As Realtor Kaila Weiss stood at a padlocked door in a house she was showing to a buyer, her thoughts about what might be on the other side of it were far from the shocking reality. In that moment, Weiss believed only that the owner was hiding something about the residence, and that she needed to protect her client, she says.
Weiss would later learn that the home’s listing agent had never pushed the issue of the padlocked door, or seen what was within the small space. Likewise, none of the agents who’d shown the home to prospective buyers had insisted the owner open it.
However, Weiss had learned a hard lesson about the hidden things in old houses, and if the owner of the padlock refused to remove it, then she was going to tell her client that buying the home would not be in their best interest.
“I went through a terrible divorce about four years ago,” Weiss says without cushioning the start of her story about the lesson she’d learned. “He was not a good husband.”
Having unfurled her willingness to dive into the messy guts of her history, Weiss, 35, explains that she entered the union with two children from a previous marriage and left it to protect them, as well as herself.
“My mentality was, ‘My kids and I have to get out of this house and go somewhere safe.’ It was fight or flight.”
Weiss landed in a rental home with a friend and began to look for a way to place her feet on solid ground. Or, rather, a solid foundation.
“I thought, ‘I need to buy a house.’ I didn’t know if I could support my kids on my own, but I do believe that the bad things that don’t kill you make you stronger, so I gave myself one year to buy a house. And that’s what I did.”
Weiss had owned houses when she was married, but her purchase of a residence no divorce could take from her was a triumph of will, she says, as well as good money management. Unfortunately, the home’s foundation was anything but solid.
“I wanted to buy a house I could flip and sell in two years, but there were problems with the one I bought that weren’t visible on the surface,” Weiss explains.
These issues included concealed cracks on the outside and five-inch shag carpet on the inside. Having carpet that paid homage to the swinging ‘70s wasn’t the issue, but the uneven floors that appeared when Weiss ripped it out was.
“I said, ‘Wow, that’s not supposed to dip in the corner like that.’”
Living in a house that looked as though Dr. Seuss had built it was only one of Weiss’ challenges; another was income. Although employed in the customer service department at Whirlpool, she’d cast herself in the role of sole breadwinner for her family when she fled her marriage. She also had aspirations that exceeded her financial reach. So, she needed to earn more money.
Enter real estate. Weiss’ voice brightens as she describes the genesis of her interest in becoming a Realtor.
“My father built a house when I was eight or nine, and I loved going with him to the site to see what they’d done. I’d run between the studs and wonder, ‘What room is this going to be?’”
Weiss’ father had also flipped houses when she was growing up in Tennessee, and her memories of his handiwork and the provision it produced boosted her desire to become a Realtor.
“My father had the creativity he needed for flipping houses,” she notes. “I like helping people find the house that’s going to make them happy.”
Earning a real estate license while working fulltime and caring for two children wasn’t easy, but Weiss used the nooks and crannies in her schedule, including her 15-minute breaks at work, to learn the material and prepare for the test. Three months after sitting down to begin, she passed the exam and secured her credentials.
Weiss’ purchase of a home at a mortgage rate of 2.9% suggested the tide was turning in her favor. However, the waters could still turn rough, as she discovered when a change in management at Whirlpool resulted in the loss of her job.
Although Weiss had her real estate license, she wanted a paycheck she could rely on, so she looked for another job.
She never found one. Even when a company hired her – which happened twice – the employers rescinded their offers before she started work due to circumstances beyond their control, Weiss recalls.
As Weiss grew more concerned about her financial situation, she says she stepped off the shifting sand that was under her feet and onto solid bedrock – her faith.
“I don’t always have the answers in life,” Weiss, a Christian, admits. “When that happens, I lean on God. For some people, it’s something else, but for me, it’s Jesus. So, I dropped to my knees and said, ‘What am I going to do?’”
Weiss says she believes it’s possible God was nudging her to commit herself to real estate full time because she found her footing when she stopped looking for work and started selling houses.
