JEFF GRAY

EXECUTIVEAGENT MAGAZINE

Jeff Gray Executive Agent of the Month

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Jeff Gray Written by Haley Freeman - Photography by Ian Wiant

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orn and raised in Costa Mesa, Jeff Gray has fond memories of growing up in SoCal, surfing the legendary waves from Lower Trestles to the Seal Beach Pier. Today, he lives with his family in beautiful Rancho Mission Viejo, where he has the daily pleasure of guiding other families to their ideal home in this one-ofa-kind community.

Jeff draws upon an array of prior professional successes that make him a world-class Realtor® at Keller Williams Realty. He began his career in car sales and finance, before changing directions entirely and working with a general contractor. “I enjoyed working with my hands and at the end of the day seeing the results of what I’d built.

I loved making a 30-year-old kitchen look beautiful and brand-new again.” From there, Jeff went on to the hospitality industry, where he advanced to management. While implementing complex systems behind the scenes, he also perfected the art of customer service.

But Jeff’s rigorous schedule made it difficult for him to give his growing family the time they deserved. That’s when he decided to take the many skills he had developed and apply them to a career he’d always had a passion for: real estate. Following the example of the famous Cortez, he “burned all his ships” when he got his real estate license, gave notice at his well-paying job, and boldly set out on a new path.

Determined to succeed as an entrepreneur, Jeff first sought the advice of a business coach. “Dave suggested that I go to at least 10 different offices and interview 15 agents before choosing a company. I went to an office meeting at the Keller Williams Mission Viejo office, and the energy was unlike any other I’d been to in Orange County. It was incredibly motivational, supportive and educational. Then I met with Rino Caturano, and it was a no-brainer after that.

With his philosophy on education and customer service, I couldn’t see a downside to joining his office.”

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Keller Williams has proven the perfect environment for Jeff to flourish as a real estate professional, utilizing his existing skills while refining new ones. From his years in car sales, he learned to be a fearless negotiator – a talent he has put to good use in real estate. “My purpose is to get the best possible outcome for my client. It’s an emotional situation for everybody else involved, but I can’t be that person. I am pragmatic and calculated, in order to get the most money for a seller or save the most money for a buyer.

If we make an offer and don’t like the counter, I always counsel my client to sleep on it. It’s good to wait and see if the other side changes their position. Sometimes, they have to experience that fear of loss to be willing to negotiate.”

A resourceful marketer, Jeff loves the challenge of selling a property. “Statistics say that about 35 percent of people

buy in a neighborhood where they already know someone.

That means when I get a listing, I tap into the neighbors.

Many of them know someone who is looking for a home in the area.”

Jeff also stands apart from his peers in the lengths to which he will go to help buyers find the home of their dreams. In one instance, a client was seeking a hard-to-find property in Mission Beach, San Diego. By channeling his innate creativity and tenacity, Jeff was able to find him the perfect home. “I quickly realized there was nothing available in the area, and no properties had sold on the open market in four years. I went back to the client for more details and had him describe exactly what he was looking for. I knew I was going to have to go down there to find someone who was willing to sell.”

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The Realtor® in Your Neighborhood He continued, “I started visiting Keller Williams offices in the surrounding neighborhoods and pitching his request at office meetings. I also went to the Mission Bay Real Estate Association. Within days, I got a phone call from another agent who had something. I took it to the client, and he said, ‘I’ve had local experts looking for two years.

Two weeks ago, I casually mentioned this to you, and you brought me exactly what I’ve been looking for.’ He purchased the property. When a home is challenging to find, I’ll send letters to homeowners in the neighborhood, knock on doors, whatever it takes to exceed expectations and get my client the exact home they’re looking for.”

Rancho Mission Viejo is not only home to Jeff, his wife Jenell, and their two children, it is also the central focus of Jeff’s real estate practice. He is a good neighbor who

works diligently in partnership with his homeowner’s association to bring service and value to the neighborhood.

He helped sponsor a recent community garage sale by doing promotional mailers, putting up signs, and bringing coffee and donuts the morning of the event. But true to form, Jeff went the extra mile. “I introduced myself to everyone on the morning of the sale and told them if there was anything they wanted to donate to the Salvation Army afterward, just text me their address and leave it on the driveway Monday morning. I rented a 20-foot UHaul truck and thought I’d have more than enough room.

I ended up playing Tetris trying to get everything in.

We’ve lived here since this neighborhood began, and it’s still a growing community. We love this area, its schools and the people who live here. No one knows it better than me.”

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While Jeff has hobbies from fitness to physics, he says that having a young family has reordered his priorities.

“I’m here to provide a quality life experience for my family. I want to be an extremely successful provider, but also a present and nurturing father. We go to church as a family every Sunday. Number one is my relationship with God, because I realize that’s the one thing that can never be taken away from me.”

Clients describe Jeff as “open and friendly,” “very knowledgeable about the area,” “a great listener and observant,” and “hard working and honorable.”

His strong core values translate into hard work for his sellers and buyers. He gives everyone he works with a great experience! Not only that, he is a joy to be around and is very personable and easy to talk to. I look forward to the next time working together!”

A genuinely nice guy, Jeff’s customer-first attitude, commitment to excellence and high-integrity service have paved the way to his real estate success. “I take this work very seriously,” he says. “Every transaction has the ability to change the life of my client, and the life of my family, and I treat it as such.”

One buyer said: “Jeff is not only a fantastic and knowledgeable Realtor®, but a really great family man as well.

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JEFF GRAY

Keller Williams Realty, 27101 Puerta Real, Suite 150 Mission Viejo, CA 92691 - Tel: 949-656-1978 Email: TheRealJeffGray@kw.com - Web: www.ORANGECOUNTYJEFF.COM CalBRE # 01997572 ExecutiveAgent Magazine