Hello Blog. It's been awhile. As I write this entry I am looking out the windows of my office watching the clouds come in over the mountains so they are almost completely covered, vanishing before my eyes. It's May 11 and the forecast is calling for snow. 2-3 FEET in some mountain regions. Brrr. Spring keeps tricking us...popping out for days at a time....warming us with its sunny rays, encouraging flowers to bloom and grass to grow, and then sprinting away into it's corner until it decides to appear once again. I will always celebrate living in a region that has a definition of seasons. At the end of summer I always welcome the cool arms of Fall, the changing of the leaves, and the appearance of the first snow. The same happens in the spring time...but this year Colorado is teasing me. I'm ready for the snow and cold temps to retire for the season. Enough is enough. So I'm sending this wish out there to the universe, hoping that someone is listening, I'm ready for Spring.
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Things are rapidly falling into place for both myself and Matt. Matt started his new job with Charles Schwab a couple of months ago and seems to really enjoy it. His work schedule is good for him as he is currently working 4, 10 hour days with Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday off. The last couple of weeks I've come home on Wednesday evening to a clean house and dinner cooking...something I could quickly get used to.
My job is amazing. When I moved out to Colorado in 2007 I took a job leasing apartments as a way to pay the bills. I had just graduated college and it was my first taste of being a "big kid." I quickly realized having a job, any job, was necessary if I wanted to live indoors. Finding a job in Denver was more difficult than I expected and when the opportunity to lease apartments for $10.00/hour arose I took it immediately. I never thought Property Management would be my career. 6 months after starting in leasing I was promoted to an Assistant Manager position in Boulder, Colorado. I worked for a company that had a great education program but not much advancement opportunity. I got tired and burnt out in my position and decided I needed to find something different. In 2008 I accepted a position as a Financial Rep for Thrivent Financial. The company supported my decision to get my Series 7 and Series 66 licenses and I spent the next year in the financial industry. While the interaction with clients was ideal, the 100% commission was not. It was last July (2009) that I decided I needed to return to a salaried position once again. This time I interviewed with Greystar Real Estate Partners to re-enter the property management field. I landed at a property in South Denver as the Assistant Manager. The next 7 months were crazy as the property was in much need of some TLC. At the beginning of March 2010 our owners decided they wanted to bring in a different property management company to continue on now that the property was in a stable place. I found myself without a job. To be honest it was the best thing that ever happened. I was ready to move on. My last day at my property was a Friday and I started at a new property with Greystar on Monday. This time I found myself in Brighton, Colorado as a floating manager. We had just acquired this new property and again, it needed some help. 1 week after starting out at the property I was offered the Assistant Manager position at Alexan Downtown Littleton, a luxury property in Littleton, Colorado, still in its Lease Up Phase (had just finished construction in January 2010). I jumped at the opportunity to begin work at a property that was brand new...but even better...had a marketing budget to work with. Since graduating in 2007 I have rarely had the opportunity to use my marketing mind in any other capacity except "Our budget is zero, do what you can with that." Now a whole new door has been opened to me and I am excited to run with it. A big part of my job will still be the accounting on the property but now my other duties will include outreach marketing, planning resident retention events, and working with social media. Yesterday I looked up from my work and realized it was 5PM and I was having fun. I am so excited to continue my time here. In August my manager will be leaving on maternity leave and I will be the acting manager of the property. I am excited to continue my advancement in this industry and am now seeing it as a career, not just a paycheck. My company is the #3largest property management company in the country so the opportunities are endless. We have the ability to move almost anywhere we would consider (seeing as both of our companies are in many big cities)and best of all we are enjoying the 9-5. I'm pretty ecstatic about that.
On the home front we have been enjoying the warm weather (as it shows up). Last Sunday we went hiking up Green Mountain in Boulder...it was a short hike and had beautiful views at the summit. I am ready for more hiking, camping, and biking this summer. I am so grateful and blessed that Colorado is my home. I'm really loving where I am at.
Until next time.
