Speaker 1: 0:30

My name is Caitlin Rapoli. I'm with two brokerages actually Cool. So I'm with Vibe Realty and I hang my Maryland, west Virginia and Pennsylvania licenses with them. Okay, and I hang my West Virginia with Compass West.

Speaker 2: 0:45

Wow, okay, what made you want to be able to help clients in all these different states?

Speaker 1: 0:51

So it's kind of a funny story. I had a friend who was originally looking in West Virginia and I was like might as well get West Virginia cause it's 10 minutes away from me. Um, and he ended up buying in Kentucky, so didn't happen. But at that point I was like I might as well get Pennsylvania, because it's reciprocal and it was just easy and my sister lives in Virginia, so I have a lot of people out in Virginia that I work with.

Speaker 2: 1:15

Very nice, and now I would like a little backstory on yourself. Were you always interested in the real estate industry, or how did you dip your feet into it and what led you to where you are today and being with two brokerages?

Speaker 1: 1:27

Well, that wasn't intentional, but it just happened how it happened. I do not like working 9 to 5. So I went to college, I got my animal science degree. I spent many years in animal research and I enjoyed it, but it just it's too mundane for me. It's like the same thing every day and I just get bored. And the harder that I work, I'm not going to make more money like I'm not going to be more successful, whereas real estate you get what you put in and every day is different. I get to meet with new people and I just when I bought my house I know it was very exciting so I like to walk people through that process again and I get to kind of live vicariously through them.

Speaker 2: 2:07

I love that. No, I love that, and I find that very interesting that you used to be in animal sciences, because that's something so different from real estate. That just goes to show like you never know where your life is going to lead you. It's not always like such an easy straight path. It can take you in many different directions, so I think that's very cool.

Speaker 1: 2:25

Yeah, yeah. So originally I actually wanted to be a vet and it just decided I didn't want to do that. I don't like school. It was just too long, too much school, and it's just. It's also kind of boring for me too, it's just kind of the same thing every day.

Speaker 2: 2:42

No, I love the honesty. Definitely with real estate you definitely get different surprises. So there you go, you got your little surprises, cool. I'd like to know how do you approach marketing and promoting properties to potential buyers, and what strategies have you found to be most effective for you?

Speaker 1: 2:59

So I actually do not spend that much on marketing. I personally feel like if you have a good photographer and you have like a virtual walkthrough, it will sell the property, especially if you feature, like, the unique aspects of every property, because every property is different. There's going to be something really cool about each one and if you feature that, then I think that it it will sell itself. So I also use social media like everybody else. Um, everything goes on all of the websites Redfin, zillow, mls.

Speaker 1: 3:36

A lot of people don't like open houses and I personally have not found that they have sold a house, but I will hold them and if I do, I'll do like a canned food drive or something where, like, I'll reach out to the local pantry, I'll see what they need and I will bring flyers to all of the neighbors so it kind of brings more people in and they will take a look at the house and a lot of times people who live in the neighborhood are going to want their friends and their families to come live there. So if they see it and they like it, they're going to tell more people.

Speaker 2: 4:06

And it's a good cost. Two birds, one stone Exactly, I love that Exactly People really like it.

Speaker 1: 4:11

I enjoy it.

Speaker 2: 4:16

I feel like I'm helping a little bit. Yeah, that's smart, that's a good strategy there. I like that. And then how are you staying up to date on the latest trends and developments in the real estate market and what resources do you like to rely on? It can be either like books online, or maybe your team members, anybody, or maybe they're giving you programs where you could learn and stuff.

Speaker 1: 4:36

I don't know. Yeah, I really like to network with other agents because I feel like everybody has a different experience. I've had experiences that people who've been in the business for 20 years have never seen before. So if you're talking to each other, you're going to get an idea of how to handle it if it happens to you. Different trainings, obviously, like continuing education. My brokerage offers a lot of those, so I try to attend any that I can. Anything that I can is recorded, so I'll go back and I'll listen. But yeah, I think that's about it.

Speaker 2: 5:09

Social media.

Speaker 1: 5:10

I follow a lot of different real estate pages and podcasts.

Speaker 2: 5:16

Yeah, nice I have one here right now.

Speaker 1: 5:19

You're going to be part of that. Now Someone's going to listen to this and be like, okay, podcasts, podcasts.

Speaker 2: 5:23

Yeah, Do you feel like maybe social media has given perhaps clients or maybe some newer real estate agents like a wrong misconception sometimes with the information that's out there, like they'll come to you and be like, hey, look at this video, I saw this. Is this true? Can you do this? Do you feel like that's caused like some issues sometimes Talk?

