Today we’d like to introduce you to Pamela Hayes
Hi Pamela, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
After enduring a transaction with another Realtor who had been referred to me to sell a home during a particularly stressful time in my life, I realized clearly that this agent did not have my best interests in mind. I ended up losing a great deal of money on the deal and decided that the best way to overcome this was to find out more about this industry. I received my real estate license in 2005 and 3 years later my brokers license. I went to work for a major real estate firm, where I quickly learned the ropes, was invited to be part of a very successful team, began teaching real estate school and became a real estate coach to new agents.
Although I greatly valued my time at this brokerage, I grew weary of the constant intimidation to make money, much of which went on to fund the corporate structure. I realized that my success as a Realtor was due to the connection I made with my clients, and not the company listed after my name. After 10 years of spending every weekend doing open houses, I had built a database of close to 1000 people….all of whom I had met personally and maintained contact with thru informative and personalized emails and text messages. I knew that these people would think of me when they needed not just to sell or buy a home, but as a trusted advisor whenever they had any relevant question. Soon my clients were referring me to their family and friends, and coming back to me for the second and third time. One comment that solidified my thought that keeping in contact with those people I had met over the years in a intentional way was when a man I had met several years before called me out of the blue and offered me what ended up being a huge transaction; when I asked what had made him think of me he replied “Being as busy as I am, I don’t have the time to research people; all I had to do was wait a week or two and I knew I would be receiving an email from you with your contact information right at my fingertips. You made it too easy for me to forget you.”
That comment so resonated with me that I decided that day that the key to my on-going success as a Realtor was to put my clients first; the money will always be there, but that relationship I made with a person likely making the biggest financial decision of their lives was more important to me than the check.
As a reminder that in the often chaotic world of real estate, my clients feed off of my stress level, I developed my own “boutique” real estate brokerage called Kanso Realty. Kanso is a Japanese zen term meaning “simplicity or elimination of clutter”, which was exactly what I needed after years of the opposite. Today, the culture of my office reflects that very principle and our agents attitudes the same thoughtful, caring, supportive nature that makes our clients feel comfortable trusting us as their Realtors. Additionally, Kanso Realty demonstrates our engagement with a multi-cultural, financially diverse, person-centered approach by engaging in continuing education; our agents maintain certification in everything from Palos Verdes Specialists to LGBTQ+ Allies.
And finally, as a commitment to giving back to our communities, we make a donation in the name of our client to a vetted charity at each close of escrow; our clients can choose from the Innocence Project, Alzheimer’s Association, Scholarships for America, the Trevor Project, World Central Kitchen, Covenant House and Greyhound Pets of America and Wounded Warriors.
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?
The biggest struggle for me personally was the mental leap from having the “safety net” of a corporation behind me to going it alone. In retrospect, it was much easier…..and way more satisfying….than I had imagined.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Kanso Realty is most proud of our approach towards making our clients real estate experience as seamless as possible. While chaos often ensues behind the scenes, we always maintain a balanced, positive and smooth approach to whatever roadblocks come our way. We are known for working with seasoned clients who have bought and sold many properties, but even more proud of walking first timers through the process.
There is always a cadre of professionals behind every successful Realtor, from home inspectors, mortgage lenders, escrow officers and contractors. We maintain a close association with only those team mates who have demonstrated to us that they will be a purposeful part of our team, and make recommendations to our clients accordingly.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
Whenever the inevitable day comes when we are ready to lose our minds, we simply bring it back to our name; Kanso, the zen principle for what calms us down and brings us back to our purpose.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kanso-realty.com
- Instagram: @kanso_realty
- Facebook: www.kanso-realty.com
Image Credits
all pics taken by my daughter!
