We recently connected with Elizabeth Alligood and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Elizabeth, thanks for joining us today. The first dollar your business earns is always special and we’d love to hear how your brand made its first dollar of revenue.

When I got my real estate license, I didn’t have a mentor or a coach. I had to figure out a lot of it on my own, but I didn’t have any fears of asking other experienced agents my questions. I was told by many that it would take me up to 6 months to get a client and that I would primarily be a buyer’s agent. I gave myself 3 months and I ended up getting my first client within a month… and it was a listing.

I remember being so excited and I didn’t realize the listing was 3 hours away….I also didn’t have a TC (transaction coordinator) and I remember being so confused and frustrated because of all the documents, disclosures, addendums….but again, I’m the type that really wants to understand all aspects of my field. I now have a TC, and I make sure she knows how grateful I am. I learned the ins and outs of what a TC does and from my experiences, I appreciate them so much more.

My first experience had a lot of ups and downs, but it made me even more passionate about real estate and I couldn’t get enough of it after that.

Elizabeth, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

How did I get in the real estate industry? Well, I was in the mortgage industry and had a broker who for about a year would constantly and consistently tell me, “Lizzy, you should be a realtor, you would do great at it!”…and every time I would answer with a “yeah” or “I’ll think about it”, until one day he just stopped asking. After a while I asked him “why did you stop?” and he said, “because I don’t think you can do it….it’s not like the mortgage/lending industry”..and that festered in me for a while…to the point that I decided to get my real estate license. Once I got my license, he finally told me, “How else was I going to convince you to get your real estate license?”. I knew exactly what he was doing. He knew that I’m competitive with myself and when someone tells me that I can’t do it, or I won’t be good at it…I show them that I can.

I didn’t have family members in real estate where they gave me their book of business, I didn’t have a coach/mentor, or anyone who provided me leads. I had to learn how to do most of it on my own. I don’t regret a minute of it because it made me a stronger person, more appreciative, grateful and dedicated to my career and to my clients.

I think that sets me apart from most because of my background. Being in sales, advertising/marketing, insurance, lending/mortgage all of it has significantly helped me in real estate. I have a high success rate winning in multiple offer situations due to the strategies I provide to my clients (even clients putting as little as $0 down competing with buyers putting a substantial amount or even cash, even when there was 60+ offers), I’ve been able to help my sellers get the most equity from the sale of their home, some have even sold as the highest per sq. ft. in the area. I’ve been able to close escrow in less than 12 days.

My highest priority are my clients. To ensure that they have a seamless and successful escrow. I strive to provide the best possible experience for all of my clients. Whether they’re buying, selling, investing, relocating, or doing a 1031 exchange.

My agents think the same way. Each and every one of us puts our clients first. They are not just a number or dollar figure to us. They become like our extended family and we treat them as such. It is NEVER about the commission. What fuels us is seeing our clients happy, thriving, seeing their families grow into the homes we helped them get into, seeing their next milestones and big accomplishments. Being a part of THEIR lives, that is worth more than gold, that’s what I’m most proud of.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I was on a team for a big-name agent and I remember my first meeting with her she had asked me what my goals and dreams were. I have always wanted to be a coach/mentor, help others in all walks of life and eventually have a team of my own. She shot that down quickly.

Every conversation after that was telling me I couldn’t do this, I couldn’t do that, I couldn’t survive or do better without her….and one the breaking moments was when I had a client who I had successfully gotten into contract (winning in multiple offers)…and during escrow, he wouldn’t talk to his own inspectors, he refused to pay them and demanded he received the reports. It soon occurred to me from his blatant statements that he was in fact, racist. To add onto that, I got a call from his loan officer stating that he had emailed him and also left a voice mail on a recorded office line that he didn’t care the appraisal came back at value, he wanted the appraiser to re-appraise and he would give him extra money to give a lower value…Why? So he could negotiate with the seller for a lower price.

That’s where I drew the line. Once I found out, I had a conversation with him and let him know that what he was doing was not right, violated the code of ethics, and I would not be a part of it. My team lead at that time who was supposed to be a mentor told me to just close it…..and that “it would be a big commission check”…many had told me I should just close because it was a big commission check….

Being an ethical agent, I stood my ground. We ended up canceling escrow. My first escrow I had ever cancelled and to this day I am glad I cancelled. Ethics is huge in real estate, knowing right from wrong and I was not going to put my reputation on the line for a commission check.

After a while, I left this team, and I’ve never looked back. What I learned is to stand my ground for what’s right. Always do the right thing and never doubt yourself. Even if you are a new agent. If you are in a situation like this where your client is being shady and unethical. Do the right thing. It doesn’t matter how big that commission check is.

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

I had this wonderful young couple who were first time homebuyers. They had a loan officer who they were working with and my first conversation with him ended up with him telling me that he usually does only jumbo loans and high-end clientele….but he’s doing them a favor. Long story short, I was able to get my clients into this amazing townhome and they were only putting 5% down. We beat another offer that had 20% down. That was a huge win.

The escrow process was seamless. The listing agent and sellers were wonderful to work with. No issues, the loan officer told me “CD is being issued, we are good to go”…well we removed all contingencies. One morning, I get a call from my clients and their loan officer was on the other line. My client was crying, and all their loan officer could say was, “well either you guys get more money, or you’re just going to have to lose your deposit”….I was not having it. To put my client into tears and then to tell them they needed more money (which they didn’t have) or lose their deposit… I wasn’t having it.

After that, their loan officer wouldn’t answer our calls. I knew the loan was fine. I called his mortgage company, every person I could find until…I found an LO on LinkedIn who gave me the contact to their loan officer’s VI. Who happened to be on vacation in Mexico. I refused to give up. I finally got hold of the VP and I told him…”either I call you incessantly or you tell me what the actual issue with their file is that I need to fix because your loan officer isn’t responding anymore and isn’t doing his job”.

Basically, it wasn’t an issue with the loan, but the fact that the HOA documents had shown that the HOA had estimates for exterior work to be done (not pending assessments, but future items that they would vote on)…but because of how it was worded the underwriter said it shows that they are obtaining a loan which would make the complex non-warrantable…but it was just an estimate the HOA had put.

I rushed and called the listing agent, explained to him the situation, we hopped on a call with his sellers who then talked to the other members of the HOA. I ended up getting an emergency meeting that same day to explain to them the situation and let them know this could impact their units if they wanted to sell too…and within 24 hours, they updated the documents to reflect that there is no loan being taken out and they were in good financial standing…and BAM! Back on course. We closed escrow.

During the key hand off, they brought their beagle….and the sellers had left them a little gift too. We found out they also have a beagle! It ended up being an amazing experience for them.

The listing agent thanked me because he knew that could’ve been a situation with any future buyers too. The VP of the mortgage company offered me a job, which I graciously declined…. their loan officer magically appeared and thanked me for saving the file and ALSO offered me a job..you know I graciously declined that too.

My clients were over the moon! A few months later…they sent me a photo. They got engaged! The boyfriend had told me that if they didn’t get the home and had lost their deposit, he wouldn’t have been able to propose…that I made their dreams come true.

THAT was the best part of it all. When most agents would’ve quit because they don’t have a lending/mortgage background. I refused to quit until all options were exacerbated. Resilient, dedicated, determined and tenacious…those were the words that my clients wrote about me. This is why I do what I do, and I love being a realtor.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.elizabethalligoodassociates.com
• Instagram: elizabethalligoodassociates
• Facebook: Elizabeth Alligood & Associates
• Linkedin: Elizabeth Alligood & Associates
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