Speaker 1: 5:45

to me about it. That is so common, oh, so common. There are a lot of people, a lot of agents even, that don't pay attention, will say the wrong thing, maybe unintentionally, and it will get taken the wrong way. And then it's like telephone and things just keep getting a little bit twisted. Um, people will read things that aren't true or they'll hear from a friend.

Speaker 2: 6:07

So there's a lot of that and do you kind of just like tell them like the real, the realistic expectations of those things, kind of just like set the tone, like hey, I know you saw this, but actually like, look, we're not going to be able to do that, that's actually not right.

Speaker 1: 6:24

And are they kind of disappointed or just like, oh, I have had a few people get disappointed and kind of go back and forth with me but at the end of the day, like I can't tell them that something, something that's not true, yeah, so I encourage people to educate themselves a little further. If you don't want to listen to me, that's fine. Maybe speak to somebody else. Do some research online. Some some correct pages.

Speaker 2: 6:50

Yes, wikipedia.

Speaker 1: 6:51

Yes, but yeah, usually when I sit people down and I talk to them about it, they're usually pretty okay. Part of my job like a large part of my job is to explain things to people. Sometimes I will over explain it and sometimes they think they know everything, but they might catch on to a little something that they didn't realize before. Yeah, no, I love that.

Speaker 2: 7:13

I love that you like tell them and set those expectations, so that way going into it. There's no, oh, you didn't tell me that as a trickery or whatever they're thinking Like.

Speaker 1: 7:21

No, setting expectations is a huge part of my job. Yeah, noted.

Speaker 2: 7:26

And then, uh, what do you see as the biggest challenges facing the real estate industry in the next few years, or maybe even now, and how do you think they can be addressed?

Speaker 1: 7:45

Okay, that's hard to say really. I think a lot of people are waiting. It's the interest rate issue. A lot of people are waiting for interest rates to go down. What they don't realize is that when they go down, competition goes up and then you're going to be paying more for your house. So I try to like explain people to people the pros and cons of waiting versus not waiting. You can always refinance, yeah, um, yeah okay, yeah, I mean yeah well, that's good thank you.

Speaker 2: 8:08

Um, I do kind of have like a silly question, I guess. Since it's october 1st you I'm trying to set myself for like spooky season and all that I'd like to know if you've had any like spooky experiences in a house, or have you had like a client maybe tell you like hey, this house is haunted, good luck trying to sell this, or anything crazy like that?

Speaker 1: 8:28

I personally believe that my house is haunted. That counts A little bit, a little bit. So when I bought it, somebody had passed away in it. I didn't realize that until after, but it doesn't feel like a bad vibe. But, sometimes lights will turn on and off and sometimes doors will unlock or open. It's weird. Once I remodeled my kitchen it kind of like calmed down a little bit. So I try not to talk about it in the house.

Speaker 2: 8:51

No good, Hopefully they're not listening. But.

Speaker 1: 8:54

I don't think I've really encountered too many ghost stories, but I have. I was thinking about this actually earlier today. I was in an empty house and there was nothing in there. They had moved out, so you're not expecting to see anything. And I opened this closet and it was big and dark. So at the back of the closet I see these like figures and figures and it freaked me out so much. But I turned the light on and it was like I feel bad if the people who these belong to are watching this at any point.

Speaker 2: 9:25

Yes.

Speaker 1: 9:25

But there were these really creepy paper mache figures like replicas, I'm guessing of them. It was like a bride and a groom yeah it was so creepy?

Speaker 2: 9:33

no, that would have scared me, especially if you don't expect that.

Speaker 1: 9:36

Right, if you tell me there's paper machines, okay, let me turn the lights on, okay yeah, but if you're not expecting that, I mean and you're not expecting it to be in the shape of a person, no, in the dark, like chucky or something he's pretty tall then, but no, no, thank you.

Speaker 2: 9:52

Thank you for sharing that. I've wanted to. I'm going to be asking people this whole month that, so thank you for indulging. And then, what are some of the most important factors that you think buyers and sellers should consider when choosing their real estate agent to work with?

