www. Char l es tonWomenPodcas t . com | www. ReadCW. com | www. I ns tagram. com /Char l es tonWomen 13 When did you decide to get into the business you are in? Almost 20 years ago, I decided I wanted to focus my career in real estate. Since a young age, I have always been drawn to real estate, architecture and interior design. I am so glad I chose the best career for me. It has been rewarding over the years to do something I have passion and love for. How did your business get started? Once I chose real estate as a career, I jumped in with everything I had. I started out small with only a few clients. Over the years, I have grown my business into one of the top-producing in the Charleston area. My overall sales volume ranks in the top 3% of all time in Charleston, and my business is thriving. How did you find your passion? As a child, we moved a lot, and we lived in many different homes. I started to pay attention at a young age to different types of homes. I learned about architecture and design from so many different areas. We even lived in Amsterdam for a few years. My passion for real estate really developed through my travels. Have you encountered challenges as a business owner? I would say right now we are facing a real challenge in our industry. We only have just over 1,000 homes actively for sale, and we had more than 6,000 just a couple of years ago. Imagine being a first-time home buyer, and every time you put in a contract, you are outbid by an all-cash investor. It is very challenging finding homes for buyers right now. The good news is I have to think outside of the box most times, but I am getting it done for my buyers. What or who inspires you? What inspires me is taking on the responsibility of handling what will be some clients’ biggest purchase of their lives. The fact they fully trust me to guide them through this venture is amazing. I really love watching some of the renovations and building projects that I have been involved with. People are really pushing boundaries these days and doing some really cool things. Tell us how you grew up and how it shaped you into the woman you are today. I was taught early on to approach things with integrity. What that means for me is hard work, honesty and passion. If you treat people right and always do what you say you will do, it really leads to strong, lasting relationships that last a lifetime, and people know they can fully trust you. Give us some success tips to someone starting out in your industry. I would say someone starting in this industry should first concentrate on relationships. You want people to have confidence in you, and you have to establish that trust over time. Make as many strong relationships as you can, and the referrals will come. If people really really love what you do, they will tell people about you. Word of mouth still exists in the internet age. Holly Culp Culp Real Estate Group 843-270-2586 culprealestate.com
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