As she approaches 20 years in commercial real estate, Sabrina Gibson places a high value on the business education she received from her mother, Sharon Altenbach, who retired in 2018 after an industry tenure that spanned twice as long. The biggest lesson concerns the importance of family.
Gibson, managing director at Scotland Wright Associates in Atlanta, benefited from those important transaction and leadership lessons — inside and outside the office — that showed her how to succeed in a business long dominated by men in senior executive roles.
“My mom had a huge influence on my career choice, and that influence absolutely continues today,” Gibson told CoStar News. “I saw how much she genuinely loved commercial real estate, but what stood out even more was that she was also incredibly present for our family. At a time when workplace flexibility was much less common, especially for women, she still made it to school pickups, events, and all the important moments for me and my sister.”
Gibson, herself a mom to daughter Anne Kelley, 9, and son Price, 7, said “seeing that balance showed me early on that it was possible to have both a meaningful career and an active role as a parent.”
For Gibson, her real estate career started in 2007 and included roles at Prudential, Lincoln Property and CBRE, before joining Scotland Wright in 2023. Altenbach’s path started in 1978 at The Landmarks Group, with subsequent work at Richard Bowers & Co. and Ben Carter Properties. She retired after nearly a decade leading Two Realty Partners, which she co-founded and served as managing director.
Gibson noted that she and her mother, at around the same respective mid-point of their careers, made a pivotal decision to switch from office landlord representation to become tenant-focused brokers. Mother and daughter agree that this allowed them to maintain a more balanced family life with less regimented scheduling, while dealing with a burgeoning property clientele in fast-growing Atlanta.
“It really allowed me to set my own schedule and make the adjustments that I really thought I needed to make to build a good family life,” Altenbach said, echoing similar comments from her daughter. Both said work for larger corporate clients, particularly on the landlord side, requires more regimented scheduling and time spent at the office.
Altenbach said Mother’s Day and other family gatherings are not all about shop talk, even though her daughter and son-in-law, Cory Gibson of Brookdale Group, are both active in commercial real estate. But get-togethers with family allow Altenbach to keep current on the ever-changing Atlanta property landscape.
In phone and email interviews, Sabrina Gibson had more to say about the business climate and growing up in commercial real estate, for some years as a junior broker or partner in her mother’s companies. Comments are edited for brevity and clarity.
In what ways did your mom influence your career choice, and does this influence last to this day?
Gibson: Because of her example, I never questioned whether I could succeed in commercial real estate too. Watching her navigate that world with confidence made the path feel natural and attainable for me.
Now that she is retired, I still see those same skills and qualities at work. She has taken the relationship-building, leadership, and negotiation skills that made her successful in commercial real estate and now uses them to raise money for nonprofits and serve as a leader at her church.
It’s been inspiring to watch her continue making an impact in a completely different way, and it reinforces for me that the skills we develop in this business can be used to help people and strengthen communities far beyond real estate.
Did you change course from a prior career plan, and what did you want to do for work previously?
I always knew I wanted to work in leasing. I started my career as an analyst because I wanted to learn the fundamentals of the business first, and the plan was to spend a few years building that foundation before transitioning into a leasing role.
Then the financial crisis of 2008 changed a lot of people’s career paths — including mine. During that time, my mom hired me at Ben Carter Properties, which ended up being an incredible opportunity and a pivotal moment in my career. Not only did it allow me to continue growing in the industry during a very uncertain time, but I also had the chance to learn directly from her. Looking back, what felt like an interruption to my original plan actually became one of the most formative experiences of my career.
What do you see as key factors affecting commercial real estate demand in Atlanta, and what are the challenges ahead?
Atlanta has benefited from incredible growth over the past several decades, and I think continuing to attract corporate relocations and business investment will remain one of the biggest drivers of commercial real estate demand going forward. Companies are still drawn to Atlanta because of its talent base, airport accessibility, and overall quality of life, but we can’t take that momentum for granted.
To remain competitive, it’s important that Atlanta continues to provide attainable housing, strong schools, and a business-friendly environment that encourages companies and employees to put down long-term roots here. Those factors all work together. If affordability and infrastructure become bigger challenges, it can impact a company’s willingness to relocate or expand in the market.