From left: The Kislak Co. Inc. Executive Vice President Joni Sweetwood, Senior Vice President Andrew Scheinerman, Executive Vice President Peter Wisniewski and Associate Sara Soliman — Courtesy: Kislak
By Joshua Burd
The Kislak Co. Inc. is celebrating four of its brokers for their achievements in 2024, touting their roles in the firm’s $500 million in overall sale and lease transactions for the year.
The recipients, which were honored last month at Kislak’s annual awards ceremony, include:
- Jay I. Kislak Producer of the Year and Sales Transactions awards: Executive Vice President Joni Sweetwood
- Sima Kislak Jelin Salesperson of the Year award: Senior Vice President Andrew Scheinerman
- Lease Transactions award: Executive Vice President Peter Wisniewski
- Rising Star award: Associate Sara Soliman
“We ended the year on a high note following a strong fourth quarter and an overall stronger year completing 114 transactions for $500 million, which was a 110 percent increase over our 2023 results,” Kislak CEO Jason Pucci said. “Our awards recipients excelled despite continued challenges in the market and produced impressive results and I congratulate them on their remarkable success!”
According to a news release, Sweetwood closed 14 transactions in 2024, including sales involving 18 multifamily properties throughout New Jesey for $100 million. Also among them was the sale of Wedgewood House, an 80-unit property in Orange, which fetched $13 million and was the single-largest trade of a multifamily property in Essex County since 2022.
Additionally, Sweetwood sold a three-property portfolio with 258 units in Atlantic City for $20.5 million, which was the largest multifamily sale in Atlantic City in at least the last 10 years, according to a news release. That body of work was enough to earn the Jay I. Kislak Producer of the Year award, which is given to the individual who generated the highest sales during the past year and is named after the Kislak Organization’s late chairman, who was an entrepreneur, real estate pioneer and philanthropist.
It also resulted in Sweetwood winning the Sales Transactions award, which goes to the individual who closed the highest number of sales transactions during the past year. This year marked her fourth consecutive recognition, Woodbridge-based Kislak said, noting that she joined its team in 1996 and is one of the firm’s all-time leading salespeople, consistently ranking as a top producer each year and earning a host of internal and external industry awards.
Scheinerman, for his part, earned the Sima Kislak Jelin Salesperson of the Year award for demonstrating a high standard of performance and professionalism during the year, the news release said. His 2024 sales totaled $80 million and included the $60 million trade of a 420-unit multifamily portfolio in Mercer County, plus the $13 million sale of a 62-unit multifamily property in Bergen County.
Kislak hands out the award, which is named after the late daughter of the firm’s founder and someone the firm described as an executive, mentor and motivator to countless salespeople, after a vote of the sales and management teams. Scheinerman joined Kislak in 2011 and specializes in the sale of multifamily and other investment properties throughout New Jersey, having received its 2011 Rookie of the Year award and several promotions.
The Lease Transactions award goes to the individual who completed the highest number of commercial leases during the past year, the news release said. Wisniewski also had a strong 2024, completing 25 commercial leases throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania and several commercial sales in New Jersey, including five office leases in Mount Arlington, a retail lease for a national tenant in downtown Red Bank, a restaurant lease in Branchburg and a four-acre sale in Flemington.
Wisniewski, who joined Kislak in 2015, is a leader in the firm’s commercial sales and leasing affiliate and has leased or sold more than 8 million square feet of commercial space and well over 1,500 acres of land, the news release said. He is actively growing Kislak’s presence in the New Jersey commercial real estate market and has earned the award for eight consecutive years.
Soliman, recipient of the Rising Star award, joined Kislak in 2022 and specializes in commercial leasing and sales in central New Jersey. Her 2024 transactions include the $1.3 million sale of a mixed-use retail and office property in Clinton and several retail leases throughout central New Jersey.
Kislak’s awards ceremony took place in January at Limani Seafood Grill in Westfield.
