Sit down with Katie Youngblood for a few minutes and there will be no question about her passion in life. It’s land.
“I started my homebuilding career in finance at Gehan Homes and in my first few months, I sat in on a land meeting where new opportunities are brought to a committee for review,” Youngblood said. “To see all of these incredibly talented individuals in one room analyzing every aspect of a deal was fascinating. How do our margins look? What if we tweak the earnest money or absorptions? Does it pass the ice cream test? The combination of financial analysis along with real-world considerations was intriguing. I walked out of that meeting thinking, ‘I’ve got to be a part of this.’ Fast forward a few years and here I am.”
Industry Leader
Youngblood says her proudest achievement to date is being one of the leading women in the building industry tapped to join the Dallas Builders Association’s Professional Women in Building committee. The committee is led by 2-10 Home Warranty vice president of business development Jeanine Jones.
“Our board consists of so many inspirational, talented women that I look up to so it’s truly an honor that they want me standing beside them,” Youngblood said. “What I love about PWB is that we are all about equality. The idea is not, ‘I’m a woman and am better than a man,’ but rather, ‘I’m a woman and deserve an equal chance at succeeding.’ We are going to accomplish great things together.”
Youngblood is a busy woman in a man’s world, spending her days as a land associate for Highland Homes working on “all things acquisitions.”
“At the opportunity stage, this includes researching and compiling market data, preparing land meeting packages, and assisting our vice president with negotiations. Once a deal is approved, I’ll work closely with our developer partners to iron out lot contracts prior to execution. Then we transition to due diligence, which involves depositing earnest money and reviewing title commitments. Lastly is substantial completion, and this entails ensuring the lots are completed to Highland’s standards, followed by purchasing the lots. Occasionally, deals will have unique circumstances like nontraditional financing structures, and those are fun to work through too. This job provides a ton of variety, and it is equally challenging and rewarding.”
Who runs the world?
Youngblood acknowledges that there are not a lot of women in her field, but she doesn’t dwell on that fact. It doesn’t take long to determine that the land associate is whip-smart and lights up when she talks about her career. She doesn’t need to spend a lot of time proving herself or earning respect. She displays confident body language, makes eye contact, actively listens, participates in conversations, and believes her ideas are important enough to share, she said.
“I’m naturally a hard worker and incredibly passionate about our industry so this organically allows me to command respect and prove myself,” Youngblood added.
As the next generation is provided more opportunities to pursue careers in land acquisition and construction, Youngblood said she advises them to not let fear of an unwelcoming environment be a driving force.
“More often than not, we actually hold ourselves back way more than others do,” she said. “My best advice is to pursue a career that you’re passionate about because genuine interest in the work you’re doing leads to a natural curiosity and desire to succeed. It’s pretty tough to be unwelcome to someone who cares about what they’re doing and wants to do a good job. On the off chance you do come across this, it’ll likely be a rare occurrence and would say more about them than yourself. Just be confident in your capabilities and follow wherever your passion leads you.”
