Today we’d like to introduce you to Carol Rossi-Zabielski.
Hi Carol, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
It’s an honor for me to be here sharing my story! I was born and raised in Brazil, in Sao Jose dos Campos, Sao Paulo. My family always prioritized our education and found important that we learn English. I moved to Kansas City by myself, when I was 17, after getting accepted to go the School of Business at UMKC and then Park University. Even though I knew basic English to get around, I was not fluent. It took me months of translating every single book on my own, to study for all my classes in both Portuguese and English. It wasn’t until 8 months in that I could truly master the language. It was hard, but I am determined! At 21 years old, I graduated college with honors. A year later I was offered a Graduate Assistantship at Park University and I earned an MBA in Entrepreneurship. I then met my husband Matt Zabielski, born and raised in KCK, who’s also in our team, and is a Fire Captain for the KCKFD. We have two amazing boys, Anthony (11) and Enzo (5). My family is definitely my motivation in life!
My journey as a Real Estate agent came about after a failed attempt to sell a property with another agent. But that wasn’t the only reason. Growing up in Brazil, I watched my parents run their real estate development firm and it always fascinated me. My dad is an amazing negotiator and a very successful business man. I’ve learned so much from him. Because of his example, I always wanted to own a business. So, it was already something I had contemplated doing. I decided to go all in. I got licensed, joined a brokerage and put my house back on the market. This time, I used all the marketing and design ideas I had. It sold in a day, for much more than the other agent had said I could sell. At that point, I knew this was what I wanted to do. To help other people sell their properties, maximize their profits, while providing clients an amazing experience. Selling a house can be very stressful, and I wanted to offer clients an exceptional experience!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It hasn’t always been easy! My first year was really hard. I left the security of a job as a Financial Controller and a paycheck. I had big expenses and little kids at home. I had just opened my own accounting firm, and had clients to provide Remote Controller services and financial training. It was busy! I joined a team at BHGRE when I first started, and that team made a move to different brokerage after I had just started a few months in. I decided I didn’t want to move, I wanted to create my own team. I was grateful for getting to join them but I wanted to run my own business, on my own terms. So mid 2019, the RZ Team was born! I closed my accounting firm and decided I had to be 100% in for this business to thrive. And I haven’t looked back since!
Real Estate is brutally competitive, especially for new agents. I had many people doubt me, and say I wouldn’t make it. That it was a drastic career change. But I love a challenge! I have always being very competitive since I was a kid. I was always a star student through high school. In college I was involved in all the extra curricular activities, including one of my favorites, model United Nations. I also participated in several different programs for international students. I took every single leadership opportunity I had in College.
I knew in Real Estate, it would be no different. I had to take on a leadership role, and stand out from the competition. It’s really hard to get people to trust you to sell their home when you first start. So usually you start with lots of buyers! I did many open houses, helped top agents and took as many trainings as I possibly could. I wanted to be prepared and confident that I knew what I was doing. Having a background in accounting, I knew how to pull my statistics and set my marketing plans based on that. I also always had an eye for design so staging houses came easily.
A lot of what made me who I am today, is what gives me a competitive edge. For instance, even though I no longer work in the financial world, I get to tap into my financial background to help my clients maximize their profits. I get to show them what improvements to make in order to realize the best ROI. I get to use all my marketing and design experience. I get to be a master negotiator for my clients. I’m proud of being a Latina Woman in business. I’m proud of my accent. I’m so proud of all I’ve been through, it only made me stronger!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
The Rossi-Zabielski Team is a Real Estate Team at Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, licensed in both KS & MO. We specialize in helping clients sell & purchase Real Estate throughout Kansas City and vicinities. We provide superior service, catered to each individual client. We want to liberate clients from mediocre real estate experiences. With us, clients enjoy concierge-level service. We provide many additional services to our clients, such as staging, moving boxes, among other important extras when selling a home. Our marketing strategies are tailored to each specific need. We put our clients satisfaction at the front of everything we do. With our client focused approach, our team has more than doubled its sales in 2021. We started our first full year in 2019, and in 2020 sold $7M in real estate. This year we have sold approximately $15M and 50 properties, and it’s only the beginning of our journey. Our agents in our team are fantastic! Matt Zabielski, a Fire Captain in KCK, and Joel Montgomery, another KCK native both go above and beyond for our clients. We have an amazing Transaction Coordinator, Shelley Thurman and a fantastic Executive Assistant, Mayara Coelho. We are planning to expand and add more agents to our team in 2022, we are very excited about that! Our Office Staff at Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate is incredible, and we love what we do!
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
The RZ Team is proud to offer our clients an amazing real estate experience. Carol Rossi-Zabielski, the Team Leader, is a Top Producing agent and has received many awards since starting her career. Carol was featured in many local magazines and has been an amazing example of grit, hard work and determination. She’s a great example for our community. Carol wants to make a difference as a business leader, especially in our community. She loves to give back. The RZ Team supports local businesses when gifting clients, at client events, and they allow clients to chose a different charity at each closing, then they make a donation on their behalf. Carol feels privileged to be able to serve our community. And we look up to her! We are so grateful to have a Latina woman running a successful Real Estate business in Kansas City!
Contact Info:
- Email: Carolkchomes@gmail.com
- Website: www.rzteamkc.com
- Instagram: @rzteamkc and @carolina.realestatelifeinkc
- Facebook: @carolkchomes
- Youtube: RZTeamKC
Image Credits
Cristina Popovic Photography
Next Door Photography
