Today we’d like to introduce you to Rebecca Graham.
Hi Rebecca, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My story started in St. Louis but took a detour through LA with my mother after my parents divorced, until my teenage years when I returned to STL, where I lived with my father to complete middle and high school. It was a small school, so I participated in many activities including Band, Dance, Cheer, Volleyball and Baseball management. In my Senior year (’97), a few activities outside of school landed me as an expectant mother. I graduated at 17, had my first child about a month later, and turned 18 a week after they were born. When my little one was just 2 months old, we (just the two of us) relocated to Cincinnati, OH, where I attended the University of Cincinnati’s College of Evening & Continuing Education at night while working full-time during the day. I was fortunate enough to have some support from new friendships and family nearby, but it was a definite struggle as a young single parent in a new city.
Not much later, I met someone who I thought would be my forever person and we married in early 2000. We learned shortly after that we were expecting our first baby together. Unfortunately, like my less-than-stellar choices as a Senior, I knew the choices that landed me where I was weren’t the best. Still, there I was in a very toxic and verbally abusive situation with someone who struggled with addiction. Our marriage was on and off throughout the pregnancy, and while we did attend couples counseling, it would be an unsuccessful attempt to work things out. However, that was not before returning to the situation after our daughter was born and shockingly learning of a 2nd pregnancy just 5 months later.
Midway through our second pregnancy, the verbal aggression escalated, and I made the decision to leave for the safety of the kids. At that time, I was in a pretty rough space emotionally and had essentially been a stay-at-home parent in a rough neighborhood who had dropped out of college with no money of their own and not even a vehicle to leave with. I felt trapped. After being shunned in the past by some family members for being a young, unwed mother, they came to our rescue anyway and gave us a place to stay until we could get back on our feet. To say the next few years with 3 kids under 5 was hard is the understatement of the century, but throughout that time, I grew on a personal level tremendously, met someone who would one day become the love of my life and decided to go back to school. For the next 14 years, I attended various colleges online and in person. After 15 years of college, I graduated with my Bachelor of Science in Business Management specializing in Marketing (my fallback degree choice after becoming a young Mom). It was an extra emotional achievement as I had also become the caregiver for my father, who’d been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, and was blessed enough to have him at my graduation ceremony.
During those 14 years, I also moved to KC (twice, long story), married my now husband and his two kids, lost a pregnancy at 21 weeks and had to deliver stillborn, bought a home, and left the corporate world to pursue the Entrepreneurial life with a side-gig that turned lucrative. Ultimately, that endeavor was killed by Covid but I had already diversified my income streams by starting my real estate career. I realized I have an affinity for Acrylic Fluid Art and am even good enough to hang in art galleries! Each of those eras has their own story, but I’ll leave it at that to keep things brief-ish.
Now, I run a growing Real Estate Team (Key Homes KC) with United Real Estate Kansas City, and we serve a diverse cross-section of the KC MO/KS market with an authentic, education-based, client-focused strategy that creates life-long real estate partners. We may not be the largest team, make the most $$$, or close the most deals, but we put expectation-exceeding service at the top of the list so our clients feel loved all the way through the process and beyond.
Alright, let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
I ran my other business for the first 3 years of my real estate career, so RE was my 2nd job. However, as many learn the hard way, serving two masters is very challenging. Add 5 blended kids, a husband who travels for work, 1 special needs kiddo, the PTSA, the loss of my dad, and all the other BS life throws at you along the way, and I was quickly becoming a people-pleasing control freak. Then toss in a Global Pandemic. I mourned the loss of my first successful business venture but believed RE had what I needed to provide for my family but it was like starting from the beginning because it hadn’t been front and center. Learning how to manage such a regulated business under extreme circumstances and hoping to the powers that be that I could make enough to help maintain our family’s needs led to an overwhelming sense of fear but also determination. Fortunately, most of my kids had graduated high school by this time, so I felt a little less guilty about working so much, but it was a lot!
The real estate market hasn’t been the same since 2020. After several grueling years battling low inventory and a considerable demand without an increase in living wages, I discovered I could only provide top-notch service by myself for so long. I had to find a way to handle more without exploding my mental state or my marriage. A key component of my previous business became the solution thanks to a few key students in the Northland CAPS program. I decided in the 11th month of ’22 that my plan to survive was through the development of my own Real Estate Team. I spent the first 2 quarters of ’23 trying to figure all that out but was too focused and had to get back on the Sales Saddle to work my personal business too. It took the rest of the year to start learning the balance of being an Active in the Market Leader, but through the addition of a real Assistant to help me and more interns with the Northland Caps program, we’re continuing to expand our team and client base.
FYI, growing a team is also a challenge with its own obstacles to overcome, but we’ll leave it at that for now.
I appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Key Homes KC LLC?
We specialize in residential resale and new construction all over the Metro area. We have dabbled in some commercial leasing and work hard to help other agents grow their businesses in a manner that focuses on connection vs transaction. I am proud our team mutually concentrates on client experience and that our brand helps guide others to their future. “Let the Key Homes KC Team help you unlock your future!” Cheesy, yes, but that’s us too. We love to do client appreciation events (because event planning is also part of our repertoire). We want readers to know that we understand you have many options, like 13K+ agents in KC alone, when selecting the right person to represent you in one of the most emotionally charged and expensive experiences you’ll have. We are listeners, empathizers, negotiators, marriage counselors, designers, financial wealth growers and educators. We wear a lot of hats well and are determined to provide a VIP list of expertly qualified business partners to support the many needs of being a homeowner. We want to meet you, get to know you, and do it over a beverage! Then, we can decide if we’re a good fit for your future adventure.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I love to network and have officially worked it long enough that I don’t have to introduce myself at several places. Networking is a conscious choice to broaden your sphere of influence, which is vital for so many reasons. It really is about who you know, so the more opportunities you have to meet people, the more avenues you’ll have to explore. As far as a mentor goes, find someone already succeeding and ask to meet with them. Learn their story, what works for them, and what doesn’t. If you need something more structured, get a coach. I’ve done several years of RE coaching, and I’m so incredibly grateful for the tips and tricks I’ve learned. Invaluable and worth the money. Now, I can pass on what I’ve learned to my team…Rising tides lift all boats.
Pricing:
- All price ranges currently served
- Looking to step into Luxury Homes
Contact Info:
- Website: www.keyhomeskc.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/key_homes_kc_ure/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/YourKeyHomeKC
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-graham-3902952a/
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/@YourFavorite816Realtor
- Other: https://g.page/r/CTYygahqitIlEBM/review
Image Credits
Tan jacket – Jacqueline Brainard, Jax Leon, Imagery Blue top/ Tan sweater – Amy Hartgrove, Dream On Together Mktg Red Dress – Jessica Cavin JC Imagery, LLC, The others are mine.
