Grand Season Business Profile January 2015

Buying or Selling a Home or Investment Property? Get Leolinda Bowers On Your Side

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In December 2004, with ink barely dry on her real-estate license and having had only three weeks of contract-writing training, Leolinda Bowers was eager to learn and see if she could do what she had never done — sales, of any kind. Rather than wait out the holidays, Leolinda quickly demonstrated tremendous initiative. She planned her first open house — on New Year’s Day. The idea, she says, was to sit and oversee someone else’s listing, to immediately test her abilities.

This project met with incredible negativity, Leolinda recalls, regarding the day, the sign-in book, the 25 fliers that had to be produced, and her lack of experience in the industry. Yet, after her second, softly persuasive phone conversation with the real estate agent, Leolinda achieved her goal and away she went to Sun City West, to open the other agent’s listing for possible sale. “I thought, ‘Well, if nobody shows up, I’ll figure something out,’” she says. “But then people did show up, at least 75 of them.” Leolinda pauses, before continuing: “There is more to this story.”

On that first day of 2005, Leolinda was asked to first sell one couple’s current home, so they could purchase the one she was showing. “I told them, ‘Yes, I think I can do that,’” she says. “To date, I’ve done six transactions with that couple, and we’ve since become close friends.”

Now an associate broker for the Long Realty West Valley office in Surprise, Leolinda has continued to hold New Year’s Day open house showings, resulting in many more sales, she says. Admittedly, Leolinda soon recognized a vital component for writing a listing. “I learned to listen,” she says. “During my initial conversation with a seller, I listen to hear why the client loved their home. If they say they loved the sunsets from their patio, I make sure we capture a spectacular photo of a sunset from the patio and include it in the listing materials.”

Leolinda, who was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, certainly knows the residential real estate market for the Northwest Valley, especially the golf retirement communities. She lives year-round in Sun City Grand, owns additional property in Sun City West, and golfs when time permits.

The full-time real estate agent attributes the joy of her work to one aspect: “I am here because of my clients,” says Leolinda. “I love it when my clients find the right home and get the best possible deal in a satisfying transaction.”

In addition to becoming an associate broker, Leolinda has earned accreditation’s as a Certified Real Estate Specialist (CRS); a Certified Negotiation Expert; and a Lifetime Membership Award for Sales Excellence in the President’s Round Table from the West Maricopa Association of Realtors® (WeMAR), which is given for significant sales volume in three consecutive years.

Before her stellar real estate work, Leolinda concentrated on her education. She holds a bachelor’s degrees in biology and chemistry, as well as a master’s of business administration degree with an emphasis in project management.

As one might imagine, thoroughness is one of Leolinda’s greatest assets. A visit to her website, www.leolinda.com, designed by one of her three children and illustrated by an excellent photographer, reveals her passion for sharing knowledge and expertise, all for the benefit of her clients.

You can reach Leolinda in many ways. Her direct cell phone number is (602) 403-6865. You can also reach her via email: REALTOR@leolinda.com.

realtor, sales, home