It was 1992 when Glenda Baker was just starting out in real estate. As she tells Vivian Tu on this week’s episode of the podcast “Networth and Chill,” brought to you in partnership with Vox Media and PS, “When Jesus was a baby.” And sponsored by the Marshalls. At the time, the landscape of Atlanta, Georgia wasn’t all that friendly to young mothers like her, and she faced several harsh rejections (one of which was “Too Cheerful”) before landing a role where she felt supported. ). growing up.
That first job began Mr. Baker’s path to becoming Atlanta’s most successful real estate mogul, regularly earning six-figure commission checks. Today, Baker’s content about the real estate business and her signature Southern demeanor has garnered her hundreds of thousands of followers on social media, and business remains strong.
This week, she sat down with Tu to talk about her career in real estate and reflect on how far she’s come since those days of unsuccessfully trying to land a corporate assistant position.
Read excerpts from the conversation below. For more real estate advice, listen to the full episode “Homes, Loans, and Moaning – Real Estate Pitfalls to Avoid” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and more. Podcast.
Vivian Tu: What was it like entering this often male-dominated industry?
Glenda Baker: I was reading a book called “How to Make a Six-Figure Income in Real Estate.” Then I went to Real Estate Taj Mahal, the largest real estate office in Atlanta. So I went into the house and said, “Can I talk to the broker?” Can I get a job? And I said, “Can you hire me?” And she said, “Yeah.”
(One time) I started getting land information and found the number 1 girl in the office. I moved my cubicle right outside her office. I heard everything the girl said. If she needed a copy or coffee, I went to get it and absorbed everything she did. So I joined on September 4th and by December I was Agent of the Month. I went every day at 9 o’clock.
VT: Wow. You did it quickly.
GB: Yeah. There was no room for failure. Selling the house was not an option. Not getting paid was not an option for me, nor was it an option. I had to have money.
VT: How did you budget your money knowing that real estate is a commission-based business? Like you said, you don’t always get paid and you have to sell houses.
GB: Yeah, I didn’t. I literally didn’t spend any money on anything. I spent as little money as possible. I ate rice and beans, took care of a small baby, and I realized early on that I might not be able to sell the house forever, so I held onto everything I could. I didn’t know when it was time to sell my house. Because even when I went to see an agent, I couldn’t sell anything when I sold my house, and I couldn’t sell my house when I sold it. Please sell anything. What’s the difference? I thought. You want something predictable. And what I realized is that if you work consistently every day, your money is stable too. That was probably my first and biggest real estate lesson. . . . If you work consistently, you can earn money consistently.
VT: I see that you love to eat what you kill.
GB: Yes, of course. I was never picked on the playground and the last kid was picked on the playground. So it was important for me to prove myself. And when you realize, “Oh, wait a minute, we can do this, we don’t need to reinvent the wheel.” This girl makes truckloads of money, I can do it too. And for me, it wasn’t just about eating what I killed, it was about proving myself.
VT: So now that you’re in her seat, was there ever any animosity between you and the girl?
GB: No, there was never any animosity because she inspired me. And to me, we were never competitors. I was so in awe of her. And I realized that the opportunity to listen to her and listen to her clients and listen to her agents was a gift that I had been given, and I had so much respect for her. . So for me, I’m never competing, I’m always collaborating with those people. I think competition happens underground. That doesn’t happen in Penthouse. Because at Penthouse, we always talk about how we can help each other.
Emma Glassman-Hughes (she/her) is an associate editor at PS Balance. In her seven years as a reporter, her beats have expanded to include lifestyle. She has covered arts and culture for The Boston Globe, sex and relationships for Cosmopolitan, and food, climate, and agriculture for Ambrook Research.
