Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Summers.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I am a second-generation Realtor and Broker. My first job in Real Estate was filing in my mother’s Real Estate office. I went to school and majored in Business with a minor in Marketing which is very helpful in this industry. When I graduated, I went to work in my parent’s brokerage as a Relocation director/marketing department. After several years there, I fell in love with my husband and moved out of town where I continued to practice Real Estate part-time until my kids were old enough to become a full-time Real Estate Agent. Shortly after going full-time, I joined Keller Williams and became part of the KW Elite. These are the top 20% of the producing agents within the KW franchise. My first team was started in 2013 under the KW brokerage. Not gonna lie, it was a bumpy start and really didn’t take off until I found the right balance in 2015. In 2016, our team won #2 total units, and #2 in Gross commission which was a huge honor at that time. From 2017 on we have consistently made the Platinum top 500 agents in Austin and this past year we were selected by Real Trends as the top 1.5% of teams operating in Texas. I left KW early in 2022 and have been operating a “Teamridge” under my new company Hoyden Homes.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Heck no. I really had very little management experience and had to learn how to manage a small company. Learning from my own mistakes as I went along. Leveraging the right people and learning how to hire has been a struggle for me as well. Finding the right people to invest your time and energy in has been a struggle as many people find the inconsistencies of the Real Estate industry very difficult to manage.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
I picked the name “Hoyden” very deliberately. A “Hoyden” used to be an insult in Victorian times. It meant a boisterous girl. Back in those days, women were intended to sit quietly and tend to their needlework and the children. A woman who talked out of turn or was too ambitious was not looked upon favorably. In many industries, it is still a man’s world, but women all over the country are striving every day to have their voices heard and the name is a reminder to me of how far women in business have come and how far we still must go.
Hoyden Homes is a place for women and men who think outside the box and are passionate about having their voices heard.
My vision for Real Estate is to elevate Realtors to have a higher responsibility to their clients and have a dignity of work that has been missing from the Real Estate Industry.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
My interests varied as a kid, but I was always very sociable and talkative. I’ve always been a goal-oriented person and self-reliant. I started working at 15 and have had some sort of job or volunteer position.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.hoydenhomes.net
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atx.realty/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/austintxproperties
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN4NwCwlPLYo_m3jawrQXew
