Today, we’d like to introduce you to Chalimar Chieza.
Hi Chalimar, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My name is Chalimar Chieza and I live in my hometown, Austin, Texas with my husband, Tatenda and our three kids and two dogs. I’m the youngest of three siblings in a very competitive and talented family. When I was younger, I went through the house-buying and design process with my parents multiple times. I loved being in the studio, helping decide the finish out for our houses, and when my older brother and I had the opportunity, we went to open houses and home tours as much as possible. I always thought of real estate as a fun hobby. Being in new construction homes and watching neighborhoods go from wooded areas to foundations and framing to master-planned communities with pools and hiking trails was always really exciting for me. When COVID hit, I had been teaching middle and high school History and geography for almost 16 years; the transition to teaching online while raising my own three young kids was really difficult, and I was only four months postpartum when we went into lockdown. Continually looking for opportunities to evolve, I decided to take the advice of a previous colleague and pursue my real estate license. In between teaching classes, I would complete my study modules and quizzes, preparing to become a licensed agent. Upon getting my license, I started my career as a licensed assistant to a broker associate at a smaller brokerage here in town. After working there for a little over a year, I started finding my niche in the business and recognized that luxury residential real estate was the sector that I wanted to be in, and I focused my sights on hanging my license at a brokerage that would support my goals. Working close to 80 hours a week as a licensed assistant and putting myself out there as an agent, I started to make connections with top agents and brokers here in town, going to lunches, trainings and brokers’ opens. My whole world opened up when an old friend brought me on their team at Kuper Sotheby’s as an Operations Manager. I quickly learned that the luxury sector had a whole new set of rules, and I began my education in title company and lender interfacing as I learned about the importance of concierge customer service and providing unique value. After taking a coaching series that truly became life-altering, I made the decision to step into a sales position and was thrilled when Kuper Sotheby’s invited me to continue at the brokerage in my new role. The weeks and months that followed have been full of grinding- creating marketing and branding campaigns, developing business strategy, and lots of pivoting. Real estate is not an easy business, and the market that we were in this past year required agents to show a lot of grit to survive. I am still finding my way, but I am now in a place where I know that I belong here. I am exactly where I am supposed to be.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
No, it has not been a smooth road at all but I am ambitious and failure was not an option for me. I had to learn a lot about myself to get to where I am today. I left a career that I was thriving in after 16 years to begin at the start just a few months after having my third child. After starting my business, I went about seven months without transacting anything at all. After leaving a career that was very stable (especially financially), I really felt the pressure to perform so that I could help provide for my family. I am naturally competitive and typically a high achiever but there were a lot of question marks during that time and I was thankful for my husband, who encouraged me to keep on working hard towards my goals. In a market affected by fluctuating interest rates, corporate layoffs and a lack of affordable housing, I knew that I had to provide a tremendous amount of value to my clients in order to build the level of trust that would launch my luxury real estate business.
As you know, we’re big fans of Chalimar Chieza Real Estate. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about the brand?
There are a lot of real estate agents in Austin, Texas, but I want to be extraordinary in every way possible. My approach and my core values set me aside and above other realtors. I was trained by one of the top luxury real estate agents in Austin, who has been in the game for almost three decades. Through their mentorship, I have learned to provide the highest level of value in the industry through leading market insights and expert analysis of market data. My background prior to becoming an agent was education via business marketing and sales. I feel confident that between the world-class marketing and connections Sotheby’s International Realty boasts, along with my personal marketing acumen, I can serve my client’s needs in a dynamic and personalized way that will yield positive results over and over again. I’m not just trained to be knowledgeable about the neighborhoods and the homes that I show and list. My mission is to become your strategic advisor, not just another sales agent. Additionally, I aim to provide value not just during your move but also afterward, where I will continue to provide ongoing value long after we close on your home. I grew up here in Austin, and I date my city frequently. I am most proud of the fact that I am here to help create generational wealth for as many Austinites as possible, and the way that I approach that is by being value-additive at every opportunity that I can, even if someone is not working with me. I want readers to know that it does not matter if you are a first-time home buyer who has no idea where to start or if you are a seasoned homeowner buying an investment property that is going to help you build the capital you need to retire, I am going to be here developing the best strategies to get your desired results.
Any big plans?
In the future, I want to continue growing and evolving my business while building relationships and connections. I want to always be top of mind when clients are considering which agent they are going to partner with to support their buying, selling and investing needs.
I am also working on a passion project, The Table, which is a professional collective for people of color here in Austin. I am hoping to grow that organization alongside my real estate business and continue creating networking, wellness, connection, and development opportunities for business owners and founders throughout the city.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.chalimarchieza.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/chaliiib
