Q. A lot has been said about the softening of real estate and construction, how do you see both industries?

A. I do have a perspective on both new construction and new home sales, particularly. Of course 2004, 2005 and 2006 were just peak years, particularly compared with how things were in the '90s. We can see that in 2007 it was a little more difficult in the sense that we had the subprime mortgage fallout in August, which made a lot of people hesitant to buy after that and many people have difficulty qualifying now because the standards have become much more strict.

Q. Is what's happening in the real estate market the major challenge for you?

A. The softening of the market, what I see happening is that people are hesitant, they're scared because they read the paper and it says prices could go down. However, in Hawai'i prices really have not gone down, particularly on O'ahu where in 2006 at the end of the year the median home price was $620,000 and in 2007 the median home price was $625,000. So they really haven't gone down except in perhaps certain neighborhoods.

Q. Was it tough initially being a woman in what was a male-dominated field?

A. When I first interviewed for a real estate job it was 1974 and I remember the first interview I had, which was for a very prestigious resale company in Wisconsin. The person who interviewed me said, "Who are you married to? Who's your father? What contacts do you have?" When I explained that I wasn't married and that I wasn't from that area, he said, "Well, you don't sell real estate with cuteness." I did not get that job. However, the next week when I was hired by a different real estate company, the person who interviewed me had a listing and my very first sale came the next week, which was his listing.

Q. How long have you been a member of the BIA?

A. I've been a member for 17 years. I came to Hawai'i in March 1991 and within about two weeks somebody suggested that I would be a good person to be on the Parade of Homes committee. I joined that committee having been here a very short time and I've been on various committees ever since.

Q. What are your primary responsibilities?

A. I represent BIA to the public, so if there's an event that's occurring or a function that somebody needs to stand up and say what BIA is all about, I guess that's my primary responsibility. We have a wonderful staff and a CEO (Karen Nakamura) who takes care of the day-to-day operations, so I don't really get involved in that. I'm the leader of the board of directors and the board has input into some of the day-to-day operations and certainly into the political stance that BIA takes on many issues.

Q. The Legislature just started. Are there any particular issues that BIA will be pushing?

A. We're continuing to support the mass transit system for O'ahu. We're continuing to support affordable and workforce housing. Those are two of our main issues. We are supporting the issue that says that we need to have licensed contractors doing work in person, in a home, so that there is no liability. If a person has an unlicensed contractor do their plumbing or electrical repair, they're really treading on dangerous ground because if anything would happen you don't have a licensed contractor backing that up.

Q. Are there any programs or initiatives that you want to implement while president?

A. The benefits for members are really important and I want to be sure that we communicate with members the benefits that BIA can provide. We're working with different companies to offer insurance benefits to independent contractors, which is very important. In the past we've worked and will continue to work with making sure that workers' compensation laws stay in the way that are beneficial for contractors. We continue to make sure that contractors are treated fairly in the permitting and zoning issues and try to back contractors up in the ways that a small independent contractor may not be able to support himself, but BIA can support those issues.

Q. The BIA also is raising funds for a construction training center?

A. This year that's going to be our main focus. The Construction Training Center of the Pacific is something that is a dream of all of us on the board and of Karen Nakamura in particular. The purpose is to take in people who are coming out of school who perhaps don't have the skills to be accepted in an apprentice program, such as the masons or the plumbers or the carpenters and electricians. The Construction Training Center of the Pacific is meant to produce employable young people and it's just a very wonderful thing that is going to be happening for our state.

Q. Is the fundraising a part of your job?

A. Fundraising is a major part of my job. We need $7.8 million for construction and we're just about $6 million right now so we do have a ways to go — but we've come a long way also. We're very excited that we're going to be able to raise the remaining funds and start the construction in about June and have it completed in 2009.

Q. Who will staff the center?

A. The center will be staffed by some hired staff of BIA instructors that are certified by BIA and some volunteers who are certified. There's a great need in Hawai'i to provide people into the construction industry. Construction is one of the biggest industries, one of the biggest economic drivers in our state, and to have a workforce that is able to sustain that economic development and provide jobs for people is very important.

Q. What will be the cost to the students?

A. The actual cost to educate one student is $6,000. But with grants from both the city and the state and the federal government, most students will not be paying for their education. We also have grants from OHA, so that's how most students will be paying for their education. It's something that most could not do for themselves.

Q. What's in your future?

A. Hopefully I'll be right where I am today as vice president, sales and marketing. I'm happy with that. I just love my job. It's something that if somebody told me 20 years ago before I was in this job that that's what I'd be doing today, I guess I wouldn't believe that there was something that was this fun, exciting, and challenging to do on a day-to-day basis. My dad is 92 and he retired when he was about 70 and I suppose I may follow in his footsteps. As long as I have the energy and love coming to work and love my job, I don't see retirement in the near future.

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.