Last month marks my 18th year in this business. When I walked into my grandfather’s office that fateful day after getting laid off from a tech job when the bubble burst in 2002, I had no idea what the future would hold for me. I jumped in modernizing my grandfather’s office, putting new systems in place, and meeting his clients, whose children would eventually become my clients. At the time, I was renting apartments to my contemporaries and now I’m renting apartments to tenants who could be my kids.
Working in a family business as the youngest of a pretty large family was daunting. No parents, aunts or uncles were up for the task, nor were any of my eight cousins or my sister. Those who tried working for my grandfather said “he’s just so mean at work.” But I learned to separate “grandpa” from “Mr. Lingsch,” as most people called him. As I told my mom one Thanksgiving early on “I can’t make it this year. I need a Mr. Lingsch break.” Hearing the stories from many clients and Realtors about how they wouldn’t be financially where they are today without Mr. Lingsch, or that he was the “first and last honest Realtor in San Francisco” made me proud and drove me to continue the same level of service he worked so hard to provide for so many years.
When I made the decision to keep Lingsch Realty running after my grandfather retired after 67 years, it was both terrifying and exciting. I am so proud of the company I have built. And I hope my clients are too.
I couldn’t imagine a job that keeps me on my toes and more completely encompasses my passions and skill sets so well: my public relations and marketing background, my passion for the law and its interpretations and absolutes, and my obsession with everything architecture and interior design related.
I am appreciative of my clients and vendors from all walks of life who have become friends: the one who now considers me her “adopted” niece, the savvy ones who keep me on my toes, the funny ones who I laugh with daily about the crazy situations we find ourselves in, a real estate attorney who tolerates my way too many questions with a sense of humor, the maintenance vendors who jump into make my job easier, and especially my main handyman, who if you had told me when we met we would become so close that he is almost family, I would have said “how is that going to be?”
Just last week I had an attorney client say how much he appreciated my service compared to other management companies he had worked with on the heels of a call where a real estate attorney called me the “smartest person” he knew. I told him I felt sorry for him, but the flattery was not lost on me. Someone once told me “if you have to show up and put in the time, you might as well do the best you can.” I take that to heart every day.
I am pleased to announce that this level of service has paid off and I have been rewarded with a growing book of business that left me turning away clients for about three years now. I like having a personal hand in all that goes on here, so it was easy to keep things small and well-oiled.
However, along came someone who I feel shares my work ethic and philosophy and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to work with her.
So, I want to introduce my first employee, Alexis Romero, in who I can already see the many traits that made me successful in this business. She is intuitive, creative and insightful. Already she has implemented a tenant portal where tenants can submit maintenance requests online and view their balances and payment history, is taking amazing photos of our vacant properties, and is working on many administrative projects that I have put on the back burner over the years.
Alexis graduated from San Francisco State University in 2019 with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies with a complimentary study in Philosophy. She was born and raised in the Bay Area and is passionate about exploring and learning.
Alexis prides herself on the strong connections she makes and keeps with her clients, and will do what she can in order to ensure expectations are not only met, but exceeded. She has a strong professional background in client relations, retail and ecommerce. This is her first touch in real estate and property management but she is excited to be in the field and learn the ropes.
I hope you will all welcome and Alexis and am sure you will interact with her soon.