Linda Kay -The Barefoot Realtor: WHY I CHOSE REAL ESTATE

WHY I CHOSE REAL ESTATE - AND AM LOVING EVERY MINUTE!

Okay, so growing up, my parents always told me I could do anything I set my mind to. I guess that's true for everyone, but I didn't know that at the time. I mean, really, a little hard work and the right connections can get you anywhere!

So, needless to say, I had some pretty lofty goals for myself. (And my handwriting can attest that I should have definitely been a doctor!) However, first bump in the road: I got pregnant my senior year of high school and had Gracie. Bye, bye doctorship! Gracie, by the way is a beautiful, smart and fun girl! (I'm not gonna tell you how old 'cause that would date me!) But I always knew that I wanted to do something that really, truly helped people.

Over the course of the years, I have held various positions at various companies. From desk work, to sale positions, to fundraising and as an Executive Director of a non-profit. I have even held political office for two terms in my assembly district. All of those jobs have prepared me and gotten me ready for the profession of Realtor.

Actually, it was my husband's doing. The position as Executive Director had been "reorganized" into one statewide group instead of county groups, so I had been downsized. And Rich, in all his wisdom was talking to someone at work about flipping houses. This person had him convinced that we could do it, too. (But if you guys knew my husband, it takes him FOREVER to make a decision and then FOREVER to act upon it.) So we decided that since I was job hunting I would get my real estate license so we could keep the commissions from all those houses we would flip. Naturally, about that time, the market started to get stagnant and his friend got stuck with a house he couldn't sell.

And after all that work to get my license, I decided I would simply (yep, I said simply) try out this real estate thing. As we all now, nothing is simple about real estate! Funny thing is, I LOVE IT! I LOVE helping the people and seeing the looks on their faces when they get their new keys, or they are ready to move up and on.

My favorite story, if you'll allow me to tell it. A couple I met through a cold call (Thanks Mike Ferry) had been through three Realtors and could not get their home sold. They were a little bit older (in their 70's) and were in a two-story house. She had fallen down the stairs and injured herself in such a way that it was not fixable. It was very painful for her to go up and down. And he was to undergo back surgery in less than three months when I came onto the scene. So, unbeknownst to me, they interviewed three more Realtors of which I was one. I not only got their listing, had it sold in three weeks, but we found an amazing single story with everything they wanted. It was beautiful. They moved in one week before his scheduled surgery. Funny how things turn out. The house they moved in to had really wide doors. And soon after his surgery, she actually ended up in a wheelchair which it seems like the house was made for! Really, I LOVE these kinds of stories where I could help and it turns out just right.

So that's my story about how I chose real estate. I feel really like it chose me.

This Picture is of my kids (some are step) excet for Gracie as she was living out of the area at that time. Lucy Allen, David Allen, Erik Mayer, Michael Mayer, and Gracie's daughter, yep, I'm a Granny, Ember.