4 minute read
Paige Wagner: finding beauty in the old & new
Paige Wagner: finding beauty in the old & new
Paige Wagner, broker and owner of Paige Wagner Homes Realty. Creative Pastor with husband, Chase Wagner, at Grace City Church. And mother to daughter, Nova.
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Interview by Olivia Walls
After stepping into real estate in 2014, what made you decide to become a broker and start your own brokerage?
After 4 years as a Realtor and falling in love with real estate, I wanted to maximize every part of the field by becoming a Broker. I loved buying and selling homes and the one-on-one connection with my customers, but I was also drawn to the team-building, teaching and leadership aspect of being a Broker. I wanted to start a company that valued the ‘client over the commission’. A company that stood for integrity, communication and the overall well-being of people. Buying and selling a home is the most transitional time in people’s lives and my company takes our role very seriously—standing in the gap from where people are and where they want to be.
A lot of your work is centered around the historic homes of Lakeland. Why do historic homes hold such a special place in your heart?
Everyone loves transformation. The before-and-after marketing model is very popular in so many aspects of our entertainment i.e weight-loss shows, beauty or fashion makeovers and home flipping. There’s something about humans that love seeing something completely unwanted and making it the most desirable thing. I captured that vision in historic homes and fell in love with advocating for them. I love taking an old home thats been forgotten and giving it new life and vision that makes it the most desirable home to an individual person. Each historic home is its own. Through the decades and generations of remodels, additions, and phases of style they all posses their own flair. When someone buys a historic home they truly buy a one-of-a-kind piece of a city’s history.
I am sure flipping a home can be a stressful process at times. Do you have any tips on managing stress or pressure felt during a major home remodel/flip?
The best lessons in flipping homes are caught not taught. People ask me to give them ‘tips’ or my ‘top 5 on flipping homes’ and I always say ‘just jump in’. Not one of my flips had the same process or budget or even design styles. Each home and experience it takes to remodel is completely different so you just learn as you go. I didn’t have any prior training and I never shadowed someone remodeling a house; I just thought critically through the process and learned a lot of lessons along the way. Start with the core 4: roof, electrical, plumbing and AC. Then after working on the core 4, with whatever budget is left make the interior pretty. But don’t put lipstick on a pig and avoid the big issues just to make it sparkle!
What has been your favorite flip project to date? Why was that one special?
My first is my favorite. I flipped a 2-story 1920 Spanish style home when I was 23 years old. My parents were the investors and who knows why they trusted me! I was 6 months into my real estate career and had only sold 5 houses. I not only poured blood, sweat and tears into this project but it set up my career in historic homes. I didn’t set out to make a business centered around historic homes this historic home just picked me. I used the remodel process as marketing since I was so new in the industry. It ultimately set the stage to my career and my love for old homes that I didn’t expect.
As a broker, you have helped many people find their new home. What does ‘home’ mean to you personally?
Home is going through the business and hustle of your day, being all over town running errands, working at your office or with people and walking into your front door feeling like ‘there’s no other place I’d rather be.’ I show homes almost every day and at least once a week I tell my husband as I walk through our front door, ‘I’m in a lot of houses and I’m so glad this is our home.’ It’s a feeling of peace, rest, and a reflection of who you are and how you want the world to see you.
