Episode 12: Own Your Backyard, Grow Your Business

 Most agents try to be everywhere and end up blending in. But what if the fastest path to more referrals, stronger relationships, and consistent business is focusing on one community and owning it? 

In this episode, Alice Lebkuecher shares how becoming the go-to expert in her community transformed her business and created a steady stream of trusted clients. Learn why local knowledge, responsiveness, and community involvement can be your biggest competitive advantage.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome back to another episode of One on One with Austin One. I'm your host, KT Temple, and I'm here with Alice Lebcatcher. I got it right.

SPEAKER_02 0:09

You got it right? Yes.

SPEAKER_00 0:11

Awesome. And so again, David Burton gave me a list of people and he said, These are the people that you need to talk to. And Alice was on that list. So I called up Alice and I said, Come on the show. And she said, Why? So I said, I wanted to hear about your business and talk about it. She goes, Okay, I want to learn about it too. That's great. Let's do this. So thank you for coming on the show.

SPEAKER_02 0:35

Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 0:36

Yeah. So let's start off with when you got into real estate. So talk about that journey and how long have you been in real estate?

SPEAKER_02 0:43

Well, I guess I stopped counting because I got in after college, right after college.

SPEAKER_01 0:48

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 0:48

Essentially, I took some a course, I think, that I could in college, and then I came out and went to the champions school of real estate and got all my courses out of the way and sat for my test.

SPEAKER_00 1:01

Awesome.

SPEAKER_02 1:02

But I didn't go into selling real estate.

SPEAKER_00 1:05

Um what did you do first?

SPEAKER_02 1:07

I worked for the appraisal department at Texas Commerce Bank.

SPEAKER_00 1:12

Awesome.

SPEAKER_02 1:13

As a researcher and then did some appraisal work. Um I always say I knew that appraisal wasn't what I wanted to do forever, but I also was the only single person and there was only one more office they could move me to, which was El Paso.

SPEAKER_00 1:30

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 1:30

I was like, hmm, I don't think I want to go there.

SPEAKER_00 1:32

So when did the switch happen to residential?

SPEAKER_02 1:35

Oh, not for a while. I um I met my husband in an appraisal class that I was sent to. You know, they always kept us going to classes. Uh so I left the appraisal business and um decided I'd just move to Atlanta.

SPEAKER_01 1:54

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 1:55

And I moved to Atlanta, got a job with Bank of Boston, uh, doing uh REO sales.

SPEAKER_01 2:04

All right.

SPEAKER_02 2:04

She didn't really sell. You were more like overseeing the, you know, what broker we hiring, dealing with the attorneys. Um, because most of what we had was in Florida.

SPEAKER_01 2:16

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 2:17

And so um during that time, I got married and uh then we worked ourselves out of a job.

SPEAKER_00 2:25

Oh, what is that? What do you mean by that?

SPEAKER_02 2:27

Well, I mean, we sold all the REOs.

SPEAKER_00 2:29

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_02 2:30

So they were like nothing else for y'all to do. Wow.

SPEAKER_00 2:33

So did they shut down that division, I guess? They did. Wow. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. And is that when the change happened over to residential?

SPEAKER_02 2:39

No. Okay. Then we moved, then we moved to San Antonio, and I uh got a job uh with a group that had bought a lot of REO um office buildings.

SPEAKER_01 2:53

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 2:54

And um went into office leasing.

SPEAKER_00 2:57

All right.

SPEAKER_02 2:58

Which was pretty fun.

SPEAKER_00 2:59

Yeah. Um learned a little bit about commercial and getting into that field. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 3:03

Yeah. So we were the leasing agent for the building that the company owned. So, you know, um, I wasn't out leasing all over town. Um, and my husband got transferred to Houston. And so that's when I got into selling real estate.

SPEAKER_00 3:25

All right. So it started in Houston.

SPEAKER_02 3:27

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:28

So you did residential in Houston for a little bit. How were those first couple years?

SPEAKER_02 3:32

Oh, they were slow.

SPEAKER_00 3:34

Slow. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 3:35

But I had two little kids.

