2025 Women in CRE: Amy Nemetz, King & Spalding LLP

What has been the most rewarding project or deal you’ve worked on in your career, and why?

Representing the owners of the Hotel Chelsea has been a highly rewarding project. It’s a unique property with a rich history that the owners have sought to retain while making the hotel an experience available to everyone. We have faced legal and preservation challenges both to the successful redevelopment and ongoing operation of the property as a unique combination of permanent residence and hotel available to the general public, and I am happy our efforts have ensured the hotel’s legacy can continue. Knowing we helped preserve a place so important made this experience especially fulfilling.

What advice would you give to a woman considering a career in commercial real estate?

Find a female mentor whose day-to-day life reflects something you want for yourself — whether that’s the kind of work they do, how they lead, or how they balance a career and a personal life. I believe meeting the demands of a challenging career is rewarding but there is no “right” way to accomplish a goal. The best evidence of how to go about getting what you want is to study how someone else is doing it on a daily basis.

What skill or quality do you believe is essential for success in your field today?

Tenacity is essential for success in New York real estate. The pace is relentless, priorities can change quickly, and the base of stakeholders (owners, tenants, investors, lenders, regulators) can be unwieldy. To keep up, you have to be willing to push through challenges, stay focused under pressure, and adapt as situations evolve, all while counseling your client on the best available path to achieve their specific goals. That drive has made all the difference in my work, helping me support clients effectively and deliver results in the face of unforeseen hurdles and shifting demands.

If you could change one thing about the CRE industry, what would it be and why?

I’d like to see continued momentum in opening the industry to new voices. The next generation is coming in with real curiosity about how cities evolve through the balance of preservation and progress, the legal mechanics behind complex developments, and the ways real estate shapes daily life. That energy is exciting, and I think the more we invest in teaching, mentoring, and giving people room to grow, the stronger the industry becomes.