Photo courtesy of Heather Pierce
Heather Pierce
Heather Pierce is a Realtor with RealtySouth's Over-the-Mountain office on Acton Road.
Q: How long have you been doing real estate?
A: This is my sixth year that I’ve been in real estate. I started with RealtySouth back in 2019 and have been in that office [off Acton Road] since I began. I love getting to know other Realtors all across the city and other RealtySouth offices as well as other brokerages. I do residential. I do all over the city. I’m not only focused on Hoover or Vestavia. I do all over the metro area and a little bit of the outskirts as well.
Q: What is the best thing about being a Realtor?
A: This is going to sound a little cliché, but it’s really meeting people and developing those relationships. You see those families grow, whether it’s a first-time homebuyer or their families growing and moving into larger homes or maybe older people that are downsizing. You get to know so much about them and so many personal things that it really becomes a friendship that lasts for many, many years. That’s the best part to me — getting to know someone and becoming their friend, not just their Realtor.
Q: What would you say is the most challenging thing about being a Realtor?
A: Not being able to control the economy, but there’s always ways around that, and everybody still has to buy a home at some time. So we just work around it, look for solutions and find unique ways to work with whatever type of market we’re dealing with.
Q: How would you describe the current market?
A: I expect we will have a very exciting second half of the year. We have so many homes that are coming onto the market right now. Interest rates are staying steady. People are getting out, wanting to put their money into a home with equity versus renting. I think we are going to see a really, really positive second half of the year.
Q: Do you have any pet peeves in the business — either something a client sometimes does or a potential client or the other party in the transaction?
A: I love when somebody answers their phone. I try to answer my phone as much as possible. Everybody, I think, gets in the habit of texting or emailing, and sometimes that’s a little quicker, but there is nothing better, I think, than a personal phone call — just communicating with someone to develop that relationship.
Q: If you could change one thing in the real estate business, what would it be?
A: If I could change one thing in the real estate business, it would be for there to be more programs allowing more people to buy homes without having to come up with so much cash. We have a lot of programs for that, but there are still a lot of people who work hard, save hard, and they’re trying to get into a home. So more opportunities for people to buy homes with more incentives for them to do that.
Q: Do you like helping buyers or sellers better?
A: I like working both sides. I love working with buyers and sellers. Sometimes it turns into you’re working with a seller who is a buyer, too. So that’s always fun. I do a little bit of both, and I enjoy it that way.
