Today we’d like to introduce you to Jill Whittaker
Hi Jill, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Right out of college I was hired by the Air Force to work as a civilian in military recreation. After three years I decided to go active duty and became a C-130 navigator and then navigator instructor . My military career lasted for 7 years before I decided to separate and focus on my family and raising my three boys. I took a break from professional life for just a few years, then when my family moved from Texas to Maryland, I went back to work again as an office manager at the United States Naval Academy. Four years later the military moved my family back to Texas, so I had to change up my career once again. At this point I realized that my professional background was very eclectic and was also primarily focused on working for the government. I decided it was time to put my time and energy into a career where I had unlimited income potential based on my own effort and skill. I also realized, having moved several times with the military, that I enjoyed the home search and home buying and selling process. I got excited researching an area and all the things that were involved in making a decision about where to relocate my family. When I moved back to San Antonio with my family in 2015, I decided to combine those two things and go to work for myself as a REALTOR. I joined an incredible brokerage, JBGoodwin REALTORS, which not only gave me the tools I needed to succeed (as I was starting from scratch with no local sphere of influence initially), but also became my extended family over the next 9+ years. My first year in real estate I earned the Rookie of the Year award for by brokerage along with Top Leasing Agent AND was a Top 10 Sales Agent. My second year in business I was the Top Leasing Agent and a Top 10 Sales Agent, and every year since I have been a top 10 Sales Agent for the brokerage. After 6 years I was asked to step into the role as Sales Manager in order to open a new office location in Schertz, on the northeast part of San Antonio. After 3 years I grew the office from 2 to 35 agents, all while continuing to operate my own business as a REALTOR, continuing to help my clients buy, sell and lease property throughout the San Antonio area and across the globe. During that time I was featured on two real estate shows on HGTV and A&E networks and I was elected to the Schertz City Council to serve a three-year term.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Nothing in life ever seems to be a smooth road but sometimes the bumpy journey makes the destination even sweeter. Being career-minded it was hard to set aside my personal life and focus just on my family. It was equally as hard joining the work force again after 5 years. I had to accept a job that was meant for a recent college graduate, not a 10 year professional with military and management experience. But I was thankful and felt blessed to be employed with a great organization life the US Naval Academy and I did my best to excel in my role as office manager. Real Estate brings with it an entirely different set of struggles that every agent faces. I chose this field because of the benefits like being my own boss and having unlimited income potential. But the reality is, your income can also be zero. You can work for months, even years, for a client helping them find just the right house or helping them get a house sold that is no longer needed. But there is no guarantee that there will be a sale. A REALTOR spends countless hours doing work that is essentially unpaid. And the perception, all the while, is that we are overpaid for our services. But this is the reality of self-employment. There is no reward without the risk. REALTORS also face daily challenges juggling family life with client needs, emotional roller coasters with transactions that go sideways and clients that need more than just a task-driven professional. We are teachers, counselors, cleaners, facilitators, marketers, drivers, coaches and friends, along with being professional real estate agents helping our clients buy, sell and lease property. We wear many hats and we juggle many hearts in the process, not the least of which is our own.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a REALTOR with JBGoodwin REALTORS. I help people buy, sell and lease properties in the San Antonio metro area, specializing in Schertz and the northeast region. Real estate is a team effort and I work for the most amazing brokerage in San Antonio, one that can only be described as a family. Even as independent contractors, we work side by side collaborating, encouraging and supporting one another to help our clients meet their real estate goals. We are in what most people would acknowledge is a challenging real estate market today. Prices are high, interest rates are higher than we’ve seen in recent years, and inventory is on the low side. But people still need to move. There are changes in jobs, military moves, weddings, divorces, families growing and health challenges that all require families to move from one home to another or even from one city or state to another. A home is the largest investment most people will ever make in their lifetime so our responsibility as REALTORS to help protect someone’s investment is huge, and we take that responsibility seriously. So our brokerage ensures we are educated and equipped to serve our clients with expertise and skill, finding the right home, the right buyer or the right financial outcomes that best meet our clients’ goals. I have helped hundreds of families over the years, many of those families have been military members or veterans. Our company created a rebate program for military members called US Military on the Move. And through that program I have been able to give over $180,000 of my commissions over the years back to my clients, as a “Thank You for your Service” and also a way to help with the financial burdens that military families encounter due to their frequent moves during their careers. My brokerage leadership, with our CEO, JB Goodwin, setting the pace, is involved in every level of real estate policy from the local level to the state and even at the federal level, championing ways to better serve our clients. Because of this dedication to the profession and to the people we serve, our agents are always in the know when it comes to policy changes, new rules and laws that will affect how they work and how they best handle their client needs. We have won the honor of Top Workplace in San Antonio for 13 consecutive years and the #1 Top Workplace in San Antonio for the last 4 years. That is an honor that is truly deserved because there is no better place grow in a real estate career and just live life with amazing people than JBGoodwin REALTORS.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
I see success for myself as reaching a healthy work-life balance where I am able to serve my clients well while also caring for and nurturing the relationships with my children, all while fulfilling the purpose for which I have been put on this earth. I believe God has designed each of us for a purpose, whether large or small. Maybe it is just having an impact on one life at a time, whether that be my children’s lives or my clients. Or maybe it is a purpose with a greater reach. True success will be when I realize what I have been designed for and get up each day with that purpose in mind, finding joy in individual moments and fulfillment in the realization that I am part of a greater plan.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.JillLovesHomes.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jillwhittakerrealtor/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jillSArealestate/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jill-fitzpatrick-whittaker/
- Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/@jillwhittakerrealtor