Speaker 1: 10:07

That's a hard one. So I know a lot of people think that it's about how long they've been in the business, how many houses they've sold. I personally think that you need to find somebody that you trust and that you get along with and your personalities kind of mesh that's huge to me. Don't just pick somebody that you think is going to be successful, because sometimes it's not going to be a good match. Sometimes they're not going to you know. Just be the best fit for you. Yeah, as long as they are attentive and they're trying. I think that that's what's important. I have had some of the worst agents I've worked with be in the business for 20 plus years, and I've had some of the best agents be brand new, you know. So it's.

Speaker 2: 10:47

It varies yeah, no, I like that and I like that perspective that you give and I just love how honest you are like sometimes that's so hard to find. You're just like that and I like that perspective that you give and I just love how honest you are Like sometimes that's so hard to find, you're just like this is the answer Like sometimes it's a little too much.

Speaker 1: 10:58

No, I love it.

Speaker 2: 10:59

No, it's cool, it's cool. I'm effing with it, so I don't have to bleep that. And then, how do you build and maintain relationships with your clients or other professionals in the real estate industry?

Speaker 1: 11:13

relationships with your clients or other professionals in the real estate industry. So it's actually easy for me because I've enjoyed everybody that I've worked with so far and I end up being kind of friends with them. They'll invite me to their barbecues, they'll invite me for drinks, and it's just nice. It feels like I'm hanging out with people. If I get too busy, I try to just reach out and ask how they're doing things like that. A lot of my business is from past clients and referrals from past clients, so I think I'm doing pretty good at it, yeah.

Speaker 2: 11:39

Songs working, songs working. So keep it up. Yeah, I do have another question. This one's kind of like going off the beaten path of my little variety that I have. But and I say this because I've experienced this sometimes too but you know, sometimes when you look young and you seem impressionable, I want to ask, like, and especially like as a woman, have you encountered situations like that, and how do you deal with it and cope with that?

Speaker 1: 12:05

for anybody who's listening and struggles with that as well, yeah, so it is hard and I can tell sometimes that people are a little thrown because they think that I'm too young. But I'm doing my job, my business is doing well, I'm driven, I'm working hard. I honestly just try to be firm and assertive and I think that that kind of makes people feel a little bit better and once they see that I know what I'm talking about it's, they kind of get over it. So, yeah, I honestly try to dress a little bit older, you know, just so it gives me the impression when I look older.

Speaker 1: 12:43

I don't know if it works, but yeah glasses.

Speaker 2: 12:45

Sometimes I'll put on some glasses done period they're just like yes, ma'am, yeah, no, that's great, thank you for sharing that, because sometimes I feel like, even with me, they're just like how long have ma'am? No, that's great, thank you for sharing that, because sometimes I feel like, even with me, they're just like how long have you been doing this? And it's just like, well, you think back on your career, sir or ma'am, you didn't start off tenured and like at an older age. Everybody has to start somewhere and the younger the better you're going to be.

Speaker 2: 13:08

So I think a lot of people need to realize that everybody starts somewhere and that's where you start. You got to give people chances, Otherwise how are they going to grow?

Speaker 1: 13:17

Exactly, and you're going to be more ambitious usually, yeah, just saying, just saying You're younger.

Speaker 2: 13:22

Exactly Love that. Thank you for touching on that with me. And then, how do you stay motivated and inspired in your work as a real estate agent and what keeps you passionate about the industry?

Speaker 1: 13:35

It's honestly not hard for me, Like I really enjoy it. So I wake up excited. Meeting new people is exciting for me. I don't. I don't have a hard time with it.

Speaker 2: 13:48

So I can't really. Then you're in the right spot, I don't do anything.

Speaker 2: 13:51

Yeah, no Cool. And I'd like to talk about a little bit about mental health and boundaries and what you do to unwind so you can be at your best, because sometimes it is hard to juggle, because you want to take every call, you want to help every person that you can, but you can get burnt out doing that and you want to make sure that you are at 100. So talk to me about boundaries, talk to me what you like to do to unwind and just center yourself. All that good stuff.

Speaker 1: 14:16

So usually I'm not the best at this, I will admit.

Speaker 2: 14:20

It's okay.

Speaker 1: 14:21

I answer the phone too much, I text back too much, but sometimes I have to set it aside and if I don't see it I won't be right on it. But usually I will respond at some point. It's not hard for me to unwind and enjoy myself and still be like, hey, I'm doing something, but when I'm finished I will get back to you or give me until tomorrow morning. Yeah, usually people will respect that, but I also do it myself. I will write an offer at three in the morning.

Speaker 1: 14:51

It's okay I think you'll reach a point where you're like you know what, yeah, yeah and like you said, like we're ambitious, we're young, All that good stuff.