SPEAKER_00 3:36

Yeah. Was this with Keller Williams or another?

SPEAKER_02 3:39

No, um, I worked for uh a family, an old family friend that basically my husband was uh in partnership with doing a development.

SPEAKER_01 3:52

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 3:52

And so uh Willie said, Oh, you can come in, you're gonna make $30,000. And I'm like, oh, okay.

SPEAKER_01 4:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:01

I didn't make $30,000 for a while. But I, as my kids grew and all of that, um, you know, so did my sales and my salary or not salary, but my commissions and stuff. Um I ended up farming my little neighborhood that we lived in.

SPEAKER_00 4:20

Great.

SPEAKER_02 4:21

So that was great because, you know, I was right there.

SPEAKER_00 4:25

When you say farming, what do you mean?

SPEAKER_02 4:27

Well, I just did all the, you know, uh sending postcards out and, you know, just really involved in that community there. That community. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, my kids were little, everybody pretty much had little kids, so you kind of knew everybody.

SPEAKER_00 4:44

Yeah. And I think a lot of agents forget how important it is to be consistent in one place rather than trying to cast a giant net over all of the city, find your little pocket there and dive deep into it.

SPEAKER_02 4:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 4:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:57

I I do believe in uh geographical. Of course.

SPEAKER_00 5:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:03

Yeah. I mean, that's because now I just do it in Wimberley.

SPEAKER_00 5:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:08

It's kind of hard to send postcards in Wimberly.

SPEAKER_00 5:11

So when did you make your way over to Austin?

SPEAKER_02 5:14

Uh we moved back in uh, let's see, 2010.

SPEAKER_00 5:20

Okay. So you start up this residential business in Houston, and you now have to move everything, uh everything to Austin. What was that like?

SPEAKER_02 5:30

Uh it was interesting because remember 2010 wasn't great.

SPEAKER_01 5:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:35

We moved again. Um, my husband and I decided we'd do a small development. Um, and my parents were both broker developers in Wimberley.

SPEAKER_01 5:47

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 5:47

And so my mother got very excited and she was like, Oh, you can take over the business. And I'm thinking, I'm okay. Yeah, I'm like, you don't have a website, you don't have an office, what am I gonna do?

SPEAKER_01 5:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:59

Um, and it was very different back when they sold um and developed. So um I tried that, and you know, we brought the development out of the ground, all that. Um, but it was a slow time.

SPEAKER_01 6:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 6:17

So I joined Keller Williams then.

SPEAKER_01 6:19

Gotcha. Great.

SPEAKER_02 6:21

For about a month.

SPEAKER_01 6:22

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 6:23

And everybody was like, oh, well, you've lived here. Everybody, you'll know everybody. And I'm like, you know how many real estate agents there are in Wimberley? Yeah. There are a lot.

SPEAKER_01 6:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 6:33

So um basically I was reading the paper one day and I was like, oh, I could be an office manager across the street, Wimberly land. That's a salary because let's just say the development wasn't going exactly as planned.

SPEAKER_01 6:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 6:50

It did in the end, it just didn't sell as quickly as we thought. So I did that for a year. And then um I needed to get back into sales. And so um basically I I kind of transitioned out of their management into sales. But um, Jackie Malloy, who had a team in Wimberley, approached me and said, Do you want to join the team? So I did. Awesome. Yeah. And then unfortunately, Jackie um years later, uh had Alzheimer's. And so um she stepped down and that's when I kind of moved into the team lead role.

SPEAKER_00 7:36

Gotcha.

SPEAKER_02 7:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 7:37

So what was that transition like for you?

SPEAKER_02 7:40

It was okay.

SPEAKER_00 7:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:41

We have a good group in Wimberley. Whatever. Um, they're very seasoned, you know. Uh, so I it it wasn't like a lot of hand holding.

SPEAKER_01 7:51

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 7:52

Which is probably not what I would be able to do. Yeah. That would be hard, you know.

SPEAKER_00 7:58

So tell me about your business now. What does it look like to you, your day-to-day?

SPEAKER_02 8:02

Um just, you know, busy.

