After more than a decade away Karen Gearhart has returned to the Coldwell Banker Irving/Las Colinas office. She is a 22-year real estate veteran whose primary focus is the Irving, Las Colinas, Coppell, and Flower Mound areas. She is also active in the Irving/Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce where she has served on the board of directors and chaired the residential real estate committee.
“You never know what’s going to happen, and I never burn any bridges,” Gearhart said. “When I left it was for good reasons and when I came back it was for good reasons.”
Gearhart previously served as Coldwell Banker’s Irving/Las Colinas branch manager for 8 years. During her tenure, the office grew from 24 people to 75. A personal life-changing experience motivated her to go into sales. However, she didn’t want to compete against the agents she had hired. That led her to affiliate with Century 21 Judge Fite, which she still considers a fantastic company. She admitted to being nervous about going into sales after being a manger for so long.
“It’s easy to tell agents what to do, but actually doing it every day is very different,” she said.
Things worked out quite well as her business grew and thrived. Gearhart believes that her personal life history has contributed to her success. Upon graduating college, she and her husband settled in Irving. But they didn’t stay long. His job as a food company executive transferred their family across the country six times.
Those frequent relocations made her an expert on moving with kids, buying a home on short notice, and finding a job in a new city. She now works on the Coldwell Banker corporate relocation team where she enjoys using her personal experience to help others in similar situations.
As for returning to Coldwell Banker, the office building may have changed, but many familiar faces remain. Those that know her have welcomed her back with open arms, and she is excited about what the upcoming year has in store.
“We are happy to see Karen return to Coldwell Banker,” Dallas/Fort Worth Regional Vice President Frank Obringer said. “She provides leadership, integrity and extensive real estate knowledge, and we look forward to helping her continue to grow her business.”
