How I got started in Real Estate

In 1998, while working at Home Depot, my husband got ill and funds began to get tight.  I started to think about real estate because I had always been good at sales and thought why don't I sell something a little more substantial than jewelry or window coverings.  While working at Home Depot I started noticing a lot of people asking for smoke detectors and water heater straps (two items mandatory by Federal Law when selling your home) and inquired to the customers.  After inquiring for the 100th time I found out that the real estate market was starting to pick up.  I went home to my husband and kids and told them it was time for me to start my new career.  

I started my career at McGarvey Clark Realty, the mom and pop shop in Fullerton, and also kept my job at Home Depot.  The manager at McGarvey Clark at the time, told me to go ahead and dive in and do a open house for another Realtor and so I did.  I will never forget my first open house.  I barely got my signs up and Rick and Marie Budz walked in and I showed them around and they looked at me and asked me what they needed to do if they wanted to buy the home.  I looked at them with total honesty and said," I don't know, but I will find out".  I remember being totally honest with them and they were very patient and the rest is history.  

I have now gone on to close almost 700 transactions!!  You can say that I found my calling.  I do believe in my life that you can take lemons and turn them into lemonade, because my husband is now very healthy and we work on real estate as a team and have made a great life for the two of us and our children.

Staying in shape mentally and physically will help you in real estate!!

I feel it is very important to stay in shape to be a top producing realtor.  With our long hours, stressful situations and the current market conditions we tend to gravitate towards bad habits of eating in our car, drinking too much and not wanting to exercise at all when just the opposite is needed.  Some people say to me, "I don't have time for exercise- whaahhhh"  I tell them that I don't have time NOT to exercise.  A couple of years ago a old lady ran a red light and hit me and my husband going 40 mph without braking.  I don't want to go into deep details but it was a BAD accident.  I feel because of the weight training and core and balance training that me and my husband do is why we walked away from the accident without any broken anything. We were very sore for days just from the impact alone but not seriously hurt. I do not have time to be in a hospital bed for days recouping from an accident.  

I do get bored easy so I try to stir things up with my physical regime and that is why I started Moo Yea Do with my 11 year old boy. 

Moo Yea Do is basically a mixture of different martial arts kinda like Tai Kwon Do. 

Anyway, my little boy is very competitive ( don't know where he got that?) and we have really been pushing one another and we decided to test for our yellow belt only after 4 weeks from starting and we passed!  The next test is in 4 weeks for our orange belts and we would like to be black belts within 18 months!!  Wish me luck on that one.

Its a lot of fun and a great way to bond with my boy, stay in shape,  and I sure would feel sorry for someone who tried to physically bother me.   KI-YAH!!!  Anyway, how ever you do it, as the Nike commercials say "Just do it".  I promise you if you take good care of your body you will have the energy to sell more homes!

your favorite Ninja--Jacki O