Conversations with Katrina Lien

Today we’d like to introduce you to Katrina Lien.

Hi Katrina, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Growing up, both my parents were in the real estate business. My dad was a full-time real estate agent and my mom was a part-time real estate agent for a year. I remember we would spend most of our Sundays going to open houses and touring new build model homes. Just seeing all these homes with different characteristics was exciting to me, especially the gorgeous luxury homes! My parents worked so hard and built success on their own that they knew the value of money and how important it was to have it in order to live a comfortable lifestyle. They also knew how to grow their wealth by investing in a ton of real estate, such as multi-family homes and single-family homes, and just being able to receive passive income. My parents’ success and the life they were able to live and give me is the reason why I chose to be a real estate agent. Seeing all these amazing homes is one thing, but the reward is another. The financial reward is great when you sell a home, but of course, the drawback is you only get paid when you sell a home.

However, real estate is the best investment of all! Selling real estate brings in big checks and putting it towards real estate will bring in a ton of equity into your life. That is essentially my goal in the future. I want to not only own a house of my own and provide a comfortable lifestyle to my family but also grow my wealth in owning multiple real estate. I started as a full-time real estate back in late July 2021 and I got lucky with having my first deal right off the bat, which was my mom’s new home. You always hear people getting into real estate full-time and not having a deal after months or a year because you are having to work hard to build a clientele that will trust you. However, I was able to close a deal within two months of being a real estate agent, which was so exciting. However, I didn’t stop there. I put in a lot of extra hours once I jumped ships into my career. I probably worked 12 to 13-hour days. I was motivated and driven to learn everything from contracts to negotiating and learning what to say and how to say it to clients to get them to like you and trust you. I had great support from the brokerage/team I initially joined because they taught me everything as a new agent!

It was all about getting out of the comfort zone and being confident, as well as learning from mistakes, which is cliche to say. It was difficult to make the calls after constant rejection from leads, but I also know that putting yourself in front of strangers does work and sometimes you have to remember that you can’t get everyone to want to work with you, which is okay! The biggest thing that has made me successful in real estate, with 9 closed escrows my first year, was my dedication, hard work, persistency, and my ability to build a strong rapport with all my clients and other agents that I communicated and worked with. I will say another thing that motivates me to work hard in my real estate career is seeing others happy. I just love that feeling of handing someone the keys to their new home, especially if it’s their first home purchase!

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has not been a smooth at all. First, with any career, it’s all about learning the ropes. Luckily, I am a quick learner and have the willingness to learn, so there were so many contracts to understand, knowing how to negotiate with other agents, knowing what to say and how to say it to leads/clients, and the process of buying/selling a home. However, you also have to constantly put in the work, and that means going above and beyond and getting out of the comfort zone. I struggled with picking up the phone and constantly calling clients that have been avoiding/rejecting me, and putting my salesman hat on, cold calling new leads, and door knocking to see if anyone is interested in buying or selling. I thought I had confidence getting into the business, but that’s because I had the personality of knowing how to build a connection and rapport with random strangers and getting to know them on a deeper level, but when it came to seeing it they wanted to spend their money or sell their home, it was not easy. However, you learn that it’s not about pressuring these leads/clients and being that salesperson that everyone hates. It was all about providing them value and getting them to like you, so when they are ready to move forward with accomplishing their real estate goals, then they will reach out to you because they “know you, like you, and trust you.”

Another struggle is trying to stay positive during a tough market. I got into real estate when the market was great: rates were low and everyone was out taking advantage of it. However, when the market shifted and the rates went up, demand went down and it kept going down as the holidays were approaching. It was slow business and it was hard to not have any deals going. It happens though, and all I was able to do was just still work hard and make sure my clients knew I was there when they were ready. I continuously advised my clients on the market and make sure they knew the best plan of action, kept my eyes out on any homes that I think they might like, and sometimes I just reached out and had a normal, personal conversation without talking about real estate. Lastly, with being a millennial, social media and video content is a big thing amongst our community. I knew I needed to have a social media presence to become known as real estate agent, especially since I am at that age where a lot of my friends/acquaintances were going to buy a house eventually. I wanted to post video content and put myself out there, but I really struggled with being camera shy and talking on camera. However, practice makes perfect as they say. First few videos were rough, but as I kept doing more, they became a little bit more easier and I was able to show my personality more on camera. I just needed to learn how to get out of my head and just focus on what I was saying.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a full-time real estate agent in Orange County! I was born and raised in Fountain Valley and moved to Huntington Beach back in 2021. I got my real estate license in August 2018 and didn’t start getting into the business till late July 2021. I only focus on residential real estate, both buy and sell and occasionally help clients find a place to rent. I focus my business in Orange County, but I’ve had exceptions where I did deals in Los Angeles County and Riverside County, but that is because starting off in the career, I was willing to sell houses anywhere! I am a huge people person and am talkative most of the time. I enjoy meeting new people, getting to know others and their story, and building my clientele based off in-person interactions, such as going to networking events, going out with friends, and working open houses almost every weekend. I would say I am known for my bubbly, positive personality.

Aside from being driven and a hard worker, I am very accommodating and empathetic, which really works in this business. I’m not just trying to close a deal, but also build a relationship and a friendship along the way that will hopefully last a long time! I am proud of closing 9 escrows my first year into real estate, but I am also proud that I took the risk of quitting a stable job because I’m going to be honest, I had doubts if I was ever going to be good as a real estate agent. However, I chose the right path and had self-motivation, which allowed me to get to where I am today. Of course, it wasn’t a smooth ride, but I always say everything happens for a reason, and if one thing fails, all you can do is get back up and learn from it.

Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I personally think that taking risks and having challenges is what makes life exciting! Honestly, you can’t go through life having the same routine and doing the same things because you are comfortable unless you are happy with it then keep doing what you’re doing. However, as cliche as it sounds, life is too short to not experience new things! One of the major risks that I took in my life was leaving a great job at a great company that provided me a stable income, a ton of benefits, and great work culture, for a career that I may or may not love or succeed in. I had my doubts prior to becoming a full-time real estate agent. I had my real estate license since 2018, but I wasn’t fully ready to commit into the business then because I was scared. I heard that some people fail in the business. You’re fully on your own to manage your own time, get creative, and build your book of business.

However, I knew that if I never try, I would never know. Part of me knew I could succeed because I had a lot of support from friends and family saying I had the personality for it and the drive to work hard. I always live by the saying, “everything happens for a reason.” I knew my last job felt stagnant and then there came an opportunity in front of me, which was my mom wanting to make a move into a new city and a new home, so that was the push that got me to change career path. It was the best risk I’ve ever taken and I’m glad I didn’t give up. Here’s the thing: it’s important to take the risk, especially when there’s a sign or an opportunity because you don’t want to go years regretting and ask yourself “what if.” However, it’s also important to have a plan A and plan B, before taking the risk, which depends on the extent of the risk. I told myself if real estate wasn’t going to work out, I could always go back to my old job, but also wanted to make sure I gave myself enough time in the career before realizing that it might not be for me. However, you never know unless you try, and you definitely want to take the risk with a positive mindset and believe that it will be okay!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katrinaa_lien/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katrinaaforever
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katrina-lien-013347670