Mary Muldowney is a new agent with Prudential Network Realty in Ponte Vedra Beach.
HOW LONG IN REAL ESTATE?
Two months with Prudential and a year with Coldwell Banker Real Estate on the west coast of Florida in Pinellas County.
WHY CHOOSE TO JOIN PRUDENTIAL HERE?
“I had understood the tremendous educational facilities they have here. They have a great teacher in Sharron Willson. I heard good things about Prudential, so I joined them.”
BEFORE REAL ESTATE?
While living in Atlanta, she was an independent contractor for Reser Seminars and did seminars all over the United States for travel agents. “I put together the seminars, set them up and did the whole venue for whatever tourism organization I was representing.” She started out in the travel business by owning three travel agencies for 15 years in Central Florida and then working as a travel office manager for American Express in Atlanta.
HOW HAS YOUR TRAVEL EXPERIENCE HELPED YOU IN REAL ESTATE?
“If you don’t care what your clients want then you will never be able to give it to them. I wanted people to have the best vacation they ever had. I wanted them to come back and say ‘Thank you’. That was very important to me and that is what is important to me in real estate. I just don’t want to sell these people houses. I just don’t want to list a house. I want to make sure that person’s whose house I list is getting all of my attention, that I have done the research, that they can trust me to know what is going on and that I can get them what they need. I won’t let their expectations get so high that they can’t be fulfilled.”
MARKETING?
“It also taught me marketing. I had to market what I did. People don’t just say, ‘Oh, I think I’ll use her’. I had to get out there and let people know I did a good job. Now, I’m trying to get into as much as I can.” She is joining organizations and volunteering at the St. Johns County Library and will be at Hospice.
WHY DID SHE GET INTO REAL ESTATE?
“I was constantly buying and selling homes for my family. I thought, you know, I enjoy this. I enjoy meeting people and going into a person’s house and absorbing the flavor. You start getting to know them, just by what is in their house. I enjoyed it so much that I thought, I can do this and make some money too.”
AREA SHE IS WORKING?
“I’ll go anywhere. I’ve worked with clients in Ponte Vedra, South Ponte Vedra and Mandarin so far.”
WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT REAL ESTATE?
“I enjoy the people and I like houses. I like the opportunity to put my mind to work to market. That to me is so exciting. There are so many places to go to market. I’m designing my website right now. It’s just non-stop. There is so much to do. I think one of the most important things is learning to organize my time. It’s almost a career in itself, because this is the type of industry where there is so much coming at you at once. You really have to organize and I’m having a ball doing it.”
ADVICE FOR NEW AGENTS?
“To learn as much as you can and do not go anywhere unprepared. Set up a network of Realtors who have been around awhile and who will help you. I think that is very important. Go with an office that you feel is for you. Go to people who have been in business for a while and ask them how they market, so you don’t throw your money around.”
DO YOU HAVE A MENTOR?
“No. I would love to have a mentor. I ask every person I know a thousand questions and I know they are all ready to kill me.”
LESSONS LEARNED?
“I’ve learned how my office works because it doesn’t operate like another office. Everyone has their own different ways that they set things up and what they do. I’m also learning the area. I have to keep copious notes because this is a large area. There is such diversity.”
WHAT HAS HELPED YOU MOST TO GET YOU WHERE YOU ARE TODAY?
“What my father taught me growing up. He taught me to always be honest. If you are going to lie, it’s like being a thief. Lying is stealing the truth. He also taught me to not to make decisions about people until I actually had the opportunity to meet them. He taught me that everything doesn’t come easy. That you really really have to work hard. I learned this later, but you don’t only have to work hard, but smart. My father is the one that really helped me the most. He believed in education and that you never stop learning. He was 92 when he died and he was learning his seventh language.”
HOMETOWN?
She spent most of her years in Michigan and Florida.
RESIDES
“I live in South Ponte Vedra Beach and it is an area I enjoy. It is a laid back beachy area.”
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
St. Augustine/St. Johns County Board of Realtors and the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors.
WHAT DOES SHE LIKE TO DO WHEN NOT WORKING?
She loves to read, speed walk, play tennis and go out to eat.
FAMILY
She has been married to Jim, a mortgage broker and financial specialist, for 13 years. Between them they have six children and 10 grandchildren.
FAVORITES
Her favorite movie is “The Lord of the Rings.” “I can hardly wait for the next one to come out.” A book she would recommend is “I. Claudius” by Robert Graves. When relaxing at home, she enjoys tuning into “MI Five” on the A&E Channel and “West Wing”. Her favorite place to visit is Ireland and her favorite restaurant to visit is Caps.
- by Michele Newbern Gillis