Pat Hutchison, CEO of Mission Rock Residential, LLC, started her career with the desire to sell real estate in Southern California. She worked for a Broker for several months while obtaining her Real Estate License when she realized it was not for her. In the short term, she was given the property management duties of leasing and organizing repairs on a small portfolio and found that she enjoyed it.
Pat then searched for a company she felt had integrity. In 1992, she joined a multi-family development company, Legacy Partners. During her 20-year tenure with that firm, she learned a lot and worked her way into a Vice President position. She feels extremely grateful for her time at Legacy Partners, where many of the values she holds dear today were instilled in her.
Discovering a Natural Talent for Real Estate Management
After Pat realized that taking care of people’s living environments made her happy, she began educating herself in the field, knowing that she wanted to make a positive impact in the industry. She looked for challenging opportunities and remained dedicated to ongoing professional development and growth. She also discovered that she had a natural knack for real estate management and motivating and inspiring people; she loved to help people grow and move forward in their careers.
“I’ve contributed to the Real Estate industry by forming a female-led organization in an industry that, despite having a large front-line female workforce, still saw most senior executive-level positions filled by men. Our senior executive team is 78 percent women,” she declares.
Along the way, Pat has received much recognition. While being awarded the Multi-Family Executive of the Year Award in 2019 was an honor, the most meaningful recognition was Mission Rock placing third overall nationally in the Best Places to Work in Multi-Family in 2023. “It was an incredible honor to be a cofounder of this company 11 years ago, and knowing our people are happy and safe is at the top of my list of achievements,” she insists.
“Valuing people is at the heart of every successful venture. When we invest in our team, empower their potential, and cultivate a culture of trust and respect, we create an unstoppable force that propels our organization toward greatness.”
An Innovative, Socially Responsible Real Estate Management Company Built on Integrity
Mission Rock, founded in 2012, is an innovative and socially responsible management company prioritizing its people. The company values its 750+ team members, who, in turn, provide excellent service to the residents of its 30,000+ apartment homes. Their competitive spirit drives them to maintain high standards, be accountable for delivering optimal results, and maximize property values to meet their clients’ goals and objectives.
Mission Rock follows a transparent, collaborative, and agile management style, offering services for various multifamily communities, including affordable and tax credit communities, new build lease-ups, value-add renovations, 55+ housing, and troubled asset resolution. Its services encompass accounting, maintenance, construction management, human resources, compliance, revenue management, marketing, and training.
“Early on, when I cofounded Mission Rock Residential, I was fortunate to know many smart and talented people that I could handpick to fill some of the vital roles at our new company. Our team was incredibly capable and had phenomenal potential; however, some talented people were not the right cultural fit. The challenge for me was to decide what was more important: keep people that did not align with the values and culture I had set for the company or make the difficult decision to move on without them. I chose the latter and insisted that we uphold the values and culture no matter the cost,” Pat reveals.
She maintains that integrity is at the core of the company’s values, and they insist on it. If someone makes a mistake and owns up to it, it is not only forgivable but also viewed as a learning opportunity to help that person grow. “We’re all human, and mistakes are a part of that shared experience. If someone is not honest with themselves and doesn’t take responsibility for the mistakes made along the way, they’ll never grow and evolve. A foundation built on integrity will always be strong, even if everything else is stripped away,” Pat observes.
“We have the unique opportunity and obligation to make a positive impact on the world. By prioritizing sustainability, social responsibility, and ethical practices, we can drive meaningful change, leaving a legacy that goes beyond profit.”
Building a Healthy, Diversified Mission Rock Family
As the CEO of Mission Rock Residential, LLC, Pat notes that in real estate management, there’s no regular day. Her duties include setting the vision for the company and allocation of resources, as well as working with the Board of Directors to ensure the company is on a stable footing and on track to meet the vision. She also meets with potential clients interested in utilizing Mission Rock’s services.
Pat feels that she’s better at achieving a healthy work-life balance than she used to be, mostly because of the nature of her position. She loves spending time with Mission Rock’s team but given that they do business in 17 states and growing, it’s no longer feasible for her to spend as much time in the field. “However, we do have regional team events with our folks on an annual basis and it is wonderful to spend time with our Rock Star teams. I also want to make time to spend with my large family, while never losing touch with my Mission Rock family,” she remarks.
Pat has strategy meetings with the President, Meredith Wright, to keep abreast of the challenges, achievements, and opportunities to ensure Mission Rock’s success. She aims to provide a successful succession plan to ensure Mission Rock is an evergreen company that will last for decades to come and hopes to continue to seek sustainable opportunities to reduce its pollution and carbon footprint in the environment.
Pat is also involved with Mission Rock’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Task Force to ensure they’re given the tools and resources they need to provide an inclusive working environment for the company. She hopes to continue its DEI efforts at MRR to ensure they have a healthy, diversified workforce that embraces all races, cultures, religions, genders, sexual orientations, and anything else that has made anyone feel “othered” by society.
“The power of diversity is the fuel that propels innovation. Embracing different perspectives and experiences is not just the right thing to do, it’s the smartest thing we can do for our company’s growth and success.”
A Vision of Creating the Best Property Management Firm
As a tenacious leader, Pat defines success as being known for both her business acumen and her compassionate and good heart; she doesn’t buy into the definition of success that simply entails huge profits for the company. She believes that doing the right thing for their customers, team members, and clients is the true measure of their success.
Pat believes that motivation and inspiration come from developing and fostering a competitive team environment and challenging Mission Rock’s teams to be the best in all their markets, reminding them that, “Successful people do what unsuccessful people do not do.” Her goal is to grow the company’s portfolio from 30,000 units to 50,000 units by 2030 and increase innovation that will streamline their processes and continue to make them more efficient.
“We will need to do this while not losing touch with our performance, and while maintaining the best-in-class level of service we provide to our existing residents, team members, and clients,” Pat insists. “I do realize that building an innovative and sustainable, cost-focused management company is important to provide long-term success, but to me, it is imperative to strike that balance and look after our people, residents, and the financial health of the company. I don’t have grandiose dreams of being the largest Property Management firm, just the best!”
No Success Is Achieved by Accident
Pat’s message to aspiring leaders is that no success is achieved by accident. Being the best takes hard work, education, a competitive spirit, and passion. It takes providing a workplace where your people understand that you care for them and their families. Ask your team members to use their voices, listen to them, and act upon their comments to improve their work life. Develop good values and a good culture, then defend both fiercely.
“Leadership is about harnessing the power within, breaking barriers fearlessly, and inspiring others to believe in their own limitless potential.”
