director of corporate partnerships for the Anaheim Ducks or the Los Angeles Angels,” says Rutter. “But I did minor in real estate finance because I grew up in a real estate household and always had that in the back of my mind in case I wanted to pivot.”
Pivoting to a Career
After graduation, he landed a job as an account manager at a boutique sports marketing firm that operated as a liaison between companies looking to advertise and the professional sports venues offering space. However, the timing was brutal, as the COVID-19 lockdowns effectively shut down stadiums and arenas nationwide. The experience was invaluable, but his CEO leveled with him about the realities of achieving his dream job as a director of corporate partnerships, including long stretches away from home. “He told me that while he thought I would crush it in sports marketing…, he was having those honest conversations with me, and I thought that it was a great time to make that pivot to real estate.”
He began by calling friends across the commercial real estate industry — developers, contractors, and tradespeople — before finally connecting with brokers at Voit, including Senior Associate Ian Ozemic and Executive Vice President Mike Hefner. “I decided that I could really utilize my marketing background and the communication skills that I learned not only in college but at the sports marketing job,” says Rutter. “I also loved the idea of the freedom and the kind of Wild West-ness of brokerage.”
Serendipitous Encounter Opens Door to Voit
Rutter’s networking efforts paid off, and he landed an interview with Voit CEO Eric Hinkelman. “We had a great conversation, but it was clear from the beginning that there were no positions open, as they were still figuring out their post-COVID course of action,” Rutter recollects. He moved on, discouraged but not defeated. Three weeks later, as Rutter was leaving the beach near his home, he saw a man wearing a hat and sunglasses who looked a lot like Eric Hinkelman.
“I thought to myself, ‘I’ve got to go say something’, and I ended up having a 15-minute conversation with him,” says Rutter. “He said, ‘I was shocked that you recognized me in my beachwear and had the guts to talk to me after learning in the interview that there wasn’t anything available. I like the way you work. Let’s see if we can find you something.’ That was my introduction to Voit and how I ended up on the team I’m on today.”
Only it was not that simple. Because no full-time positions were available, Rutter was offered a part-time internship with then Vice President (now Senior Vice President) Mike Zehner and Senior Vice President Adam Hill. “So here I am, a year outside of college, and I’m thinking to myself, ‘Am I really going to go work as an intern? I did that in college.’ But I decided, My foot’s in the door. Let’s take the bull by the horns and see where it takes us.” He accepted the internship and continued to work at the sports marketing agency. That attitude paid off; Rutter was soon hired by the team as a runner and became a full-fledged broker a year later.
Persistence Pays Dividends
Rutter believes hard work and consistency are the building blocks of any successful broker but feels the key to his success has been persistence. “One thing that has served me well in this industry is being persistent — not annoyingly persistent, but professionally persistent,” says Rutter. “It’s something that benefitted me at the sports marketing agency and especially at Voit in this Wild West of a business that brokerage is, and I’ve found success following that.”
The hard work and persistence have paid off for Rutter, as he was recognized in February at Voit’s annual awards event with the “Rising Star” award and earned an invitation to this year’s Broker Incentive Trip. His successes were based on a combination of building sales and leasing volume, primarily in the 5,000–50,000 SF range. Recent deals include helping one industrial client expand from a 20k SF facility they had outgrown to a 41k SF facility and negotiating a number of concessions from the landlord. A second deal involved a national credit client nearly tripling its space from 6k to 15k SF. He also tapped into his creative marketing skills to sell a handful of individual office and industrial condos in the 1,000–5,000 SF range in the Guthrie Batavia Business Park.
He credits his development to the mentorship of Zehner and Hill, who also taught him the value of being highly organized and how to “pivot with positivity.” They also impressed upon him the value of a positive work-life balance. “My senior partners really revel in having a good family life and a great work-life balance, and I think that’s something that helps drive me to work a little bit harder here.”
Rutter’s journey shows that success in commercial real estate demands more than expertise — it takes persistence, adaptability, and dedication. Guided by strong mentors and a commitment to balancing personal and professional life, he continues to embrace challenges and looks forward to the new opportunities ahead.
Additional broker profiles are scheduled over the next few months. Check back to see who we highlight next.