SPEAKER_00 8:06

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_02 8:06

Um, I'm always kind of surprised, but you know, it kind of comes in waves. I mean, just had a wave of a bunch of listings, but then, you know, I actually had a few buyers come into my world.

SPEAKER_01 8:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:21

Which I haven't had in a while.

SPEAKER_00 8:23

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 8:23

You know, and uh, luckily they were buyers that needed to buy.

SPEAKER_00 8:27

Yeah. So what are you doing inside? Are you still doing stuff inside the community where you live, kind of like how you did 15 years ago?

SPEAKER_02 8:33

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00 8:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:34

I mean, I'm out and about and, you know, in some groups. Um, but you know, I find I I am different. I don't have a CRM. I don't do a lot of any mailers or anything like that. We do, because Wimberly is kind of a vacation town, we do um still print advertising. Great. Uh, but my clients know they can call me. They call me and say, I need a plumber, I need this. And you know.

SPEAKER_00 9:09

Yeah. You're not the real estate agent for a deal, you're their real estate agent for life.

SPEAKER_02 9:14

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, not always. You know, some of them I've seen, I'm like, oh, they went over there.

SPEAKER_01 9:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 9:20

But um, yeah, and you know, I see them around town, and it just that's kind of how my business goes.

SPEAKER_01 9:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 9:33

Um, and I guess, I guess I'm out there on the internet because people call me and go, well, we were looking and we see you've done a lot of business.

SPEAKER_00 9:44

So those numbers mean a lot, especially for all those portals.

SPEAKER_02 9:48

They do. Great. So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:50

And so you just said you it's vacation rentals a lot that you're selling to people.

SPEAKER_02 9:54

No. No. I do a little of usually it works out to be houses and land. Okay. About half and half. It's probably more skewed to houses right now because land is not moving as much.

SPEAKER_00 10:08

Yeah. We just had Kyler on. I don't know if you're familiar with him, and we just did a land episode for last week's episode.

SPEAKER_02 10:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 10:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:15

And so, I mean, you know.

SPEAKER_00 10:18

You gotta travel for that one.

SPEAKER_02 10:20

Yeah. Well, I call those the ranch guys. Yes. I know. I when I sell land, a lot of times it's a five-acre lot or gotcha. You know, something like that. But um, you know, stuff is still moving.

SPEAKER_00 10:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:34

It's just, you know, a little harder than it's been.

SPEAKER_00 10:38

So if you don't have a CRM and it's a lot of people coming back to you, what are you doing during the transaction that's making them stick with you no matter what?

SPEAKER_02 10:47

I you know, I don't know. I do I do know though, I've had uh I had a client this morning and we're about to close. And she goes, Well, I'm not gonna get to talk to you anymore. And I just we can call it. Oh, yeah, you know, but I said that's kind of how it is, you know, we talk and talk and talk, and then all of a sudden it's like it's done, and yeah, you know. So I, you know, I don't know. I just I'm and I'm there, you know, trying to be uh I had one client recently say, you really communicate well. So maybe that's it. You know, and I do answer my phone.

SPEAKER_00 11:29

You I answered as soon as I called you to do this.

SPEAKER_02 11:32

I mean that's what people I mean, even other agents go, oh, thank you for answering. Yeah. I'm like, I don't know. I know I can't.

SPEAKER_00 11:40

And just so everyone knows, I have a 704 number. So if you uh if you're like, why is someone from Charlotte calling me? It's just me. So awesome. So if you were gonna give advice to some agents right now, what would it be?

SPEAKER_02 11:53

I would focus, try to focus on an area, you know, or and Austin's big. Yeah, you know, I don't I don't come into Austin and try to sell or do anything. Um, but I would try to take an area and kind of really focus on it um and be the expert in that area.

SPEAKER_00 12:14

Um And when you say be an expert, what are you studying?

SPEAKER_02 12:17

Just knowing the market.

SPEAKER_00 12:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:19

I mean, I've I mean, I remember years ago at an open house, a guy we were talking and I said, Well, you know, what do you want? Because he goes, Well, this isn't the house for me. Um okay, it's not the house for you. Yeah. But maybe the one down the street. He goes, Why are you trying to sell somebody else's house? And I said, Well, I you're gonna buy what you like.

