We were lucky to catch up with LORIAN DuCharme recently and have shared our conversation below.

LORIAN, appreciate you joining us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

This biggest risk I’ve taken in life has been deciding to “retire” from a 20 year career in education, sell as much as I could from my belongings, move back to Colorado and completely start over. All of this at the age of 42. And in tandem with my ex-husband and in-laws, so that everyone would be there for my son. I had no idea what career I was going to pursue in this next stage of life, but in a way, I feel like a career in real estate found me. And honestly, I’ve never been happier. There’s still a huge feeling of fulfillment and gratitude every time I help people buy or sell their homes.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Shortly after I moved to Colorado I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. At the time, I was working as a project manager for a technical writing company, a job that found me through my LinkedIn profile. I wasn’t ready for surgery, so my doctor said we could wait 6 months and keep an eye on it. In that 6 months it had gotten slightly worse. So a total thyroidectomy was my option. While I was home recovering, I started studying for my Colorado Real Estate License. I was inspired by 2 of my friends who are also realtors. My plan was to start part time and build a business slowly. But, I lost my job. So I started pushing full time as a realtor.
It’s taken me 2 years to build my business and I keep growing everyday. I named my business Forever Charmed Homes because I want my clients to have as magical of an experience as possible. Buying and selling a home can be stressful, so the biggest problem I try to solve is how to alleviate some of that stress. I do this through a positive attitude, open communication, and continually educating my clients through each step of the process.
One of the things I’m most proud of has been helping the clients that are relocating from out of state. I’ve been their eyes, ears, and nose throughout their buying processes. And there’s an immense amount of trust that comes with that!
I feel what sets me apart from others is that I really take the time to educate my clients, I ALWAYS pick up the phone or text back, I answer any questions, I provide piece of mind and I remind them to breathe when things get stressful.
I chose real estate as my passion. I know what it’s like to want to feel at home in a space, that’s what my goals are with each client, to give them their safe space. I didn’t always work in real estate, I chose to become an agent not out of necessity, but because I feel a true calling to help individuals and families find their comfort space, their home.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

The best source of new clients for me has been referrals. A referral is literally the greatest compliment because it means that someone likes you and trusts you enough to tell their friends and family to use you to represent them in one of the biggest decisions they will make in life.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

My keep in touch strategy is making sure I stay in contact with my clients on a monthly basis. Even if it’s just a card. I also like to send a text every so often to check in with how their lives are going, sometimes I pop-by with a small seasonal gift, and I follow-up with a phone call when I can. I care about people, not just about their transaction and I want them to know that.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.ForeverCharmedHomes.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/forever.charmed.homes
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/ForeverCharmedHomes/
• Linkedin: LinkedIn.com/in/lorian-ducharme

Image Credits
Photos by Lea Hope Bonzer