About Me

If I were to tell you my best qualities, I would probably say I am honest, trustworthy and have a strong sense of ethics both personally and professionally.  Integrity is important to me.  I will admit sometimes I am too honest and lack a filter. I am analytical by nature and would describe myself as a straight shooter. I can be very direct. I have a spiritual side that also reflects on things from a universal perspective feeling that all things are connected in some way.

What you can expect from me as a client is I will always share my opinion and experiences. I will always be upfront and honest and give my opinion whether it is something you want to hear or not. I try to be gentle in delivering news that might not be positive or what you want to hear. I don't expect you follow my advice, but I offer it to you as information to help you evaluate your situation and make a decision you feel confident with. If you need more advice, i point you in the right direction to get that advice. I always have my clients in the driver’s seat, I am just there to aid and assist you in getting where you want to go.

As a Realtor I am very proud of the fact that I can count on my fingers the number of Buyers that have resold their homes. I listen to what my clients are looking for and take great pride in helping them find the home they love and cherish. If you are Selling your property, I am going to listen to your needs, sometimes you just want to pass your property to the right hands and if that is your focus, I will try my best. I will always give you tips to maximize your potential in selling. These are just my opinions, you don't have to do them, but it helps make your home more attractive to Buyers.

As a Property Manager I put a lot of focus on finding the right tenant for the right property. I don't just fill holes. My intentions are to find a good tenant that will appreciate and enjoy living in your home.  I treat tenants in a professional manner. I expect homeowners to keep their properties in satisfactory condition. I have on many occasions let homeowners go that were not a good match for me and my rental philosophy. If your goal is high rent and no maintenance, I am not the property manger for you. I want to offer fair market value for rent. I want the renters to stay a long time and want them to be able to make it their home and feel stable. I feel this is the best interest of my clients. I rather the property be vacant than have the wrong match.

Unlike many Realtors, I am just not a social person, so I am not likely to offer or accept dinner invitations. I have a very small circle of friends and my family that I prioritize for my free time. Professionally, I will give you all the time you need but outside of that I am a bit of a hermit. Please don't take it personally.

Biography

Currently I live on Pender Island. We first purchased a home on Pender in 1995. Like many others we continued to use our home on weekends and holidays. We also went through periods where we would rent out our home long term.

In 2001 we decided to move to Pender full time. A few things led to our decision to move here full time. We were living in Surrey BC. Our house was broken into three times within six weeks. This had never happened before, but it changed our sense of security at home. I was a stay at home mother and my husband is an Artist, who also works from home, which made our situation flexible. Our neighbours had friends that wanted to rent our home and our daughter was approaching preschool age. We felt the path was clear and that it was the perfect opportunity to make the change and moved to Pender full time. When reflecting back we feel this was the right decision and have no regrets in making it.

We (my husband and I), are empty nesters with two adult children and happily live in a modest home in the Magic Lake area.

My Work History

Before our daughter was born, I worked in the Computer Industry. I worked as a Western Regional Sales Coordinator for (at the time) the third largest computer distributor in Canada. It was a job I loved and couldn't wait to get to each day. It was a hard decision to not return to work and stay home to raise my daughter. I also knew that leaving the industry for any length of time would be like starting all over again since the industry changes quickly.

As our daughter approached school age I decided to re-enter the workforce. I joined the opening team during the construction of a luxury hotel. I worked closely with the General Manager as an Executive Assistant while the project came to life. When the project was complete my position changed to Human Resources Manager. One of my responsibilities was to assist in housing our new employees. Within about 3 months our number of employees went from about 25 to 130. I was working very long hours, about 70-80 a week and on more occasions than not working seven days a week. It was not a healthy environment for my family.

It was during my employment as a Human Resources Manager that I decided I really liked the housing aspect of my job. I liked meeting with homeowners and creating contracts and managing that aspect of it. It inspired me to pursue property management.

I completed both my Property Management Course and Real Estate Trading services education within one year. To activate my license, I joined a property management company in Victoria. Within a short period of time I decided that I wanted to expand my services to Real Estate sales as well so I joined a local RE/MAX office. I still maintain a good relationship with them.

Wanting to create security for my future I decided to take the Broker's course. Soon after completing and passing the Broker's exam I decided I wanted to start up my own Real Estate Company. This would give me complete freedom over the services I would provide and that was important to me. I have been the proud owner and Managing Broker of Coastal Life Realty Ltd. since November 2009.

My office is at home, giving me the flexibility to blend my life. No secret that i am a workaholic by nature so this works well for me and my family and you won't be surprised if you get an email or text from me at ridiculous hours.

Our Company

I'm really proud of the company I created. It took many years of hard work. long hours but I always kept my primary focus, which was to serve my clients like they were a close friend or family member, give them the same care and attention that I would give to someone I cared about. For this reason, I always consciously balance my client base so that I am not spread too thin and always appear "available" for my clients.

As my business grew, I knew I needed help because there were not enough hours in a year to cover my responsibilities so I expanded and made sure I had assistance. Today I have a remote assistant to help me, Sherry. Sherry joined me in 2019, she really is a godsend for me, having her by my side makes a huge difference to me and my clients. She works behind the scenes, but she is always there. I have known Sherry since Highschool and we also used to be neighbours many moons ago. We share a wonderful friendship outside our work relationship, I consider her my soul sister.

My Aunt has helped me with the bookkeeping for my business since the early days when I first started. My Aunt and I have always been close, she was always like my second mom to me through my childhood. My daughter has a similar strong bond with her. I am so grateful to have her in my life and to help me with my bookkeeping. I really don't know what I would do without her.

Carolyn Danco joined the company in 2022. She started out as a Property Manager and grew to include sales as well. I really enjoy having her and grateful for her. I think our values align well. I had no prior relationship with Carolyn other than she was a tenant at a property I managed. I have always been selective, if anyone was going to join the company, I really needed them to possess certain qualities so that I could feel I could trust them and they would work well with me. I needed to feel confident in being able to entrust my clients to her when needed. I think Carolyn has a good eye for detail, she is thorough and has some great experience having owned, renovated and rented out her home before. She also shares a strong work and personal ethic philosophy that I can appreciate.

My Husband, Chris plays an important part of my business, he helps me regularly. He always looks after my signs, runs many errands for me and the properties I look after. He has helped me with the most disgusting jobs sometimes like the removal of a dead dear under a trailer. Sometimes he's my driver and attends appointments with me. He is very helpful and I would be lost without his continuous help. He is my right hand.

My Volunteer Work Experience

I have always been a strong believer in Volunteer work experience. I started volunteering when I was a teenager. My first volunteer experiences involved ushering at the Surrey Arts Centre for live performances, Senior Boys Soccer Manager, Grade Representative for Multicultural Committee and Counter Attack Committee and Graduation Committee Chairperson. I was also a Summer Camp Councillor.

When I moved to Pender I quickly began volunteering in a variety of different areas. Here are a few things that I participated with:

Pender Island Child Care Society - Board Member (approx. 2 years)

Pender Island Swim Club - Board member (approx. 5 years)

Pender Island Emergency Program - (approx 7 years) ESS Director for 5 years.

Pender Island Pool Project Committee (approx 5 years)

Pender Island Hospice Care - cooking meals for hospice group, giving caregivers time off.

Conducting free computer classes for locals at the library (internet, email, word, excel)

School Planning Committee (approx 3 years)

Pender Island Chamber of Commerce Board Member (1 yr)