- 00:30 - Meet Laura Kitts with Housing Connector and WMFHA
- 01:33 - Learning the basics of sales with Comcast—while being a single mom
- 07:21 - Transitioning to the multifamily industry
- 08:35 - Board member of Washington Multi-Family Housing Association (WMFHA)
- 11:15 - Funny story time: door-to-door sales woman and local commercial
- 13:35 - Moving to Zumper, a prop tech startup
- 16:38 - Being driven by a mission-minded perspective
- 20:22 - Who is Housing Connector?
- 25:02 - The need for Housing Connector
- 27:18 - Take a leap of faith for contentment, fulfillment, and satisfaction
Whether you’re a single parent, fresh-out-of-college grad, or hungry for a career transition, you’re going to learn a lot from this Boss! So let’s sum this story-driven episode into three points:
Take a chance for the right opportunity. Laura started her career as a naturally-skilled salesperson at Comcast, but knew she needed more satisfaction and flexibility in her work. Her solution? A horizontal shift within the multifamily industry. “The worst thing that can happen when you take a chance is that you might fail. And if you fail, you still succeed because you learned something.”
Join a multifamily association. Another way to transition smoothly is to follow Laura’s lead to join a multifamily industry organization. “There’s this whole multifamily industry out there with associations that you can join that will really help elevate your career and help you make beautiful bonds that last a very long time.” She now serves on the Board of Washington Multi-Family Housing Association (WMFHA).
Buy into the mission. Maybe you’re like Laura and you’ve always felt pulled to do good in the world. Let that passion spark in your personal life and your career! “The reason I made that leap [to Housing Connector is because there was a mission behind it of helping residents living in apartment communities build that sense of community to feel less lonely and less isolated.”
That’s why this Boss has settled into a position at Housing Connector. This mission-minded nonprofit acts as a bridge between property managers and case workers. The primary goal is to help individuals facing homelessness to find housing and be educated on how to be a good renter. Likewise, this organization assists property managers with benefits like rent payments, damage mitigation funds, vacancy loss, and mediation. As of recording in Autumn 2022, Housing Connector has housed over 3,300 people in the last two years.
“That's absolutely incredible, and really just a drop in a bucket when it comes to the need for accessible housing. But it is working and if we can make a dent, then that's amazing.”
One final piece of advice from Laura Kitts: “Don’t wait…if you're feeling like you're not fully fulfilled and happy, because there actually are so many other opportunities out there to find joy and success.”
We don’t know about you, but we ended this episode feeling ultra-inspired about the work happening in the multifamily space! If you have a similar story about working in the multifamily industry, we’d love to feature you on Boss Talks! Contact our host, Evan Happel. Until next time, share this encouraging multifamily podcast with your friends and keep Managing Like A Boss!
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