Hello, my name is Kimberley Johnson I am a new resident to Illinois.  I am excited to be here with you and appreciate the opportunity to partner with you in serving the Chicagoland Community.  I am committed to applying what I have learned of the past 22 years serving the Greater Cleveland Ohio Area as a real estate professional. 

 

I possess the unique ability to produce results in environments that do not supply me with agreement.  I was born in Cleveland Ohio and grew up in a city called East Cleveland raised by a young widow.  I am the oldest of 3 children.  The neighborhood was filled with drugs and violence and only 8 % of the kids were passing the states proficiency exams. 

 

I recognized very early that I wanted a different life and began searching for access and opportunities to improve my life situation.  A neighbor invited me to church and it changed my life!  The music was so great, I felt like I was at a concert and eventually the Pastor’s words resonated with my heart.  I attended church regularly where I soaked up inspiration and hope.  One Sunday the Pastor said to the congregation “your Mother may leave you and your Father may leave you, but God will never leave you alone!”  Having lost the physical presence of my Father to a tragic car accident when I was about 7 years old which left him paralyzed and partially brain dead he was 24 years old, these words gave me great comfort.  I gave my life to Christ at the age of 14 and began trusting the word of God instead of my very limited scary reality.

 

I also listened to my teachers and administrators, eager to hear how I might access a way out of the ghetto and hopefully create a path that others who also wanted out could follow academically.  I became the first in my family to go to college.  I graduated with my Bachelor’s Degree from Ursuline College in Pepper Pike Ohio.  My 3 young adult children have also gone on to college.  My oldest son attended Morehouse College in Atlanta Ga, My Daughter currently attends Depaul University here in Chicago and my young son attended John Carroll University in University Heights Ohio.

 

I was initially licensed in 1994 as an agent in Ohio.  I became passed the Broker’s Exam in 2003 and began operating as a managing broker in 2006. 

 

As a real estate broker during the recent crash 2006-2008, I worked with many Homeowners who were overwhelmed and disillusioned with their mortgage companies who used intimidation tactics to expel them from their homes and harsh negotiating practices when dealing with them.  I stepped in on numerous occasions reminding the lenders representative of the rules and regulations regarding the appropriateness of their behavior.  I stood up for loosing property owners successfully negotiating reasonable terms of repayment to their lenders, settlements to liquidate the assets and captured moving allowances for displaced homeowners.        

I am committed to breaking through personal barriers and contributing to others having break troughs also.        

I started my own real estate company in Shaker Heights Ohio during the real estate crash to help homeowners.  I reminded loosing homeowners who were overwhelmed emotionally that they were not their circumstances and encouraged them not to take the process personally.  I reminded them to stay engaged in this important process and to not give up, they still needed to manage their affairs responsibly!  I offered them professional support and guidance.  Numerous clients have shared with me how my strength inspired them to use their resources and positive attitudes to get through tough times.     

I have a heart for the community and at risk young people, I was one of them raised by a single mother, I became a teenage mother overcoming so many obstacles.  I believe in connecting resources to people who are willing to do their part if they want to improve their lives. 

 

I organized a family fun day festival called “REACHOUT” geared to eliminate drugs dropouts and gangs in the community serving over 500 people in East Cleveland Ohio.  This event was a combination of entertainment and education.  There was live entertainment, a talent show, the Cleveland Indians Mascot Slider, local athletes from The Cleveland Browns to sign autographs and a cutest baby contest.  Vendors set up information tables including colleges, universities vocational training programs, local gang task force, the national institute of responsible fatherhood and family development, planned parenthood and many others.  The idea was to get them to the event to have fun and to connect them to resources that could change their lives while they were there.

I volunteer at the local food banks in Ohio and Illinois, Parent teacher associations, Girls Scouts, Womankind (a free prenatal clinic in Garfield Heights Ohio) and The Domestic Violence Centers in Ohio & Illinois.                      

My life is enriched when I make a difference for others.  I want to inspire people to reach beyond life circumstances and realize their dreams reminding them, despite hardships and setbacks that they still have a choice in the matter of their lives.

 

I appreciate your time and consideration of allowing me to partner with you in regarding your real estate needs.  Thank You.

 

Kim Johnson