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Meet Diana Armstrong-Bruns of Homes To Di For in Calabasas/Topanga

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Diana Armstrong-Bruns.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I was born in Ecuador to an Ecuadorian mother and English father. At the age of 11, I was sent to an all-girls boarding school in the north of England. I wasn’t thrilled about it but I spent seven (mostly happy) years there. I was involved in all aspects of school, on every sports team, in every play, and I made such an amazing group of friends, whom I still consider my sisters.

When I was 17, I was home in Ecuador for the holidays when I was approached by a modeling scout from Miami. They asked me to come to Miami and join their agency but I had just graduated from school and was about to embark on a gap year before college. I stayed in touch with the agent and off I went. I think being away from your parents from such a young age makes you self-sufficient and independent and I had no problem at all traveling through Italy, India and Australia mainly on my own. (I met up with a couple of friends along the way). Seeing the world and traveling opens up your mind and makes you appreciate life so much more. If there is one thing I want to encourage everyone to do is to get yourself a passport and go see the world!

Once I’d completed my tour I returned to northern England and commenced my Language and History degree at Leeds University. Part of my course included spending a year abroad, so I chose to go to Italy and contacted the agent from Miami. I asked him to connect me with an agency in Milan and went off to my first meeting. Unfortunately, I got off to a rocky start when the first, second and third agencies turned me away for being too short (I’m 5’7 and a half!) but luck was on my side. A gorgeous Brazilian girl I met invited me to go on a commercial casting with her. I remember walking up to this grand building and seeing a line of about 100 super tall beauties. Since I didn’t have an official agent I wrote down the name of the last agency that had turned me away and joined the line. I waited an hour or so to be seen. They were looking for “nice legs’. (It was a commercial for Telecom Italia.) I did my best model walk and they took photos of my legs from all angles. I left the casting without a second thought. Later that night, the agency called to say I was booked for the job and they would happily represent me. From then on, I worked pretty steadily (despite my stature), made friends and partied like a rockstar.. which is how they treat models in Milan. This was a lot better than my nights out in Leeds!

One night at Club Hollywood I met this very handsome Alaskan boy. I was determined not to date any models but something about this one made me change my mind. Who would’ve thought that almost 20 years later we’d still be together. After Milan, I went back to university for my final year, with Steven in tow. We then moved to Miami and kept working and traveling as models for three more years before moving to LA, as Steven wanted to get into acting.

LA has been our home for 15 years now. We started off living in Sherman Oaks with our beloved bulldogs Cookie and Monster. We then got married, bought our first townhome and had a baby boy, Oliver. When I got pregnant with our second baby we decided to move to Topanga. The home that we fell in love with was a short sale. At that time, short sales took ages to close and for four months we were in limbo. We finally closed escrow days before my due date. At that point, we were still pretty busy with modeling and commercials but I decided I wanted to switch thing up and get my Real Estate license.

Having been through the business of buying two homes I felt I had the right temperament to guide buyers and sellers through the process. I’m a very positive person by nature. Home buying and selling take place during pivotal moments in people’s lives. It can often be stressful so I strive to make the whole process not only go smoothly but also fun. I remember sitting around with some of my boarding school girlfriends when I announced that I was thinking about getting my real estate license. My witty friend, Caroline Walford, immediately exclaimed “Homes To Di For!” and that’s how the name of my business came to be. It’s a little tongue-in-cheek but I believe you need a little humor not just in business but in life. Six years later with a growing business and a third baby boy in the family, Steven decided to get his RE license. It’s been amazing. Steven is really genuine and down to earth and is fantastic at connecting with people. He’s my rock when the negotiations get stressful and always has my back. I couldn’t imagine having a better partner.

It’s now been eight years and our business has continued to grow each year. We are fortunate to work with a great group of people at Keller Williams, Calabasas. We have mentored several new agents and recently were asked to speak on a panel of top producers on the luxury real estate market. We love what we do and genuinely care about our clients. I think it’s this approach that brings us continued business through referrals.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It was definitely not always a smooth road. There are many people who get into real estate thinking it’s an easy job. However, it takes time and perseverance to build a clientele. Working for yourself has its benefits but you also are the only one accountable for your success. As a realtor, you have to adapt to the ever-changing market. The competition is stiff so you have to innovate and come up with new ways to stay on top of your game.

Selling ultra high-end and unique properties also come with its challenges and we have had to get creative with our marketing. For example, we have a beautiful listing in Topanga listed at $15,900,000. It sits on 16 acres and has an enormous back lawn, big enough to land a helicopter on. We decided to highlight the helicopter-accessibility and the sellers agreed to throw in a helicopter with a full-price offer. How about that for an incentive!

Being a mother of three also means I have to be really organized with my time so that I can give my clients the attention they need and also spend quality time with my kids. However, despite the challenges there isn’t a career I’d rather be in.

Please tell us about Homes To Di For.
We’ve built our business primarily on referrals which means that we strive to go above and beyond for each client so that they feel good enough to recommend us to their friends. We care about our clients and most often end up becoming great friends with them. We specialize in the Topanga, Calabasas, Malibu area but having lived here for 15 years we know LA really well. We have sold all throughout LA.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I probably would have asked Steven to get his license when I first got mine. Teaming up and having his support in business has really accelerated the traction of our career.

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Image Credit:
Meny Atias, Jason Christoper Photography

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