Welcome And Guest Introduction

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So my name's Sebastian Alfaro. Uh, I work with Huizar Properties at Realty of America, and the people I serve are anyone just trying to change their life, uh, using real estate. Awesome. So you were born and raised in Northern Virginia, and entrepreneurship has always been a part of your family. What was your journey into real estate, and what ultimately inspired you to build a career in this industry? Yeah. So originally I was going to school for, uh, business administration, and I wanted to minor in real estate. Uh, I was thinking about transferring,

From School Pause To Real Estate

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and then I took a little pause in my time at school and decided let me just go ahead and get my real estate license while I'm taking that pause. And ended up getting it, just getting a really great mentor and was shown the, the ropes and, taught, taught how I would run a, wanna run my business and the way you serve clients. And so I just thought this was great, let me go all in on it, and then I haven't looked back since. Awesome. That's awesome that you were able to, you know, take a pause from school and kinda find your path and move forward in that. But you shared that watching your grandparents build wealth through real estate had a big impact on you. How did their story shape the way you think about home ownership and long-term wealth? Yeah. So my grandparents, um, they did shape me a lot in terms of just being around them a lot. Uh, growing up, I would go between their house and then my par- my own family's. But spending the summers with them really taught me a lot. They would take me to their, um, either their, their restaurants or their, their properties that they had, and I would see my

Family Wealth Built Through Property

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grandmother kinda go out and- Kind of play like, well, I'd, I'd see her go out and work as a property manager and managing her properties and, and going to pick up checks with her, going to make sure things were being dealt with, if there was any problems at the properties. It really just kinda opened my eye to that. And then also as a kid, I'm like, "Why does grandma have four or five properties at this time? And why are we always like going in and out of the bank, going to the restaurant, like checking on different things?" So it really just showed me that you could build wealth and make money through other avenues, especially since they came here with nothing. Um, I think I mentioned that my grandmother came to the US and started here living with her sisters, and my grandfather too, um, with his brothers in a small... Their, their own like areas, but small rooms basically. Then they met each other, decided that they wanted-- this is something they wanted to build for their, their families and, and their future generations, and they kinda just passed it along. Passed it along to my parents. They're not necessarily in their own... They don't have their own like businesses, but they do-- they have had their own businesses, and they do still carry that mindset. And I guess it's just something that was passed down to me, just always seeing how hard my parents worked, how hard my grandparents worked, the way they're always able to figure it out without, um, without kind of the regular, I guess the more Like a traditional path the more traditional path. Yeah Yeah. That's cool that you were able to have that influence at such a young age, and then you're carrying on, you know, the path that your grandparents and your parents set for you. Um, and after earning your real estate license, you were introduced to a mentor that was willing to help you out at the beginning of your career. How important has mentorship been in your own professional growth? I think mentorship is, is really great, especially just aligning yourself with a person that has the same values as you. 'Cause my whole thing is at the end of the day, we work so hard for what? You wanna make sure you have that good work-life balance, and he's really taught me like,

Mentorship And Work Life Balance

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"Look we work this hard to be able to, to live like this and to be able to kinda go ahead." And he, he's a, he's very much a family man, so it's nice to have that breath of fresh air where it's such a hustle culture, especially in the area we live in, in general, like it's a hustle culture. But he's like, "No, take a step back, have those vacations f- with your family. If you have anything with your family that comes up, you know, be there for them because you only have this amount of time. What's the point of working so hard if you don't get to spend that time with them?" And that was a big thing that I was like, "Man, like he's actually like right about this." Like I w- I was in the hustle mentality too. And then also too, bringing into it just the insight and the perspective that he's taught me beyond even just all the knowledge that he's given me within the space. Mm-hmm. Yeah, that's awesome that you were able to have, you know, a mentor to remind you of, you know, that work-life balance. 'Cause there's so many people that just get stuck in that hustle mentality and they, they forget why they're actually doing this. Um, but yeah, buying or selling a home is one of the biggest financial decisions people can make. Um, how do you help clients feel comfortable and confident throughout that process? My whole goal in, in the home buying and home selling process is to be an advisor. So I don't ever want someone to feel like I'm trying to be pushy with them. I want them to feel like I'm giving them as many options as they're able to see and kind of know, and then whatever they want to do with that information, they can do. I'll try to guide them in the best direction that I believe that they can

Advisor Mindset For Buyers Sellers

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be in. And just as a fiduciary duty, like, that's what I look out for and my responsibility. Um, but at the end of the day, people are gonna make their own decisions, and I can only provide them with as much knowledge and as much different avenues that they can take for their, their specific needs. Yeah. Yeah. And it's nice that you're able to educate your clients throughout the process. Yeah. And then you also mentioned that there's an overwhelming amount of real estate information just online and all over the internet. How can buyers and sellers separate good advice from misinformation? Honestly, I would say just talk to a trusted professional. Talk to an advisor because you get a lot of noise, and this could even go into, like The other day I was, I was looking at, like, workout routines and dieting, and one person's saying, "Oh, you can eat this, eat this and that," and then another person's saying, "Oh, you can't." So it's a lot of different information. I feel like going to the actual person that is in this 24/7,

Filtering Online Advice And Noise

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that is seeing things on the daily, and that is able to kind of figure out your specific needs is what I truly recommend rather than just going on different websites or different social medias, just kind of get your information from there. I wouldn't I wouldn't go to, like, a, a nutritionist on social media. I'd rather pay a nutritionist to give me my own specific plan that I need. Yeah, and it's so hard to fall into misinformation when you have pretty much just anybody coming on the internet and just talking about anything. So yeah, I think it is important to go to a trusted professional that has that education that can give you the correct information. And then tying into that, what qualities do you think that buyers and sellers should look for when choosing the right realtor to guide them through the process? Honestly, I feel like, and this goes just from my personal experience. I feel like if someone's being pushy, it, it kind of makes me not want to go with them. So don't ever feel like If you ever feel like you're being pushed into something, just be like, "Hey, maybe we should talk about this later." For me, I would say just ask a lot of questions and also too for me I want to know how my clients work. I want to know how they expect to be

