After selling the taco restaurant, her mom became a REALTOR®, so it seemed natural for Dawn to transition to real estate, too. “Mom was tired of me complaining about my high-stress, low-paying job.” Not much later, Dawn got her license and began selling new homes.

Eventually, Dawn joined her mom, working with her side-by-side for four years. Perhaps her proudest moment was when Dawn wrote out a check to her mom, paying her back for her real estate school tuition.  Eight years after her start in real estate, Dawn and her family moved to Arizona. “It was like being a brand-new real estate agent, but with experience.” It took a while for her business to take off because she moved right as the economic downturn occurred. But, as is the recurring theme with Dawn, she used her “perpetual energy” and some elbow grease to earn her top producer status. “Lots of handshakings, lots of open houses and I was able to build up my database.”  In 2017, Dawn completed 42 transactions and sold over $17 million. For 2018, she is trying to top last year’s numbers, which is a tall order. “I’m trying to work smarter, not harder, so I’m going to delve into the luxury market more.”