Barker Realty - Help Each Find Their Way

Helping Each Find Their Way “Thank you Santa Fe for 50 amazing years, from our family to yours.”

David A. & Lisa Barker

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hula is a dog who lost her way on Highway 599 outside of Santa Fe. Luckily for her, Lisa Barker just happened drive by and see the beautiful Siberian Husky running across the freeway. Lisa, always willing to go the extra mile to help a friend in need (furry or otherwise), took the time to chase down Chula, drive her to the Barker Realty | Christie’s office, which she owns with her husband David Barker, and give her food and water.

Chula, like most who enter the Barker Realty | Christie’s office in the Railyard’s old Gross Kelly Warehouse, quickly felt right at home. She set up shop in David’s

own office, happily greeting all who passed. Lisa, meanwhile, took the time to track Chula’s owners, eventually helping her find her way home.

This anecdote is emblematic of the way David and Lisa run Barker Realty | Christie’s. They are willing to go the extra mile to help their brokers, clients, and even a lost dog. All who enter their business or home are made to feel like family. And whether it’s one of the 55 brokers who work with Barker Realty | Christie’s, a client looking to buy or sell real estate, or simply a runaway pet lost from home, they are focused on helping each find their way.

N.B. Laughlin

Speaking of home, David’s family has called Santa Fe “home” for over one hundred years. David is a fourth generation New Mexican. His greatgrandfather, N.B. Laughlin, arrived in Santa Fe in 1879. He was travelling from Dallas to Denver on horseback, ran out of cash, and had to sell his horse in the little mining town of Cerrillos. He walked his way into Santa Fe. Many a Santa Fean can thank the tenacity Mr. Laughlin had in making his way to what was then a dusty little town, for his progeny have benefited the City Different in countless ways.

An attorney by trade, N.B. Laughlin ended up serving what was then the New Mexico territory by being appointed to the Territorial Supreme Court. His daughter and David’s grandmother, Ruth Laughlin, wrote the 1948 novel The Wind Leaves No Shadow about the life of Santa Fe gambling house matron Doña Trules.

David’s grandfather, William Judson Barker, was a respected lawyer and state district judge. And David’s father, Laughlin Barker, served in the navy in WWII before

Laughlin Barker

Photo by Daniel Nadelbach

“What sets us apart from other brokerages is the level of service and support that we provide our associates.

In many aspects, we are a team striving toward the same goal, to help our agents continue to be successful.”

Gabrielle Vigil Transaction Coordinator

“We are a data driven enterprise.

With the right balance of industry experience and industry metrics, we can create strategies that build on momentum instead of stagnating and playing catch up. We always strive to be innovators.”

Robert Romero Chief Financial Officer

“We are in the people business, not the technology business.”

Kyle Klain Chief Technology Officer + Chief Visionary Officer

returning to Santa Fe to found Barker Realty | Christie’s in 1965. David and Lisa bought the business 30 years ago in 1985.

Today, Barker Realty | Christie’s combines the breadth of Santa Fe’s past with the sophistication of its future. A company that enjoys both reputation and momentum, Barker Realty | Christie’s is proud to be a medium-sized business by design in a world where national franchises have increasingly become common. “We have resisted merging or being bought out because we feel we are quicker on our own feet. Culturally, we focus on what we can bring of value to our clients – our associate brokers, buyers and sellers,” David explains.

Lisa adds: “Since David has been in the business for awhile, people ask what his exit strategy is. I always say: Barker Realty | Christie’s is a family member. It is like one of our children. It’s part of the Barker history in Santa Fe.” In the early 20th century, downtown Santa Fe used to look more like downtown Durango or Montrose in Colorado.

Laughlin Barker was one of the first to put

a portal on one of the brick buildings on West San Francisco Street in the 1960s.

Another good example of the Barker family leaving a distinctive mark on the architecture of Santa Fe is their own office building. The historic Gross Kelly Warehouse was built in 1913 in what is now the heart of the Railyard district.

David and Lisa bought and renovated the building in 1999 with the help of local architect Mark Hogan, transforming it into a warm blend of tradition and innovation.

Setting Barker Realty | Christie’s apart is their collaborative management strategy.

David and Lisa work directly with their management team and, in keeping with king Arthur’s court, the round table method is preferred. This synergetic approach enables their team to continue to innovate and explore new strategies.

Likewise, this collective modus operandi extends towards philanthropy, which is a hallmark of the Barker family tradition. For example, when one of their 55 brokers wants to make a contribution toward a cause, it is David and Lisa’s practice to match it.

Of the many who have been in the good hands of David and Lisa over the past 30 years, from Chula to brokers, buyers and sellers, they have all benefited not only from the astuteness, adeptness, creativity and energy David and Lisa continuously give, but also from their gentle willingness to help each find their way, whether that’s support managing clients, help buying or selling a home, or – in the case of Chula – simply getting home.

Barker Realty | Christie’s International Real Estate 530 S. Guadalupe St. 505.982.9836 www.santaferealestate.com