Career Changes: How to Jump Start Your Real Estate Career  

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By Lucy Drake, Keller Williams Ballantyne-Area Agent 

Many people talk of needing a change in their career but are afraid to take the leap. I was one of those people who struggled with this decision late in life, but I bit the bullet and signed up for real estate classes. It was a struggle balancing homelife, studying, and maintaining my job, but the day my real estate license arrived in the mail, I knew my life was about to change.  

Laying a foundation of meeting people and establishing a mutual trust through your current job, friends and family is the first important step toward this career. As the mother of a special needs young man, I volunteered to be on Boards and Committees and founded several foundations. This led me to running and winning a political mayoral office where I learned how valuable zoning and land use knowledge is. I was fortunate to have worked with real estate attorneys doing closings in prior years, as this has been very beneficial in my career change also.

It was a very hard choice for me to decide to pursue my dream, but I am so fortunate I had the support of my family and a developer employer. I learned early in my new career that my sphere of friends and family would play an important part in kicking off my career. It is natural for people to be afraid to ask someone if they would trust them in helping to sell their home or find their new dream home. However, it is necessary to know people and not be bashful. I would give my cards to any and everyone that would talk to me about real estate.  

When I am asked “What do I need to do to be a good agent?,” I always say, pay attention, don’t take short cuts, be respectful, and have patience. I take each of my clients very personally and make certain they are comfortable and know they can trust me.  You will learn so much about your clients and they need to be assured that you are trustworthy to keep all their information confidential. Once you have earned your client’s respect and trust, they will tell their friends, co-workers and family about you.  A referral is the best part of being a real estate agent.  Your clients are why you are successful or why you don’t make it as a real estate agent. 

My philosophy is simple: clients come first. I pledge to be in constant communication with my clients, respect them, and keep them fully informed throughout the entire buying or selling process. I believe that if they are not left with an amazing experience, I haven’t done my job. Realtors don’t measure success through achievements or awards, but through the satisfaction of our clients. 

Lucy Drake is a native of North Carolina and is licensed in North and South Carolina. She is married and has 3 children and 5 amazing grandchildren. She is very familiar with Charlotte, area lakes and the small town suburbs of Charlotte. She was elected four terms as Mayor of a small town in Union County from 1997 through 2005. The knowledge she gained working with government opened new doors, as she loves working with both the private and public sectors of real estate. Lucy has been with Keller Williams, Ballantyne-Area Market Center since 2011. She does residential (buying and selling), commercial listings, and land listings. For more information, visit www.lucydrake.com, or contact Lucy at 704 622-1489 or [email protected].