Our Brand Story

It was the Summer of 2007. I was 18 years old, and my friends were going off to college. I was so close to signing on the dotted line, taking out student loans, and heading off to college like the rest of them. Instead, I made a last minute decision not to go.

Something just didn’t click for me. I knew what I loved to do, but didn’t see a clear degree path in college that would get me there. I loved helping people and I loved design. I liked working with my hands on projects where I could see something evolve right in front of me.

Instead of going off to college, I got a job at a local lumber and hardware store making $10/hour. Growing up around construction, I knew more than your average 18 year old blonde chick. I figured this would be a job to hold me over until I figured out what I wanted to do.

All my friends thought I was crazy.

During my first year at the lumber and hardware store, I learned a lot. I learned what worked in small business and what didn’t. I learned how to deal with people and prove my value.  I learned that follow up and communication are the most important things. I learned that no job was too small, and to do more than I was asked.

I also learned about what I was selling. I learned about lumber, plumbing, electrical, windows & doors..  I learned more about fasteners and hardware than I ever cared to know. Most importantly, I learned how to work to earn respect and form relationships.  I couldn’t see it then, but the knowledge and relationships I made here would forever impact my life.

During that first year, I realized that I better make a plan. I couldn’t work at this store forever. So, I started thinking about what I wanted to do with my life. One day, in the fastener isle, it clicked. I loved helping people. I had grown to love sales. I still had a passion for all things home and design. Why not real estate?

Well, for starters, I’d grown up around people who kind of hated real estate agents.

I didn’t really want to be one of them, did I?

A suit wearing, power hungry, lazy agent, only in it to make an easy buck? No way.

But maybe, just maybe, I could be different. I researched what it took to get your real estate license. It turns out it was a pretty small investment coupled with a lot of studying that would get me there.

​I dove in, and for the next 6 months, I continued working while studying to become a real estate agent.

Once I got my license, I signed on with a smaller brokerage in Louisville that had about 50 agents. Soon after, I got word that the lumber and hardware store I was working at was going to close. Perfect timing right? I would be free of my $10/hour job and able to concentrate on real estate full time!

Well, it turns out people weren’t super eager to put their biggest asset in the hands of an 18 year old girl right off the bat. Sound familiar? Flashback to my first day at the lumber and hardware store. I realized I would need another way to create income while I worked to build my real estate business.

For the next couple of years, I cleaned houses to make money to get by. This allowed me the flexibility I needed for real estate. If I had a dollar for every time I changed out of my house cleaning clothes into my house showing clothes… well, you get it.

I spent my days outworking my competition. Little by little, day by day, I was able to generate enough real estate business to quit cleaning houses and focus on real estate full time. The more time I spent on real estate, the more I loved it. It also became clear over time that I would like to go off and do my own thing and work for myself.

I made a lot of good connections at my original brokerage over the 7 years I spent there. But I craved the creative flexibility that working for myself would allow. I wanted to do things my way and create an experience for my clients. I wanted my brand to align with my vision. I wanted to do the damn thing.

So, I set off on the path of getting my broker’s license and Finely Crafted Realty was born! By born, I mean that I went home and worked by myself for the next year and a half on my dining room cranking out sales. I was making it! I was helping more people than I ever thought was possible.

But there was a twinge of loneliness, not to mention some overwhelm. Was this really a journey I was meant to go on alone?

This is where things get interesting. Remember my point about community relationships? A family friend knew a girl who just graduated from college and was working for a small design company. She’d just gotten her real estate license. This girl was Jordan.

We met for coffee and the rest is history, Jordan became number two. She brought so much to the table, especially her mad design and marketing skills. We spent another year working together in my dining room.

Soon after, along came Sheryl. She’d built a wonderful career in event planning. It was time to transition and use her expertise to help families in the world of real estate.

We met for coffee, she got licensed, and she came on board as number 3. It’s amazing how many of her event planning skills transition into real estate. After all, moving is like one big event.

The three of us have spent the last 3 years working together as a team. We’ve helped countless family’s real estate dreams come true. We’ve purchased and renovated our office building in the heart of our community. We’ve put our blood, sweat and tears into this business and truly feel at home.

I realize now that I was never, ever meant to do this alone. Jordan & Sheryl were the missing pieces of the puzzle and have made Finely Crafted Realty what it is today.

Now, the three of us want to help you find your home so you can feel at peace. Our goal is for you to feel like you're exactly where you need to be, just like we do!