Community Highlights: Meet Chanel Walker Terry

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chanel Walker Terry.

Hi Chanel, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I grew up in a small horse community near Palos Verdes. When I was young, I rode horses every day and was proud to tell anyone who asked that I was from “Los Angeles”. Little did I know that my childhood neighborhood couldn’t have been a further depiction from the Los Angeles stereotype! During my teenage years, the illusion had worn off and I felt like I couldn’t leave Southern California fast enough. I chose to attend the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor specifically to prove a point. However, it only took me one Michigan winter to motivate me to graduate early and move west as soon as possible. Rather than moving home though, I took off for the mountains to be a ski bum in South Lake Tahoe so I could “figure out what I was going to do with my life”. My idea of what I thought was only going to be one winter turned into ten years, meeting and marrying my husband, raising a dog, buying a house, and having a successful career in the health and safety industry.

Then 2020 came along and everything changed; I had a mini midlife crisis at the age of 31. I wasn’t feeling fulfilled in my professional life anymore. My grandmother passed away. Quarantine. Fast forward, my husband and I decided to move back to my hometown of Palos Verdes so I could pursue a career in real estate and to renovate my grandmother’s original 1953 home.

While cleaning out my grandmother’s house, I came across her California real estate license. I had known that both my grandparents on the other side of my family were active realtors when they lived in the South Bay, but with the newfound knowledge of my other grandmother being involved with real estate as well, I discovered we had six real estate agents in my immediate family alone! So long story short, real estate is in my blood.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Although the landscape of the South Bay has remained the same as to when I was a kid, the people have changed. I sadly only kept in contact with one person from my high school that still lives in the area. Other than that, I was attempting to build a referral-based real estate business with basically no local network. My sphere of influence and referral partners were back in South Lake Tahoe, where I spent the majority of my professional and personal life as an adult. It was a long, slow, uphill slug especially in a place like the South Bay that is seemingly saturated with realtors. It feels like everyone and their mother, father, sister, cousin, you name it, is a real estate agent and there I was, annoyingly optimistic with only one contact in my toolbox. But the power of one does work! I put one foot in front of the other, I strived to become 1% better every day, make one more contact and after months of perseverance, I was still in business.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about being a real estate agent?
My formal job title is “residential real estate agent” but I also double as a therapist, friend, advisor, carpenter, you fill in the blank, I’ve probably worn that hat. Every real estate transaction is unique and coupled with the undeniable stress that goes with potentially the biggest financial decision of your life, emotions run high. Daily life marches on, but the littlest hiccups can turn into unsurmountable mountains in the matter of minutes, which is why it is extremely important to work with someone you trust. I have a background in yoga therapy in which I regularly use to de-escalate intense situations for my clients. It may sound cheesy, but I guide them back to their breath, which allows them to drop into the present moment and re-center, then we are able to tackle whatever issue we are facing together with patience, calmness, and clarity.

I specialize in residential real estate in the South Bay, mainly because I am passionate about the community I live in with all of the diversity that it embodies. I love living here, so it’s effortless to express and share that passion with others especially with those who are not familiar with the area. Spoiler alert though, not everyone likes to talk about real estate all the time. Because I live and breathe real estate, I sometimes forget that real estate is not the only interest I identify with. I’m a multi-faceted person, just like everyone else. I love reading and mountain biking, yoga and beer, skiing, baking, and dogs just to name a few. All of these passions make it easy for me to relate with people when I first meet them and go beyond the obvious real estate connection.

I’m motivated to do things differently, which is why I strongly believe in “service for life”. I’m not looking for the quick, one and done real estate transaction. I create lifelong relationships with my clients that are built on trust, support, and having their best interests in mind always. I go beyond being a trusted real estate advisor to being part of the family. I treat each client as if they are the only one and I work hard to learn each of my client’s needs as it relates to their lifestyle. My favorite client is the first-time homebuyer. I thrive on their enthusiasm, excitement, and uncertainty of the process. It pushes me to be even more proactive before, during, and after the transaction with everything in between. It also gives me the opportunity to create a client for life and assist them through every step of their real estate journey from their first home to their forever home. I pride myself on my organizational skills, follow-through, clear communication and personalized touch to ensure I exceed my client’s expectations.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
I do my best work when I’m busy. It keeps me inspired and motivated to keep moving forward. I also love being social in and around the South Bay as it gives me a sense of belonging and purpose within my community. Although meeting new people invigorates me just as much as being glued to a good fiction novel, my happy place is with my dog and husband, being active in nature. It reminds me to breathe, slow down, and spend precious time with the people and things I love most in the world.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chanelwalkerterry/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chanelwalkerterry
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chanelwalkerterry/

Image Credits
April Reppucci Holly Shankland