NJBA Installs Debra Tantleff as Chair

The New Jersey Builders Association (NJBA) is pleased to announce that Debra Tantleff was installed as Chair of the New Jersey Builders Association (NJBA) at its January 17^th Board of Directors meeting in Jersey City, NJ. Please click here to view press coverage of the event.

NJBA CEO Jeff Kolakowski stated, “I am enthused to see Ms. Tantleff take the reins of our organization as our first female Chair and only the 3rd female leader of the Board in NJBA’s 75-year history. In a male-dominated industry, Deb has forged an impressive path to become one of the industry’s most accomplished and knowledgeable leaders. I look forward to helping her pursue her agenda as Chair as NJBA continues to tackle our housing supply crisis.”

New Jersey is currently suffering from a lack of available housing that has brought housing prices to unprecedented levels, including driving the median price of a single-family home to over $500,000.  Addressing New Jersey’s housing crisis is one of NJBA’s primary objectives and steps must be taken now to make progress on our historic and systemic issues. Chair Tantleff noted, “I am pleased to be installed as Chair of NJBA at a time when we have a legislature and administration who share our goals of making housing more accessible and more affordable for New Jerseyans. Last legislative session we were successful in seeing building code inspection reform signed into law and hundreds of millions of dollars allocated to housing, but we need to continue the momentum to keep pace with NJ’s growing population and to provide housing opportunities for residents of every generation.” In her remarks during her installation, Tantleff also stressed the importance and impact of fourth-round affordable housing policy and that a wide variety of public policies are needed to tackle impediments to growth. She emphasized that continued collaboration with other organizations, academic institutions, and thought leaders is vital in changing the conversation surrounding housing policy in NJ.

“There are numerous policies at our disposal that we can implement to help the housing sector and I look forward to working with the staff, board, members, and coalition partners to make them a reality over the next year and to hopefully bring some relief to New Jerseyans in search of a new home,” Tantleff added.

Installed along with Tantleff were NJBA’s 2023-2024 Elected Officers:

Vice Chair: Chris Amato, CMM.

Treasurer: John Kirkenir, Alliance Homes

Secretary: Kristi Veri, Cleanscape Construction

Associate Vice Chair: Richard Boisch, CRISP Insurance

Second Associate Vice Chair: Stan Graser, General Plumbing Supply

About Debra Tantleff
As Founding Principal of TANTUM Real Estate, Debra Tantleff operates a certified Women’s Business Enterprise boutique development and advisory firm focused on creating vibrant multi-family and mixed-use communities in the New Jersey region. Prior to founding TANTUM, Ms. Tantleff was a Vice President of Development at Roseland Property Company, where she established a highly acclaimed reputation for delivering exceptional mixed-use projects, with a portfolio that grew to more than 5,000 residential units and 200,000 square feet of retail space.

Ms. Tantleff serves as Chair of the New Jersey Builders Association (NJBA) and is a member of the Executive Committee at the Center for Real Estate at Rutgers Business School; she sits on the Board of Trustees for the Meadowlands 2040 Foundation and the Board of Directors for Downtown New Jersey. She has been listed on ROI-NJ’s Real Estate Influencers List, named a “Top Forty Under 40” both by Real Estate Forum and NJBiz, and was honored by Professional Women in Construction as a Woman of Achievement. She has also been recognized numerous times by the National Association of Home Builders and the NJBA, including twice being awarded the Distinguished Service Award for Outstanding Political Action and the Special Service Industry Award. She was appointed by Governor Phil Murphy to serve on the NJ-Israel Commission, and she also serves on the Northeast Regional Council for the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

An honors graduate from Rutgers University, Ms. Tantleff holds a B.A.S. from the School of Communication and Information Studies. She holds a Masters in Real Estate Finance from the Schack Institute of Real Estate at New York University.