BLOG POST 1

BLOG POST 1: Interview

By: James Gray

For this first assignment we were suppose to interview someone that is in the real estate industry. Instead of interviewing the obvious person, like a real estate agent or broker, I decided to go for someone who is more in my field of Construction. They still have a lot to do in the real estate industry, if it has to do with what land to build on or building according to what the owner of the land wants. The person whom I interviewed was Eric Schmidt. To learn more about whom Eric is let jump into the questions.

Where did you acquire your degree in Construction Management?

            At the California State University: Fresno (Fresno State)

What did you do, job wise, after you got your degree?

Well while I was still in school working towards my degree I was able to get a job at Span Construction in Madera CA. I was just 19 when I started. Since I was able to get in with the company while still in school, once I graduated I just took on a bigger role in the company. I have worked for this company for more than 20 years and couldn’t be happier.

How is the real estate community so relevant to your field of work?

In construction you don’t just go build out on land that someone doesn’t already own. So there is already so much that has to occur before we even go out there to start the building process. I have some colleagues that are soil engineers who have been called up to identify the soil of some plots of land just so that the land could be priced at a reasonable rate. As for me, the company I work for builds Costco’s throughout the world. As of right now I am the head of 3 projects in China, one in Texas, and a warehouse in Utah. Depending on the location of the project the real estate market fluctuates tremendously. So before I go into a project I have to get caught up on the land around the project; price, property lines, publically owned or privately.

How do you feel, as a Construction Management student, about taking a real estate class?

I feel it is a great opportunity for you to learn about a huge part of what you’re going to being dealing with in your future career. Also it is just good for buying or even building your own house one day.

Interviewing Eric was a great experience for me. Just a short interview about real estate turned into a hour long conversation about Construction. There is a lot to be gained from this interview and according him, a lot to be learned from this class. I will definitely run into real estate in my field of study, there is no doubt about it.