How To Pick The Right Realtor

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I wanna know how they expect their service to be. And I say that because, you know, one, one client's service, the way they like to be served is different from another client's. So just about getting into those details and, and it can be the smallest things, but those small things add up in the end. So really just get to know who you're interviewing during the process of looking for a trusted professional in real estate. Yeah, and I think it's important to get to know each other both ways, 'cause you know, when you're helping out a client, when you get to know them, it's easier to navigate and figure out what they want and how to better serve them. And then my next question is: what advice would you give to someone who's been thinking about taking a first step, towards buying a home and everything feels super overwhelming, but isn't sure where to begin? Where- what type of advice would you give to that type of person? I would say you know, if you don't know where to start, talk to a trusted professional. Like, talk-- A- at least give, like, three, three different ones an interview and see which one you really click with the most.

First Steps When It Feels Overwhelming

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And then also too, just- don't be so scared. Like, it, it, it should feel kinda scary, but also too, at the same time, it should feel like it's a new chapter or you're, you're on the, on the brink of something great. Um, that's how I put it. And, you're never tied down to a single property. You're never tied down to a single person. Like, you can always kind of reassess the situation, and if it's not the time right then and there, then, we can always go back and check it out- later on. That's good advice. Yeah. Take a step back if it doesn't feel right. Yeah. And then with three years working in real estate already, what are some of the biggest lessons you've learned that you wish you knew when you first started? There's a couple in there. There's definitely a couple. I would say- I would say just make sure you understand everything that's going on in the contracts and everything that's in writing. And even if you don't... And th-this is for like agent side and client side, like if there's something you don't understand, please ask questions. Clarification is the best thing you have. You don't want anything to, let's say, go to court and there's room for error. Make sure everything's

Contracts Due Diligence And Clarity

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in clear-cut writing so that there is no room for error. And then another thing would just be, the due diligence and, and research. Like make sure you're doing your research, getting the right information. Sometimes, like we talked about before, you get misinformation from different places, so just trust but fact-check as well. And yeah Awesome. And you mentioned you were planning to expand into West Virginia and Washington, DC. What excites you most about serving those two additional markets? Yeah. So right now, as you know, I serve Northern Virginia. But you have really vast differences between both of them. So a lot of people, I've seen the trends and everything, are moving to West Virginia. You get a lot more bang for your buck out there. So if you can afford to buy out there, build some equity, and then maybe revisit this area, that, that's great. I w- I would say for the prices you get out there and the homes

Expanding To West Virginia And DC

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that, and quality of homes you get they're magnificent. Then vice versa on the DC side, just housing is becoming harder to get by, and so kinda helping people find that avenue in finding homes and getting them into homes that are nice as well for the price point is really what I wanna help do and, you know, just serve out there. Two different lifestyles. One, you feel like you're in the farm. The other one- you're in the big city. So that's what excites me about it is because not every day is the same, and not every situation is the same. Yeah, that's cool. It's cool to be adaptable to different situations too. Um, and then as you continue building your career, what kind of impact are you hoping to have on the people you work with? Yeah. So as I'm building my career, the impact I wanna have on people that I work with is be able to inspire, be able to kind of be a, a mentor in a sense, and just, give my knowledge to others as well. And then also too beyond that is, like, I have a couple of things that I've always wanted to do, and I feel like real estate is the best avenue to get to that position to where I'm able to go ahead and give back to the community and give back to different clients. Mm-hmm. That's cool that you have, That

Long Term Goals Investing And Impact

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real estate is the path that you can do those other things that you wanted to do as well. And then looking ahead, what are some personal and professional goals that you're working toward over the next couple of years? So some personal goals just really getting into, like, the investment side. Just like I said before, seeing my grandparents build their wealth and everything, I- I'm more in the, the agent side, the producing side, but eventually, you know, I wanna be, be able to, to do-- deal with investments and then also to working in the commercial side of real estate. That's been a big goal for me for my business. For personal, it's just kind of always being 1% better than the day before, just constantly getting better, constantly growing, being a good human being and just when it comes down to it, being able to look after others whenever they need to. Those are good qualities to have, and I think it's great to wanna strive to be better, putting your best foot forward and, like, trying to be better than the, than the day before. And for anyone looking to buy, sell, invest, or learn about, learn more about the real estate market, where can they connect with you? Um, so you can connect with me straight to my phone number. Could I say it? Yeah. Like, my phone number is 571-420-4826. I have an Instagram, seb22realestate. And then tho- those are my two main ones, so you can reach me there or you can type in awicho, A-W-I-C-H-O.com,

How To Connect And Final Thoughts

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and you can find me on there as well. Awesome. So lots of different places to find you. Yeah. And as we wrap up, is there anything you'd like to add that we haven't touched on today? I would just say, you know, if you're looking to get into real estate, whether you're looking to buy and invest or just even buy a home talk to someone get their-- really understand them like I said before, interview them. And then as an agent, if you're looking to potentially become an agent or, like, get into the space, talk to a mentor, talk to someone that is able to kinda lead you in the right direction and, and really aligns with your own values, because that's what's gonna push you farther than just looking at the, at the numbers. Cool. Well, thank you so much, Sebastian, for joining me on the podcast and sharing your knowledge, passion, and inspiring story with us. I wish you the very best in all that comes your way in the future. Thank you. Thank you.