Why I became a Realtor

I have been interested in houses and neighborhoods all my life. When I first got my driver’s license, I didn’t gather as many friends as I could into my car… I looked up addresses in the phone book (that was where you found both phone numbers and addresses before the Internet!) and looked up houses (using a map!). Even when my husband John and I started dating, we would spend afternoons driving around and exploring neighborhoods… the goal was to find somewhere interesting we hadn’t been before, try a new restaurant, etc. We have been housing and neighborhood geeks forever!

When I graduated from college with a BA in music and French, I started out as a teacher. Only problem was, as an INTJ I didn’t like managing a classroom… I was more suited for intuitive one-on-one teaching and guidance which I used in my private music studio. I also loved art, design and architecture… and was good at creating interesting and livable spaces, uncovering the historic stories of houses, sites and neighborhoods. The other end of my creativity was both abstract reasoning and data analysis.

Real estate combines my strongest talents and interests and I first explored it as a career while I was still teaching… I even sold a couple of our own houses when we moved. However, with a young family I knew it wouldn’t work for me at that time because whatever I do involves me intensely and I am also fiercely independent so wouldn’t have been suited for a team even if they had existed back then. As my life took me through owning a framing store and art gallery and into travel management, development and analysis, I finally found my home in real estate as we were looking for a new home.

I was having trouble finding a Realtor I could trust and relate to. When I said we were looking for a house in an interesting setting and/or with interesting architecture they would say to come back when we knew what we wanted. We needed an intuitive guide. When I realized there must be others like me who weren’t looking for a ‘traditional’ Realtor it inspired me to become a Realtor… which I did when our youngest graduated from high school.

I have now been a Realtor for 26 years, and still love what I do. What I don’t love is all the ‘scripts’ and AI intelligence that is running rampant. What makes me the Realtor that I am is my intelligence, integrity and sincerity, which will never change. When I started my blog back in 2008 I started getting the kind of clients I love to work with… they would come to me after learning to know me first, so only those who were a good fit would contact me.

I remember when one potential client contacted me, she asked if I would be her contact throughout the whole process, or whether other ‘specialists’ would take over at different points in the process. When I told her that I would be working with her from beginning to end she said…”Good, let’s get started.”

If you are looking for old-fashioned service from an ethical, knowledgeable professional, contact me… let’s get together to see if we would be a good fit.

Whether you are buying or selling, your Realtor will be your ‘best friend’ throughout the process. There are lots of good Realtors out there… and lots of bad ones, too. Trust your gut and choose a Realtor who is not only competent and knowledgeable, but also one you feel comfortable working with… someone you can trust.

Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results – shensrud@homesmsp.com