Brett Visintainer

Owner

Visintainer Group

Education: Fresno State, Class of 2004

Age: 36

Family: Married to Andrea Visintainer (Marketing Director at The Visintainer Group) with two children: son Beau and daughter Avery.

WHAT WE DO: The Visintainer Group is a client-first commercial real estate firm, formed in 2018 and built on a foundation of investment real estate. Using our proprietary database of available properties, buyers, sellers and opportunities, we specialize in everything from commercial real estate transactions to multi-family properties, 1031 Exchange strategies, agricultural land, and full-stack investment services.

Tell us a little about your career to your current position.

After four years as a kicker for the Fresno State Bulldogs, I signed with the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL from 2005-2006. While there, I suffered a career ending back injury. I moved back to Fresno and transitioned into my real estate career soon after with Newmark Grubb Pearson Commercial. During my decade at the company, I was able to sell over $150 million worth of commercial properties nationwide, and earned the title of Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM), a distinction earned by fewer than 5% of real estate agents in the country. In 2018, I made the decision to start my own brokerage, The Visintainer Group, which is where I am today. I have now done more than 70 transactions, over $230 million in sales, and transacted in 11 states.

What attracted you to the commercial real estate industry?

After my football career ended, I had a few friends in the industry in the Bay Area. After talking with them about their experience, I knew commercial real estate was the right direction for me — it is an industry that is driven by hard work and fortitude. It is one of the few industries where you determine your own success and fate. I have always been a self-starter and I liked the idea of taking responsibility for my actions to determine my success. This industry gives you the freedom to be your own boss, allows for flexibility, and provides a platform that rewards diligence and determination. If you are going to outwork everyone, while doing it ethically, you have a great chance to be successful.

What prompted you to start your own brokerage?

After ten years in the industry, I was seeking a way to shake things up. “Business as usual” in commercial real estate didn’t exactly align with my long-term goals and ideals. I wanted to be a part of a culture that valued ethics above all else, and that consistently put clients before commissions. Starting The Visintainer Group was the perfect opportunity to build that from the ground up, along with a team who share those values. Our vision is to be the most reputable and trusted commercial real estate company in Fresno, creating an opportunity for generations of real estate service providers.

I believe my success is based on how successful I can make others. By starting my own company, I have the opportunity to take what I have done to be successful and teach others I hire to do the same. The people I have hired are hardworking, ethical, have high values and standards, and understand a selflessness culture built around being part of a team.

How did your time at Fresno State and the NFL shape who you are today?

My time playing football has played a huge role in forming what my work ethic is today. Competing as an athlete on that level requires incredible discipline, drive, and focus, which I bring to every transaction I work on. I expect the same level of motivation and hard work from my team as well.

What trends have you noticed in regard to what clients are looking for when it comes to commercial real estate?

My clients are a mix of buyers and sellers. A lot of my buyers are farmers who have sold their farm and want to get into single tenant properties leased to corporate companies on a long-term basis. These investments give them long-term cash flow with little-to-no management needed. We are going across the country looking for the best type of investments to fit these needs.

For the sellers, we are still pushing the market on value. There is little product on the market, especially if priced right in a good location. As long as sellers are pricing their property right, there will be a large pool of buyers looking for a good investment.

You have listings all over the country. How does our local market compare to others you are familiar with?

The properties I work on across the country are mostly with buyers. We want to go where the best investment is, and they are hard to find in California because a lot of them have been priced too high. Our local market is strong for commercial real estate. The important thing in our market, or any other for that matter, is making sure the investment’s location is in the path of growth and has the fundamentals to be a key location for many years.

I have no patience for: Excuses — we all fail at times. The best thing we can do is learn from things that didn’t go our way and find out how we can get better. If you continue to work towards a goal, even with a setback, then you haven’t failed — it is when you quit that you fail. Excuses just get in the way of being the best person you can be.

I’ll always have time for: Helping people who want to help themselves. If you want to put in the time to be better, then I will be there to help you. We should always be learning and finding ways to make ourselves better. 

What are your roots in the Valley?

I came to Fresno in 2000 to play football for Fresno State. I am now married to an amazing woman that was born and raised in Fresno.

What was your very first job and what did you learn from it?

I was a busboy. I was terrible at it. I learned to not take the waters off one side of the tray when serving because it will flip over and the remaining waters will fall onto customers. Because I was in sports most my life, I didn’t ever have a serious job until I got into commercial real estate. I took everything I learned from sports and applied them to this job.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

Be with my family. I have a beautiful wife and two energetic kids (Avery, 1 and Beau, 4) who keep us happy every day. I am blessed to have them and I want to spend all the time I can with them.