Mary Ludgin is a Senior Advisor to Heitman and an equity owner of the firm. She is a member of the Heitman's Global Investment and Global Management Committees. She is responsible for overseeing the firm's work in the realm of sustainability and serves as editor of the series on climate risk that Heitman authored in collaboration with the Urban Land Institute (ULI). The fifth report in that series is set for release in October; it focuses on how climate change is affecting the cost and availability of insurance. Prior to transitioning into her role as an advisor, Mary was Senior Managing Director and Heitman's Head of Global Investment Research, a position she held for over 25 years.
Mary served as a Global Governing Trustee of ULI and as chair of ULI's Chicago District Council. She is a member of the Urban Development Mixed-Use Product Council (Silver Flight) and is an advisor to two ULI affinity groups, YLG and NEXT. She is a member of the board of the Randall Lewis Center for Sustainability in Real Estate and served as its chair. She chaired the Chicago District Council's Technical Assistance Panel on Decarbonization.
She presided as Chair of the Pension Real Estate Association, President of the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries, and President of the Real Estate Research Institute.
Mary is the recipient of several industry awards, including the 2019 PREA James A. Graaskamp award, which recognizes researchers whose work contributes to the common body of knowledge regarding real estate investment, and the 2023 Goldie Initiative Shero Award for her career achievements in commercial real estate and commitment to helping other women succeed in the industry.
Mary holds an AB from Vassar College and an MA and Ph.D. from Northwestern University.