Nancy Henderson: Bridging the Gap Between House and Home

Buying or selling a home is one of the most important decisions in a person’s life. The process may start as exciting in the beginning but soon turn into a nightmare as things might fail to go as you had planned. There are a multitude of things that go into real estate, and handling everything yourself is just not possible. Without proper planning, your hunt can ruthlessly sap you of your time, energy, or money and leave you discouraged. This is when a real estate agent can act as your savior, an expert with adequate knowledge of the market, and can effectively guide you on various aspects to help you decide. Initially, it might look like hiring an agent means incurring extra costs over your budget but the advantages of having one will offset any manner of inhibition. Nancy Henderson, licensed real estate broker and owner at “High Ridge Realty, LLC”, is building an empire of her own by making realty dreams a reality for many.  

Finding her Calling 

Nancy has a bachelor’s degree in science from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Her initial job was at a hospital in the supply chain department. But with time, the environment and situation with patients wore her down and made her think of alternate career choices. An acquaintance convinced her to try real estate, and it ended up being her calling. She received her license in 2018 and, thereupon, started her career as a real estate broker. Besides being a Certified Mountain Area Specialist (CMAS), Nancy is also a member of the Mountain Metro and Aspen Realtor Associations and the Institute of Luxury Home Marketing.  

High Ridge Realty 

When COVID-19 hit, Nancy decided to set off on her own. She got her employing broker license for the State of Colorado in July 2020 and started High Ridge Realty, a boutique firm. Two years in, she has eight agents working with her, and they help buyers and sellers with the best deals on residential homes, mountain homes, lands, etc. Nancy also dabbles in property management. Her niche now is managing property for homeowners who do not live in the US but want to keep their property intact. This includes getting tenants for them, ensuring they are living there, site visits, and overall maintenance so that if the original owners want to come back, they find their assets as they have left them.  

Dynamic Real Estate Market 

The real estate market, like the rest, has also suffered the brutal blow of the pandemic. The past two years have been a huge sellers' market, with property prices increasing greatly. “Colorado feels like the new California. Everybody wants to move here as it is a gorgeous state,” says Nancy. With COVID-19 now subsiding, the market is a buyer’s delight, with prices coming down.  

Nancy has a soft spot for first-time buyers who want to purchase their dream home but struggle with finances. To help them out, she partners with mortgage people who can provide effective guidance to the buyers to get their credit scores in line and have their finances sorted out to be eligible for the purchase of the house. Once the client gets the “magic numbers” (as Nancy likes to call it), she decides what can be the best fit for them. This starts by exploring diverse properties to accommodate the client's needs and desires. She is also of the opinion that, in the long run, buying a home (if you can) is almost always a better financial decision than renting. This means you have more control over your living situation, can gain home equity, and may be able to deduct mortgage interest from your taxes. Most importantly, buying helps in increasing your net worth.  

Overcoming Challenges 

According to Nancy, the biggest challenge she faces is convincing people about the market and the fact that rates are dynamic. People are generally scared under such circumstances as money is an emotional subject, so it becomes difficult to assure them otherwise to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars. But Nancy’s passion for helping people get their dream homes makes it easy for her to have tough conversations with them.   

Nowadays, social media acts as a helpful platform for real estate agents and home sellers to sell their houses. Firstly, it gives you access to a wider audience to show off the listings than other conventional platforms and saves time. A well-curated social media account can be a powerful marketing tool, showcasing the agent’s properties in the best possible manner. Nancy also leverages social media to help her clients by expanding their reach and boosting their chances of getting a great price on their property. 

Patience and Persistence 

Nancy is passionate about what she does, and what sets her apart is that she treats people like people. She believes in educating her clients properly so that they can make informed decisions and not feel confused. For example, many people need to speak to a lender before they hire a real estate agent, as they need to have their finances sorted out before jumping into the market. Nancy ensures that she touches the human side of it all to gain the trust of her clients and foster a lasting relationship. She aims to be as resourceful as possible so that her clients feel comfortable doing business with her.  

Once a male-dominated industry, real estate is now seeing more and more women realtors jump into the scene. Given the dynamic nature of the market, Nancy stays updated about all aspects of real estate to be able to help her clients better. And that is the advice that she wants to give to women who want to become realtors as well – to educate themselves. “Empathy is also an important aspect. You have to put yourself in the other person’s shoes to understand the situation. Be patient, as buying or selling a house is an emotional matter for people,” said Nancy.