Inspiring Conversations with Elizabeth Cranfill of Insight Real Estate

Today we’d like to introduce you to Elizabeth Cranfill. 

Hi Elizabeth, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today? 

Raleigh has always been home to me, and after I graduated from Appalachian State University with an Elementary Education degree I couldn’t wait to get back here. My first job after college was a nanny for two sweet children. I took care of them for two and a half years and enjoyed every bit of it. Towards the end of my nannying job, a very close family friend, Colleen Blondell, who has known me since I was a child, asked me to get my real estate license and work with her on the Blondell Properties Team at Keystone Properties. She said I was motivated, energetic, and would be great at real estate. I started the class on weekends while working a 55-hour week nannying, but I loved it (and I am not a nerdy person just passionate about real estate from day one). Soon after receiving my license, I ended my nannying job and started full-time in real estate with Colleen. A couple of months into my new career I met my husband, got married, and had our beautiful first-child, Meyers. Although my past would say I would be a great stay-at-home mom, I couldn’t let go of my passion for real estate. I wanted to do it all. I had the most toned arms of my life the first three months as a new mom because I would carry Meyers in her car seat to all of my showings, open houses, and closings, but I was doing it.

About a year and a half into real estate, my husband’s good friend, Matt Gilliam who owned Insight Real estate at the time, said he was looking for someone to help take over his residential new construction listings with Legacy Custom Homes since he was transitioning into commercial real estate. It was a very tough decision to move companies, but my wonderful mentor/friend who encouraged me to start my real estate career said the opportunity was a once in a lifetime one. I dove into the new construction side of real estate – development, plans, selections – while still growing my resale business with friends and family… After over two years into my Insight Real Estate career and 4 years into real estate, I was ready to make Insight my own and I purchased Insight from Matt. I am now 6 years into my career and the owner of Insight Real Estate at 32 years old, a wife, and mother of now two children Meyers (5) and EO (2), I have helped over 150 buyers and sellers, sold over $70,000,000 in real estate, and started building my own team.

In the last year, I hired my mother, DaLaine Meyers, after she worked for 38 years with Fidelity/IBM. We truly enjoy working together and I couldn’t be happier or more thankful to have her by my side (what a role reversal it has been!!).

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

One of the struggles I have is balancing work and home life which I think a lot of people can relate to whether you have children or not. Being a young business owner with a demanding job that requires working all hours of the day and having two young children to love and care for can make you tired!!

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Insight Real Estate?

Insight Real Estate is a boutique real estate firm in Raleigh, NC. We are known for our building development knowledge and specialize in new construction, but also provide consulting services, land acquisition, property management, and buyer/seller resales. We help investors with managing costs, design, marketing, planning, and executing a successful building project. We know how to pull a project together from start to finish from design to construction, spec level selection to marketing, material estimation to permitting, and inspections. We take the time to really listen to our clients and truly care about them by guiding them through the process.

We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?

Of course. In regards to work, during the crisis, I had to get creative with marketing properties by putting myself out there by creating more videos for social media since that is how a lot of buyers were viewing properties. I am not a fan of being on camera, but I thankfully had a wonderful marketing coordinator, Whitney Anthony with Vow to be Creative, who helped me step out of my comfort zone to provide additional services for my clients.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.insightrealestate-nc.com
• Instagram: @insightrealestatenc
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InsightRealEstate/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4i-wIGfAQy4vj0CNGj_N-w

Image Credits
Kristin with Studio Aray
Taylor McDonald