Amy McLean and Stephanie Knoppe have built 1st Class Realty and Property Management from the ground up with a focus on the fundamentals -- reliable, customer-driven service.
For owners who need property management services, that means handling everything from screening prospective renters, to juggling repair work and even evictions, if necessary.
For buyers and sellers, it's about giving people the information they need to make the best decision at the right time.
"Here we are, not even six months later, and there's five of us, and we have a couple more people coming on," explained McLean, between phone calls about prospective referrals. "We just take care of our clients. We have a good reputation of that."
It was a desire to fill a need for their customers that first inspired the pair, who recently took over a spacious office at 2101 Shelby Road, Suite 6, inside a new commercial building.
McLean and Knoppe found property owners needed management services after they moved out of the area, while they waited for locations to sell. Within a few months, the pair had 35 clients. Now they oversee 100 commercial and residential properties, adding more all the time.
"We take basically all the hassle off them," said McLean.
It starts with a website, www.rent1stclass.com. Here renters can do everything from view vacancies, to submit applications and pay rent.
Advice on how to maximize investments, such as changes that can increase rental income, is also part of the service.
"We're really good at thinking outside the box," McLean said, adding they apply those skills to buying and selling as well.
Sometimes that means helping a buyer be realistic about their starting point, when looking for a home, said Knoppe.
"If this is not in the budget right now, we can teach them pros and cons, how to stair-step," she explained. "You can't go from (point) A to your dream home sometimes."
It may mean a few extra steps for some buyers, including during a first time purchase. This can mean steps to improve a credit score, like reducing debt-to-income ratio and overall debt payments, or education on the different types of loans that are available.
The most rewarding part of this job, Knoppe said, is handing the keys of a new home over to a family.
"I like helping them look for the house and find what fits them," she said.
McLean enjoys marketing and negotiating.
"When I'm working for the seller, I'm going to try to get as much money as I possibly can, and not walk away from the table with money they could have gotten," she said.
While the office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, much of their jobs take place on the customer's schedule, McLean said, whether that's a 5:30 a.m. phone call with a plumber, or reviewing contracts at the ballfield.
"We really try to work around what they need and make it happen," she said. "We tell the clients, don't stress, that's why you have us."
McLean is the owner of 1st Class Realty and partners with Knoppe in 1st Class Property Management. She holds additional credentials from the Graduate Realtor Institute and Council of Residential Specialists. Only 3 percent of Realtors achieve a CRS, which McLean received through 10 years of sales, having a bachelor's degree and attending several classes.
McLean is also a sellers representative specialist and an accredited stager.
Both McLean and Knoppe hold broker licenses. Information on homes for sale can be found at www.buy1stclass.com.
Additional sales people include Michelle Hobbs Reynolds, Kelli Richmond and Lori Lady.