Behind The Title: Meet our CEO, Shaul C. Greenwald

 

 

Tell us about your professional background.

My career path was an unexpected one. I began as the sales and marketing director for a consumer manufacturing company where I soon became involved with corporate attorneys while directing them on matters regarding application processes, company patents, copyrights and trademarks. Almost a decade later, I was stagnated in my role and I had the drive to do something more challenging. At the age of 32, I took the LSAT, did quite well, and with my wife’s blessing enrolled in The Benjamin N. Cordozo School of Law.  After passing the NY and NJ Bar, I opened up a title company which combines my marketing and legal backgrounds. Since then I have been admitted to practice law in 6 States and I have my title insurance license in almost 40 States.

 

Was it hard making such a drastic change at that age?

It was very challenging. My wife and I already had four children and there were sacrifices we had to make for this to work including selling our house in Rockland County, NY and moving to Brooklyn. Luckily, I was awarded a scholarship and joined a program to finish my first year of law school over two summers so at least I could continue working during my first year of school. It was an interesting yet challenging time in our life.

 

What about title did you like most that interested you to start your own firm?

While in law school, I worked for a title agency as well as a law firm that specialized in real estate. I also honed my focus with classes such as real estate law, real estate taxation, corporations and trusts and estates as well as other related subjects.I started my own title company while finishing law school in 2006 and then joined forces with Yoel Zagelbaum in 2009,who had launched Riverside Abstract at approximately the same time as I did.

 

What aspect of real estate and title insurance excites you the most?

No deal is the same. Each deal come with legal and business issues that are unique and often complex. There are also various personalities that we deal with on a constant basis. You need to really look at each deal as its own world. Being based out of New York, which in a sense is the capital of the real estate world is exhilarating but at the same time client’s want things done in a New York minute. We need to manage lots of changing variables as well as our client’s expectations. I enjoy finding creative solutions for our clients to help them close deals. There is huge satisfaction that comes from assisting with a successful closing.

If you had more free time, how would you spend it?

I would spend more time with my family and studying Talmud.

Like what you saw? Learn more about the Riverside Abstract team here.