We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Celene Garza a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Celene, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

I was born and raised in Mexico, as soon as I got my Bachelors’ Degree I left my country to move to Florida. One of my goals when I moved to the USA was to buy a house so the first thing I did was to google what I needed to get approved for a house and the answer was 2 years of income. When I had 1 year and 10 months with pay stubs in this country, I applied for a loan and I got approved. After I bought my first home, I felt the process was SO easy and I decided I wanted to become a Realtor so I can help other people have their own home.
At that time, I was working in San Antonio for Accenture in an HR Role and I got a great job offer as an HR Manager position for Millennium Group in Austin, I took that job and I put on hold the real estate career.
After 3 years working for Millennium, one day, writing my 2019 new year resolutions, I decided it was time to get my Real Estate License and I got it in March of 2019 which is one of the best decisions I ever made, Real estate is my passion. I currently have 5 investment properties.
I worked in more than 20 different places before becoming an HR Manager and then jumping to the Real Estate world. I was a nanny, waiter, hostess, assistant, receptionist, cashier, driver, I even worked cleaning houses.
I’ve worked in the Hospitality Industry for 5 years and in Human Resources for 10 years. When I got the keys to my first home, I realized that there are unlimited opportunities for everyone, if I was able to buy a house then everyone can. If I had this opportunity, there is no reason why any other person wouldn’t.

I’m so grateful to help families, investors and friends to get their first home, buy more investments, grow their capital, help them with real estate projects or selling their properties. If there is a thing I enjoy, it is seeing other people happy! I love closing dates, I share happiness with my clients.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I am a Residential Realtor licensed in Texas and Florida who helps others to buy, sell, lease and rent any residential properties such as a home, lot, condo, townhouse, duplex, mobile homes, farm or land.

My market expertise is in Austin, Texas and South Florida but I am open to go anywhere based on my client’s needs, budget and preferences. I keep learning the Real Estate regulations, taking classes to be updated, understand better the real estate market, contract changes, new challenges, etc. If I want to give the best advice to my clients, I need to be prepared with the right information and a combination of a business strategy. We all want the best deal, right?

I am a negotiator, I work hard to get the best deal, I listen and understand what are my clients needs and desires. My commitment is to provide a quality and personal service to all my clients and make each transaction an amazing and joyful experience. Love to help others achieve their dreams.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

The biggest challenge for me was the language (and I’m still not 100% fluent in English) My first professional job in Florida was as an HR Assistant and I was afraid to speak, trying to explain myself in English was so hard at the beginning, I was able to understand, the issue was when I wanted to translate from Spanish to English so I used to say “send my an email and I will respond to you.”
My last job in Millennium helped me to be more fluent in English because no one was a Spanish speaker. In all my previous jobs, my coworkers speak Spanish. I do have a strong accent but I’m not afraid to speak anymore.

Regarding the Real Estate challenges, I have dealt with different obstacles; slow lenders, delay with the appraisals, moving closing dates, competitive market, clients approved for a lower amount they desire, having to get creative to bit cash offers, negotiate the best price from my clients and win the offer. Understand my client’s needs and match their desires with what the current market offers.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

When I started in the Real Estate business, I invested a lot of money in marketing to get some clients. I did get a few clients through marketing and then I realized that I had a big network of friends who I can help with their Real Estate goals. 80% of my current business are referrals. What I do is to work hard from day one, always be available, listen to their needs, understand what they want and make the best team.
I keep in touch with all of my previous clients, I sent them Holiday gifts through the year and try to send them a text every now and then.
My clients are either referrals from friends and previous clients, returning clients who have new goals and friends or people who knows me.
It is true when they say “the first impression is the best impression”

Contact Info:

• Website: https://celenerealestate.com/
• Instagram: @celenerealestate
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CeleneRealEstate