I am married to the world's most wonderful woman. She has blessed my life with two very amazing children. They keep my life full of fun and put everything in perspective on what is truly important.
Having fun and staying fit rank very high on the list of things that are important! So here is a picture of the family after the "Dirty Dash" and "Piglet Plunge". Believe it or not my daughters shirt started out pink!
For sanity and fun I coach wrestling at Palmer High School in downtown Colorado Springs. I also train, coach and compete in Brazilian Jui-Jitsu at Gracie Barra Colorado Springs. It is a great workout. Helps me stay fit and gives me an opportunity to show others awesome of the skills and life lessons I have learned from my wrestling career.
Why Colorado Springs?
I moved to Colorado Springs because of an opportunity to train greco-roman wrestling at the Olympic Training Center. I was not able to reach my goals in wrestling but found that I was in love with Colorado Springs. I have been here for almost 10 years and have been involved in real estate for all of that time.
The Beginning of a Career in Real Estate
My start in the field of real estate was a bit accidental. I started my career while training at the Olympic Training Center. An agent that focused on flipping houses was in need of good, hardworking help and I was in need of a job that could be flexible enough to work around the crazy training schedule one must keep while at the OTC. Little did I know I would be starting down a path to a new love, flipping and selling houses!
Flip this House in Real Life
I started working for the Realtor/house flipper and loved it. Every house was a new exciting project with its own joys and pitfalls. After I worked on other peoples homes I decided that I would love to flip my own house. So I purchased an FHA HUD repossession and got to work. After the work was complete and the house was on the market I took the opportunity to get my Real Estate Licence. At that same time the Realtor I worked with got his Employing Brokers Licence and I went to work under him. With the proceeds from the house I flipped I purchased my first personal residence and what turned into my first investment rental property. The greatest lesson learned from flipping houses in real life: It rarely if ever goes the way it does on TV, and the margins and profits are often not what you really see on cable TV, but it can make you money and is worth doing.
Moving up to the Big Time
After a few years of flipping my Broker and I decided it was time for us to kick it up a notch and really become more influential as Realtors, not just flippers. A lot of our home flipper clients had fled the market and we were beginning to feel that buy and hold was a smarter play than flipping so....
We closed down the company and joined Re/max Properties, Inc. The biggest and best real estate company in our market. Why re-invent the wheel. They already had all the system in place an agent could ever want and the support staff to make the transition smooth. So I jumped in with both feet and have not looked back.
Re/max Properties has been a great fit for me and I have grown every year. It was difficult at first, but so worth it. I have such a better understanding of the market and all that it entails. My clients receive better, more thorough service than I could have ever hoped to provide in a small real estate shop.
I love my job and my company. I really love helping people find that sweet deal, that bigger better home, that investment that will create long term wealth, that first little bungalow to start their family, to help them sell and feel confident in the process and the price. What an awesome and special opportunity it is!
