LocalJuly 11, 2024

Small Business of the Day: Conversations with Jenny Wang of JWang Properties

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Today’s Small Business of the Day features an interview with Jenny Wang. Please find our conversation below.

We’re thrilled to have the chance to ask you some fun questions today, but before we get started, can you introduce JWang Properties to our readers.
JWang Properties is a Luxe Boutique Realty redefining the real estate landscape through innovative systems and custom video production. Our mission is to empower REALTORS to excel, dedicated to serving clients, industry, and communities with excellence. Offering comprehensive one-stop service in residential and commercial real estate, we tailor each interaction to meet the unique needs of clients across Houston and the Texas Hill Country. Rooted in a culture valuing integrity and authenticity, we strive to bring value and joy to others through our expertise, creativity, and unwavering dedication.

Leading JWang Properties is Jenny, an unwavering broker renowned for her unmatched commitment to client satisfaction. With extensive knowledge and a deep-seated passion for real estate, Jenny leads by example, having earned her designations as a Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist and Council of Residential Specialist, leveraging her network of industry relationships to support her agents and enhance the overall client experience.

Obtaining her license in 2002, Jenny began her journey with RE/MAX Metro, earning recognition in the prestigious RE/MAX Hall of Fame. In November 2018, Jenny achieved a significant milestone by obtaining her broker license and founding JWang Properties, known for its personalized approach. Venturing into JWang Media, a video production company, Jenny seamlessly merges her passion for real estate with creativity, establishing herself as an entrepreneurial trailblazer.

Beyond professional achievements, Jenny is an accomplished author, integrating storytelling into her ventures with her 2021 release, “Girl Wears Those Shoes.” Actively engaging in community service, Jenny shares her expertise and leadership as a member of the Women’s Council of REALTORS, having served as its Past President in 2016. Additionally, Jenny championed diversity and inclusivity within the profession, serving on the DEI committee at the Kerrville Board of Realtors. Dedicating nine years to the Homeowner’s Association of Southpoint Townhomes, as an Ambassador of the Houston Ballet, and a lifetime member of the University of Houston Alumni Association, her commitment to education and community engagement is evident. In 2024, JWang Luxe Boutique Realty unveiled concierge services, including luxury homes from Houston to Texas Hill Country, streamlined estate services, and custom relocation assistance. With a commitment to innovation, community engagement, and client satisfaction, JWang Properties continues to redefine the real estate experience.

What is the most important lesson you’ve learned building your business that you can share with those just starting out in their entrepreneurial journey?
To my client, I’m the “Trusted Advisor.” To my agents, I’m the “Trusted Mentor.” I can teach the “bolts and nuts” of how to practice real estate, yet I’m an adamant believer that one needs to have the right mindset before starting this career. Being in the business for 20 years, I think there are three questions that set apart the top producers versus the struggling agents and the quitters. The question 1 is: “Why are you interested in becoming a real estate agent?” You may have heard something like, “because I love people;” “because I love money;” “because I think it looks like fun;” “because I love houses…” And here is the most common one, “Life would be so much easier to be my own boss.” There is no answer that’s a wrong answer, but none of the above answers that demonstrate the “right mindset” for a successful REALTOR.

The question 2 is: “Are you willing to work?” As a REALTOR, I could drive thousands of miles to show properties, and my buyer ended up not buying. I could spend thousands of dollars marketing a listing for sale, but the seller has decided to terminate with me and switch to another broker. I don’t get paid until the property is closed and funded. I don’t have a paycheck every other week, but I have bills to pay every month with the same due dates. Doesn’t sound like that much of fun of being your own boss now, does it? The question 3 is: “Do you think all your work was wasted, the thousands of miles and the thousands of dollars in marketing without getting paid (as no closings)?” I’ve seen those who answered “yes” left the industry in a hurry, and those who continued their devotion won the game.

The right mindset is, “I’m willing to put in as much as work it takes. It may mean to sacrifice weekend, holidays, personal time, family time…. But no work is ever wasted. I learn from working and failing. The more I work, the better chance of success.” It’s the “giving” without thinking to “take.” It’s the “working without thinking about the return.” There is no instant gratification in this process. It demands one’s full attention and dedication.

I obtained my license and became an agent at RE/MAX Metro in the summer of 2002. I was as green as a Granny Smith apple, with zero clienteles. So, the office showed me the big thick book of “expired listings” to call. After hundreds of calls hang up on me, I got to talk to a lady who said she was interested to list her vacant lot. It was a small lot in Bar X Ranch in Angleton, about 48 miles from Houston. I listed it for about $18,000. So, I would make $500, just enough to pay the gas, lunch, and advertising. And who would even drive that far to do it other than the “green” me?! I was excited, a listing regardless! It was 2002-2003, there was no social media yet. I paid the advertisement on the classified via Greensheet paper. Green me and Greensheet. What a match!

After all my marketing effort, I got the lot under the contract within a month. However, I then learned from the Title Company that the title was not clear. The seller had a lump sum tax lien against the property. Lessons learned. It was my 1st listing and I didn’t do my due diligence. The seller had the option to pay it off at the closing, yet they didn’t have enough proceed nor cash to cover it. So there went my $500 commission plus all the costs associated with it. I had only about $200 in my checking account by then. Sure, I had a mother to call for “emergency dollars” but that was not the point. Just when I was sitting there and swallowing my failure, I got a call from another seller who owned another lot in the same Ranch. She lived in Florida and asked me to list it. I felt like my head thrusting above the water from drowning for a moment. I listed and sold it myself for $25,000 within a month. After the property was closed, I received a letter from the seller lady. She said I sold it before her husband passed away. She thanked me for helping them moved the property on time. I was incredibly touched. The pride she gave me was sky limit. Her words made me understand more about the job I did, that there was no size of my commission could value. With that in mind, I indulged myself back into work. And the result of keep on working? Well, not too long after this closing, a young man called me inquired this same lot.

Apparently, he was looking for a vacant land to build a car wash. So here I was, accompanied him to see the potential land as his buyer’s agent on my 1st commercial deal. I contacted the seller on the vacant land that my buyer was interested in. We got it into the contract for $250,000. After that, the seller asked me to list another commercial property for $795,000 in a prime area in Houston. I then got the full price of $795,000 under the contract overnight. Meanwhile, this $795,000 commercial building led me to meet new buyers who then bought a $1,000,000 commercial building as my clients. What a “chain reaction,” right?! And all of these took place within the matter of 5-8 months after that small lot of $18,000, 48 miles from Houston that didn’t close. Did I know all of these would follow me? Of course not. I couldn’t even comprehend the large number of $795,000 contracts in my hand when I had it. It was a most pleasant “shock!” All I knew was I had to do something that others may not be interested. Working produced magic. My work was not only worth it but also rewarded me hundreds-folds.

Tiger Woods once said: “It’s not putting the ball in the hole. It’s the swing of the club.” It’s a perfect but when I think of what we do. The work and dedication we render every day is the “swing of the club.” The more we practice, the better we get. “The better” means our skills of timing and pace in helping our clients to achieve their real estate goals. And the sooner we get better, the sooner the promising result will follow.