Jessica E. Joly: From Our Shoes to Hers

            Jessica, who is part of both the NSU MSRED Advisory Board and the NSU MSRED Alumni Association Board, provided the class a great snapshot of what life is like in the early stages of a blossoming career in real estate development is like. Currently, Jessica is a Development Manager for the well-known development company, Stiles Corporation. She serves as the owner’s representative throughout the life of the development process. In her discussion with the class, Jessica provided a case study to break down her responsibilities during the development process.

            At Stiles, the first leg of development takes place in Real Estate Investment Services; this is where the organization identifies a site and puts it under contract. Once under contract, Jessica steps in to walk the development through its completion. The due diligence process is the first task that must be tackled by Jessica and her crew. She mentioned that the due diligence period is a very hectic time as this is when Jessica has to turn over every stone to ensure that the intended site is the appropriate site and to make sure that the intended use will be allowed by the local municipality. Overall, a “Go or No-Go” decision needs to be made at this juncture of the development process. In Jessica’s case study, the decision was made to move the project forward; however, there were many hurdles that needed to be crossed in order to make the project a success. For instance, there were issues with the soil that ended up adding additional costs to the project for remediation. Also, it was discovered that the lots would need to be platted, which again, added extra costs and time to the development process to get it done.

            Overall, the project kept chugging along; Jessica and her crew got the platting done and site plan approval. She did point out that there were a number of exactions that were placed on the development and they fought against some of them; some to no avail but were successful in fighting others. Though the due diligence period is typically 60 days, at which you either go “Hard” on the property or let it go, Jessica stated that they were able to keep the property under contract throughout the entire time while they worked on platting and getting government approvals before closing on the property. Besides some having a hard time getting all the necessary building permits in a timely manner, and some slight hiccups during construction, the project was completed and delivered to the tenants on time. It did come up over budget; however, there were a number of unexpected things that came up that could not have been avoided.

            Since being in the MSRED program at Nova Southeastern University, One of the things that I have enjoyed the most has been getting the opportunity to meet professionals from the industry and hear about their unique perspectives and experiences. Some of the speakers that I have enjoyed the most have actually been the ones that have come right from the MSRED program itself. Jessica graduated from the program about 3 years ago and she has definitely put her education to work. Hearing her story and seeing how she has been able to apply her education gives me motivation to continue working hard at my own education because it shows me that I made the right decision. Furthermore, just the complexities of her case study are exciting to me because that is the type of environment I would like to work in. Though it may not always be fun, I am sure that she enjoys being in a situation where she is constantly coming up with solutions every day. Overall, I hope to follow in her footsteps, to a certain degree, in that I plan to successfully utilize my education with a successful organization once I complete my Master’s Degree.