Madeline Pagel

Vice President of Sales & Leasing

City Commercial Real Estate

I was born and raised in the greater Milwaukee area and moved abroad in 2014. After six years of working and living in Asia, I returned to Wisconsin in 2020 to be closer to family. I transitioned to commercial real estate after meeting Brian Starr, president of City Commercial Real Estate, in the summer of 2021. With his mentorship, I was able to hit the ground running and began working on multi-family, office, and retail transactions. I especially enjoy retail and appreciate the impact it has on communities and neighborhoods.

Q) What do you enjoy the most about commercial real estate?
A) I pursued a career in commercial real estate because I wanted to be a part of our city’s changing landscape. I love connecting with local business owners and being directly involved in the growth of various neighborhoods and communities. Whether a business is a local or a national credit tenant, it can have a huge impact on a community. I enjoy reading community discussion boards and keeping a neighborhood’s needs in mind while assisting both landlords and tenants in finding a great location for businesses.

Q) What is the best piece of advice you have received?
A) Hold yourself to a schedule and maintain a good work-life balance–because no one is going to do it for you!

Q) What is your favorite quote?
A) “If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”

Q) What’s your favorite place to travel to?
A) I love Thailand. The food is fantastic, and the people are incredibly friendly. I’d also gladly take their hot season over a cold Wisconsin winter any day!

Q) Which projects are you involved in/most excited about?
A) There is a new development in Port Washington that will have an event hall, brewery/restaurant, and Class A office space overlooking the marina and Lake Michigan. I think it will bring a ton of growth to the town, and we are currently looking for an office user. It’s exciting and new for me to be a part of a project as it moves from conception to finished construction.

Q) What is a goal you would like to accomplish within your Commercial Real Estate career?
A) My long-term goal is to establish myself as someone both local business/property owners and national tenants considering the Milwaukee area can come to regarding real estate. I also want to further my knowledge base as a real estate professional by pursuing a CCIM designation in 2023, which will enable me to even better serve my clients.

Q) What do you hope to get out of your NextGen Experience?
A) I hope to further expand my skill set and professional network through the NextGen program. I look forward to meeting other industry professionals who have specialized in different divisions of commercial real estate, worked with different types of clients, and taken different paths to their careers in commercial real estate. I moved back to the USA during COVID, so I am also eager to meet other young and new professionals in Milwaukee!