Speaker 2: 14:58

That's how you get to the level where people are just like well, are you having experience? We're like yes, ma'am, I'm working on it right now, so you're going to work with me or not my laptop to like an outing and I'll be like give me five minutes.

Speaker 2: 15:17

Well, thank you for taking this moment right here right now to not have your laptop and be here with me didn't bring it proud of you today. Um, no, and then um, let's see what are some of the common mistakes sellers make when trying to sell their homes that you've seen or that you've heard maybe, and how have you helped them avoid those mistakes?

Speaker 1: 15:36

That is a tough one, because sometimes people are very like, set in their ways and stubborn. But usually if I explain why I'm asking them to do a certain thing, they usually will listen. Sometimes they don't, and then they will the second time. They'll learn and they'll see, they will. And then I'll be like remember when I said this this is why I don't just say things for no reason. So maybe we can move forward and not do that. Yeah, so.

Speaker 2: 16:07

Yeah, love it.

Speaker 1: 16:09

And then, how do you determine the right price for a property in a competitive market, especially here, because it's yeah, I use a lot of comps, just like everybody else does, and I also factor in how many properties are on the market, like that. If this is a home that doesn't have a lot of comparables and it's really special, I kind of weight it a little bit off of. I might go a little farther, but I'm basically going to weight it off of demand. Yeah, so it's not an exact science.

Speaker 2: 16:45

Yeah, no, yeah, and, like you said, it's like different. Every place is different, there are different stuff and people and and yeah, all that has to do with it. Where do you see yourself in the next five years, or where do you hope to be?

Speaker 1: 17:00

Obviously just huge business.

Speaker 2: 17:02

Expanded my business so far.

Speaker 1: 17:05

I really do want to get into multifamily investments, and so I'm hoping to start focusing on that soon, if I have time. I'm listening to a lot of podcasts, so Wonderful. I'm just going to fall into it, yeah.

Speaker 2: 17:19

What kind of podcasts do you like to listen to?

Speaker 1: 17:21

All of them, my favorite is I can't think of the name right now.

Speaker 2: 17:26

Okay, what's it about?

Speaker 1: 17:28

Investing.

Speaker 2: 17:29

Okay, okay, she's always learning yeah investing, okay, okay.

Speaker 1: 17:34

She's always learning. Bigger pockets, yeah, bigger pockets. I listen to that one all the time. I have learned so much from that podcast. It's great. I also read a lot of books, but I still I always go back to that and I think it has been the best so far. I love it.

Speaker 2: 17:45

Networking is also key, so yeah, what kind of networking events do you like to go to?

Speaker 1: 17:56

I am busy a lot of them, but when I I do I try to just go to investor, yeah, meetings, yeah, trying to meet new people, listen to everybody's story how they got into it, their experiences, what they learned and what not to do, yeah, and kind of just store it away, yeah, like a sponge, like, and when you need it like.

Speaker 2: 18:08

I don't know if you saw this the episode or if you ever watched bunch ball, but he's like has a compartment in his brain, he's just like, oh my god, where did that go?

Speaker 1: 18:14

and it's like on fire yeah that's how my brain is sometimes, always, always, okay, I'm glad I'm not alone I thought you'd be like yeah, no, I can't relate, girl, but I think I play it off pretty well, but it's may. It's like this mayhem.

Speaker 2: 18:26

Yeah, I tried it too, but sometimes it's just like but yeah, anyway, um, let see what are some creative ways sellers can stage their homes to attract buyers. I know you said you don't really have like open houses I don't know if that maybe counts as that but maybe staging their home so when people do come in to look at it separately through appointments. What do you recommend? Like, try to not have as much furniture, or try to have furniture but make it look good and neutral, where people can envision themselves in the home.

Speaker 1: 18:57

Yeah, you always want to depersonalize it, because then it allows people to picture the home with their furniture and their style. So nothing loud, nothing obnoxious. Smaller furniture will usually make the space feel a little bit bigger, but they're all different, like it really just depends on the property.

Speaker 2: 19:16

Yeah, okay, I kind of have an odd question that I just thought of when I asked. That question is when people are trying to sell their homes and I've never bought a home or looked into the process, so forgive me if I don't say the right thing or no but how do sellers who maybe have a house that's not at its best, but they've fixed what they can with what they can, I guess, afford and then they show that house is that an issue? Like maybe they have like I don't know, like torn wallpaper that they aren't able to fix, or like how does that work?

