Hello, my name is Gayla Strickland and I'm new on the Active Rain Blogging site.  Let me introduce myself.  I am a full time real estate agent with Coldwell Banker Advantage in Wake Forest, North Carolina.  I have been a real estate agent for 27 years - wow have I seen changes in the market and the profession.  I live in Henderson, North Carolina and work the market from North Raleigh to the Virginia state line.  Some of the area's that I cover include: Vance County (Henderson), Granville County (Oxford, Creedmoor), Franklin County (Franklinton, Louisburg, Youngsville) Wake County (Wake Forest, North Raleigh) Warren County (Warrenton, Norlina) and the Kerr Lake area. 

I love the business of Real Estate and from the first moment I started in the business I decided I would treat this profession as my career and not just a job.  Like many agents, I can be very tired and receive a phone call from a potential buyer and it's like a new day where I'm revived and ready to go.  I feel very responsible to my clients (both buyers and sellers) to strive to help them obtain their real estate goals. 

The majority of my business is from past clients and referrals from friends and clients.  I work on all types of properties - residential, new construction, land, resort properties, development and commercial.

My entire family is very understanding about my high demanding real estate career.  My husband and I have two grown sons, one daughter-in law and four wonderful grandsons - ages 15, 13, 10 and 8.  When our 10 year old grandson was 4, I went on a field trip with his pre-school class and he was riding with me.  My phone rung and after the conversation, he asked me why I had to answer the phone so much.  I simply told him that the more calls I answer the quicker we could go to Disney World.  The remainder of the day and often times now, he will encourage me to answer the phone.  We have taken them 3 times to Disney World, which they love as much as I do. 

My hobbies are traveling especially with family, boating, jet skiing (can't swim) and reading (which I wish I had more time for)

At one time I belonged to a real estate mentor group where we shared ideas, tips and techniques.  We would learn about each other market, goals and ways of doing their business.  Today we send each other referrals.  I would love to hear about you and your market place. 

I look forward to sharing my knowledge to the Active Rain & Localism communities, as well as learning from others on the networks.  Even with 27+ years experience, I feel that you can never learn enough.  Best of Holiday wishes to you & yours this season, and I hope that we can work together in the future!

Gayla Strickland
www.GaylaStrickland.com