When I first started working in real estate, in the small town of Ayr, ON, I never imagined leaving beyond the outskirts of my hometown of Cambridge. I had dreams of expanding my work, but I never imagined this journey would take me out of the Tri-City Area and into a whole new province.
It all began in 2007 when I worked in a model home as a hostess. After working in two model homes as a new home sales agent, I moved to resale in 2010 where I began working in Cambridge. Living and working in the community where I grew up was an incredible joy and I especially appreciated helping friends and family in their real estate journey. Since I could draw from a wellspring of local knowledge, I was uniquely positioned to offer an invaluable service by guiding clients through the ins and outs of my hometown.
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However, due to family circumstances, we needed to relocate to Alberta – a province where I didn’t know anyone and had never even visited before. My 5-year-old son is autistic, and although we had support from family and friends in Ontario, we were not receiving the support we required from the Ontario Autism Program. The wait lists are incredibly long and I’d heard that Alberta had a better support system for children with special needs. So after a couple of visits to the town of Cochrane, AB, we moved at the end of August 2023. I knew this move was the right choice for my family, but I was nervous about starting from scratch in a completely new area.
A lot of my business was repeat referrals and clients I’d worked with several times over the years, so it was certainly scary going somewhere where no one knew who I was or what I was about. But at the same time, it was exciting to get to see new places and experience a new life. You can either view change as scary, or you can just dive in – which is what I did.
Building a New Clientele in a New Environment
On top of the chaos of preparing for a cross-country move with two young children, I also had to prepare to move my business. Fortunately, Alberta recognizes Ontario’s real estate education system and after completing a few migratory online courses and an in-person exam, I was able to become dual-licenced to practice in both Alberta and Ontario. I also connected with a local agent who assisted in helping me purchase a property and guided me through the whole process here in Alberta. Beyond making a valuable connection, this agent also became a close friend and helped to strengthen my roots in this new community.
Connecting with the people and community that you live in is so important for many reasons, not only to give you a sense of connectedness but also to give you the knowledge you require to be able to sell real estate in a new town. Because of this, I made it my goal to become familiar with the area so I connected with the parents and staff of my children’s elementary schools, joined a choir, and attended community events. Ultimately I want to provide advice to clients regarding the benefits of each neighbourhood, and down the road, be in a position to give back to this community that has been so welcoming to our family.
My Advice for Agents Moving their Business to a New City or Province:
Connect with a local agent: Find out what makes sense for you and your family, and connect with a local agent from your brokerage who lives there. They can do virtual walkthroughs with you that can save you expensive flights out each time and can answer any questions you have about the local market.
Research your new city: Check out the area you are moving to and find out as much as you can about the market. Consider if there is room for growth in your new city and if the market is active. If it is a province-to-province move, you’ll also need to find out what the education requirements are. More practically, you’ll need to see if you can stay at the same brokerage and if so, if the broker has a lead gen system that can give you leads in the new city.
Become part of the community: You are going to be no help to anyone without understanding your community first and understanding which neighbourhoods you are selling. For this reason, you should save up enough money to have a cushion until your real estate business is established. Remember, it is not a race to the finish line. It takes time to build connections in a new environment but the end result will be worth it for your future clients.
All in all, it was a big move for my family but it was worth it. Waking up every day to beautiful mountain views, long sunny days, and new places to explore has been amazing.
