Jan Mullen has been a Realtor with East Coast Realty for five months, but she’s had her real estate license since 1988. She’s married with five grandchildren.
Before real estate?
She worked in customer service at AT&T for 35 years. “I’ve had mega-training in customer service over the years.”
How does that help?
“Basically it helps with talking to people. I enjoy people and making them happy.”
Why real estate?
“I was on a leave of absence from AT&T for a year and went into real estate. I got into real estate for a little over a year and was really coming up to speed, starting to sell and make some money, but then I got called back to AT&T. I went back because I really didn’t want to give up my retirement at the time. I kept my license up because I fully expected that one day I would go back into it because I really liked it a lot.”
No retiring?
Mullen retired from AT&T a little over a year ago. “I took about a year off after I retired to do all the things you say you are going to do, which I really didn’t do - like clean out my closets. I came to the conclusion that that wasn’t any fun at all and I wanted to get back into real estate.”
Her areas
Beaches and Southside.
Why now?
“The method to my madness was to get back into real estate when it wasn’t so busy so that I could learn a lot. What I’ve noticed is how different it is. We didn’t have the buyer’s agent, seller’s agent, transaction broker and this and that. We didn’t have all that stuff, you were just an agent. There is so much to learn including the new contracts and the mold problem. We really didn’t have to worry about that stuff back then. There are so many classes to go to and so much to learn, so it’s really a good time to get back into it because I’m hoping that by the time I get back up to speed, the market will have changed.”
How’s business?
“I’ve been doing some mailouts and I’m trying to get some listings. I have a prospective buyer that I’m working with who is out of town and wants to relocate here from up north. I’m still getting my feet wet.”
What she’s learned
Mullen said she is going back to basics. “What I learned before when I was in real estate before was to call on For Sale By Owners and expired listings.”
What do you like about real estate?
“I like working with people and it’s amazing to see someone’s face when they finally decide on the house they want to buy or when they sell their house they’ve been trying to sell. The excitement on their face when they know they are moving on to whatever they want to move on to.”
Best advice?
Mullen’s broker, Barbara Galvin, has given her a lot of advice that she uses on a daily basis. “She is a world of knowledge and I am so fortunate to work with her. If there is a transaction to be made she will make sure it happens. She is always very positive and wants everyone around her to stay positive and to stay honest about what they do.”
Advice for loan officers
“Try to be very positive and try and make sure it happens and don’t drop the ball. I think there is a lot going on right now and it is hard on the loan officers, but they need to keep in touch. I think that is very important.”
What about a new agent?
“Don’t give up and stay positive.”
-Michele Gillis