I fell in love with real estate back in the late 1990’s when I rehabbed my first fixer, a Berkeley rent controlled duplex. It became a natural step after that to get my license and become a full time agent. Real estate allows me to use all the creative skills I’ve honed from a career that spans theater arts (set design, production, and promotion) to tech and consumer goods advertising (targeted marketing planning and strategy, client representation and contract negotiation) to interpersonal conflict resolution (community based mediation and public affairs). Agency has always been a part of my work life, and I love helping clients achieve their goals.
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Tomi's Q+A
Would someone describe you as an early bird or a night owl?
Night owl.
Favorite restaurant or hang out?
Any real-deal live music setting. Any mountain top or steep trail with the dog.
Famous person (living or dead) you’d most like to meet?
Just one…gee, that’s awfully tough. Madeleine Albright. Mary Magdalene. Jane Austen. Albert Einstein. Leonardo Da Vinci.
What’s your mantra?
To live is to fly, both low and high.
What’s your most treasured possession (besides your phone!)?
An illustration of a Wurlitzer on the beach, done by a friend, with a personal dedication at the bottom. And the tiny gold baby ring given to me by my father.
What would you tell your 16-year old self?
Never fear being laughed at and always be ready to laugh at yourself.
Funniest/most interesting thing you’ve ever found in a house you’ve helped someone buy or sell?
Well the one that stands out is having a confusingly awkward conversation with a gentleman tenant at a house I needed to show one unusually hot afternoon. I’d made an appointment and no one was supposed to be home. It was my job to get him to honor the appointment so my clients had not come from the city for nothing. He wouldn’t make eye contact and I was feeling uncertain about what to do. About 10 minutes into the conversation, he finally agreed to let us come in, but pointed to his legs. I suddenly realized he was standing there in his boxer shorts…I thought they were Bermuda shorts (plaid print)! No wonder he was acting a little awkward. Ruhroh!