Speaker 1: 19:50

um, you're gonna have to drop the price a little bit more based on condition if you price it right, it still will sell, but it's it's not gonna be. It's gonna be a certain buyer that will buy something like that. Usually it's somebody who is going to want to fix it up over time and has vision, or it depends.

Speaker 2: 20:10

Okay, yeah, cause I was just wondering like oh my gosh, there's a hole in the wall. Put a quick, put the couch back there. Yeah. I was just like thinking about that I was like wait, what about people like that? But I guess it's just different. Like obviously said, like the price will obviously go down.

Speaker 1: 20:26

This is what it is, so take it or next so cool.

Speaker 2: 20:31

Is there anything that maybe I have not touched on that you would like to share with our listeners? As far as like information about yourself or your business or the type of services that you provide, I want to make sure make good use of your time and that you're able to get out everything you need to say.

Speaker 1: 20:46

I honestly one of the biggest things that I wish more people knew is that you don't have to have a ton of money saved up to buy a house. There are plenty of down payment assistance programs and grants for first time home buyers, and I wish that people would feel more comfortable reaching out to an agent or a lender, because oftentimes they will give you a plan. If you don't know, like if now is not the time to buy, we will help walk you through it. These are the next steps to take in order to get yourself ready to buy and maybe you are ready and you don't think that you are and showing them sometimes the visuals and explaining what programs they can get will empower people, and then they'll buy a house instead of renting Exactly.

Speaker 2: 21:30

No, I'm glad you touched on that, because usually when I think of a realtor, a real estate agent, I'm like no, I have to have my shit together and I don't go there to ask like, hey, I can't afford this, what do I do? But that you just like answered that question, like yes, you can come to me for that and I can help you and I can tell you the steps and lead you to the direction where you need to go. I feel like usually like it's like no, you don't absolutely go to a real estate agent if you can't afford a house or if you think you can't like no, that's when you only have money saved up and you're ready to make that decision. Yep, mm-hmm, yep. So I'm glad you have debunked that misconception. Yeah, jinx, you, lisa, just kidding.

Speaker 1: 22:09

We both said it at the same time, but anyway.

Speaker 2: 22:11

Yeah, I guess my final question for you is going to be one that I like to ask everybody Do you have a mantra, a quote or a saying that has inspired you in any way throughout your life, or maybe recently, that you would like to share with us as inspiration too?

Speaker 1: 22:28

It's really hard to pick just one.

Speaker 2: 22:30

Or song lyric.

Speaker 1: 22:33

If I had to pick one, I would probably say and I think I'm making this up because it's not how it goes it's okay, be the dog with the bone, because my mom has always said that when I get something in my mind, I'm like a dog with a bone and I cannot let it go. And it's true. And I really think that more people should be like that, because a lot of times people will have dreams or want to do something and they try and they fail and then they give up. And that's not how it should work. You try, you learn something new, you try again and you keep trying until you get where you want to go yeah, no, that's, that's a good mindset and I, I love that, I love that.

Speaker 2: 23:07

Your mom was just like be the dog with the bow girl, go ahead, do it. Yeah, okay, and this is my actual last question, because it was like in my head when you said like you wanted to be a vet. So do you have any pets right now, since you love animals?

Speaker 1: 23:19

yeah, it's funny. I was in college, super broke, should not have been buying a dog. Well, I didn't buy her. So I was on vacation and I found her in a parking lot and it was about 103 degrees in the middle of California and I saw this little puppy and she was there alone and the neighbor said she had been there for days, which is crazy to me. So I took her. She was mine. I immediately loved her and I had worked in so many vet clinics and I I had seen puppies come in and they were super cute and I never took one and for some reason, the scraggly little dog I needed to have and she is so wiry and ugly that she's stop it and she's been the best dog ever. It's like she knew that you saved her, yeah, because she never had accidents, she never chewed on anything. She's just like an dog ever. It's like she knew that you saved her, yeah, because she never had accidents, she never chewed on anything. She's just like an old lady.

Speaker 2: 24:08

How perfect, though right, Especially because you were a college student.

Speaker 1: 24:11

You're like you don't need a crazy dog and it worked out and she got to go to classes with me. Look at that, because I was animal science.

Speaker 2: 24:26

So they were like that's her name Noodle. Oh my gosh, I love it. Shout out Noodle, If you're listening. Shout out Noodle.

Speaker 1: 24:29

Well, thank you so much for being on the podcast.

Speaker 2: 24:30

Thank you for having me. Yeah, it was a pleasure, it was, it was.