SPEAKER_01 12:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:41

You know, but I think showing, you know, being able to talk about what other things are in the market, because that's what a lot of people do with me. You know, right now there's so much people calling you and going, Oh, I want to see your listing. Okay. Well, why don't they have an agent? Yeah. You know, but then they start talking about what they've seen or what they are looking at. And I pretty much have been in a lot of those houses. So I can communicate with them about, oh, okay, so you like that, but you don't like this. Okay, why didn't you look at this?

SPEAKER_00 13:18

Yeah, you know, so it's something we used to do in Ignite, urge the agents just to go preview listings. And especially if you're new, getting inside of these homes where you want to be the expert.

SPEAKER_02 13:29

Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 13:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 13:31

And and just learning. I mean, when I came back to Wimberley, I mean, okay, you're coming out of Houston. I was pretty much kind of memorial area. And you come to Wimberley, and I'm like, oh my gosh, I can't, I don't like these houses. They're not very interesting. And, you know, the more we have a tour that happens twice a month, and I try to go on that. And, you know, it's a good group that tends to go and you listen to what people say, you know. And I remember uh Jackie one day, and I think this house was like, it doesn't even have steps to the front door. Like, what is up with that? And you know, but it was on 10 acres and had a barn. She goes, Oh, this is great horse property. And I was like, Oh, okay. So horse people don't care about their house, they care more about their horse.

SPEAKER_00 14:24

So it's funny coming from Charlotte to Texas. I now don't have to know anything about cars. Yeah, but I do have to know about horses, apparently, is what I've been told.

SPEAKER_02 14:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 14:34

Also anything else?

SPEAKER_02 14:38

Well, and I think I think there is something to be said for answering your phone.

SPEAKER_00 14:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 14:44

I mean, and talking to people.

SPEAKER_00 14:46

I know. People give me so much uh uh for for having that little thing that says, Who are you and why are you calling? And they're like, you need to turn that off. I'm like, I can't. So do you not have one of those? Is it just I don't have that? Yeah. But I think that's smart for an agent.

SPEAKER_02 15:01

I mean, I have to say I've almost stopped answering the 713 calls. Okay. Because that's my area code and they're all spam.

SPEAKER_01 15:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 15:09

For the most part. But but, you know, and and even trying, I mean, I do have a lot of listings where and I try to get feedback from agents sometimes, and I'm like, well, what do your clients really want? You know, because if this isn't right, maybe something else over here is. And sometimes I feel like, you know, and I know, and everybody's gotta get a lead how they get a lead, but you know, sometimes I think the Zillow uh you're like at a loss. Yeah, I don't know yet because I've never met them. And that's okay, you know, but I I I will say I am a resource to people.

SPEAKER_00 15:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 15:58

And even agents. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 15:59

I am happy to Well, you have so much experience, not around residential.

SPEAKER_02 16:03

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I had a lady on the way here text me and say, Do you think I can put five cabins on your little five acres? And I'm like, I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 16:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 16:13

And I I talked to her a little bit and I said, you know, you really ought to go to Rolling Oaks because they don't have any deed restrictions.

SPEAKER_00 16:21

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 16:22

You know, and they're probably not gonna say anything, even though we're I have five acres, has no HOA, but they don't like all the cabins. So I know that. So they'll they'll probably say something. Right.

SPEAKER_00 16:36

Well, if anyone wanted to reach out to you and use you as a resource, could they do so? And how would they?

unknown 16:40

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_02 16:41

Um, just give me a call at 713-253-1311.

SPEAKER_01 16:47

Awesome.

SPEAKER_02 16:47

And we have an office in Wimberley. We don't mind if KW agents need to come in and, you know, make a copy or use the restroom, whatever.

SPEAKER_00 16:58

Awesome. Well, Alice, thank you so much for your time. Uh, we'll be back again with another episode, guys. Uh, if you like this episode, feel free to review it. It helps us get in front of more agents. And we'll be back again next week. Thank you, Alice.

SPEAKER_02 17:11

Thank you. All right.