“I hit my knees again and said, ‘God, I’m trying to land another job, but it’s not happening. If this is you telling me to focus on real estate, I’m listening. Just help me out.’ Then I sold 24 homes my first year.”
As part of her business plan, Weiss became certified as a luxury homes agent. She says her reasons for focusing on high-end houses (which in Chattanooga carry a price tag of at least $600,000, she adds) have as much to do with the nature of the client as her potential earnings.
“It’s not just about the price point or the square footage for me; it’s also about how those clients communicate with me. I’m very direct, therefore I enjoy working with people who respect directness. Most of the people who are in the market for a luxury home are busy; they don’t necessarily have the time for niceties. They call me and say, ‘Let’s talk business.’”
The invitation to focus on the work is music to Weiss’ ears. But she remains sensitive to the needs of all her clients, including those who don’t have their sights set on an expensive listing. Whether she’s awake at 3 a.m. speaking with a client who’s serving in the military overseas, or helping a single mother to avoid the pitfalls she had to navigate after she purchased her home, she wants her clients to know she’ll be available when they need her to be and that she has their back.
“I’m not a home inspector, but my experiences have taught me the right questions to ask an inspector. I want my clients to use me again because I saved them from a huge headache and found something great for them. I don’t want them to walk away thinking, ‘My Realtor didn’t look out for me.’”
So, as Weiss stood her ground with the seller who was refusing to remove the padlock from the door in their home, she was prepared to advise her buyer to walk away.
“I look out for my clients; if my buyer is going to make an offer on a home, I want to see every square inch of the place. So, I asked, ‘What’s behind the door?’ And they said, ‘Storage.’ And I said, ‘If we’re going to buy this house, then we’re going to look in this room, too.’ My mentality as an agent was, ‘What are you trying to hide?’”
After the homeowner relented and removed the padlock, Weiss opened the door. She says what she saw startled and horrified her.
“A child was lying on a soiled mattress on the floor. I knew something was wrong because his head didn’t match the size of his body.”
There was nothing else in the room. As the homeowner stood silently, Weiss says she crouched and tried to talk with the child, who she says appeared to be about 7 years old.
“I said, ‘Hi, what’s your name?’ He didn’t speak. Instead, he looked at me, then looked at the homeowner, and then turned and faced a wall.”
Weiss says she and her client stepped outside, where they tried in vain to walk off their shock. After leaving, she called Child Protective Services.
Weiss says she can’t reveal any other details about the encounter due to an ongoing investigation. Even if she was free to speak, she’d have little else to reveal, as she hasn’t been privy to the findings of the inquiry. One of the investigators did, however, tell her the boy is now at a local residential home and is receiving care.
This news was a tremendous relief to Weiss, who told her broker during an emotional phone call she made after she left the house that she wished she could have taken the boy with her.
“My mothering instincts kicked in when I saw him,” Weiss says.
Weiss clutched her children – a son who’s now 15 and a daughter who’s now 16 – when she saw them next. But that was not out of the ordinary, as they have been the two loves of her life and her purpose since she became a mother at a young age, she adds.
Essentially, they have been at the center of everything she’s done, and everything she’s done has been centered on teaching them the lessons she learned the hard way.
“It was my goal to not only make sure they didn’t become teen parents but also for them to know they’re loved and they have a mom who will go to the ends of the Earth for them.
“I wanted my daughter to understand she doesn’t have to have a husband; she can make it on her own. I tell her, ‘Stay strong, have faith in who you are and keep moving forward.’
“I wanted my son to learn how he should treat his future wife and what should be expected of him as a husband – not necessarily in society’s eyes but in God’s eyes.”
Weiss’ expectations for herself professionally as she enters 2024 is to continue to build her business. Although she sold fewer homes during her second year in real estate, the average price of the home she sold increased, which allowed her to increase her dollar volume year-over-year.
As part of Hero Homes Group at EXP Realty in Cleveland, which operates under broker Darren Miller, Weiss says she’s feeling optimistic about the coming year.
“I’m already working with several clients who are interested in listing within the next few months. When interest rates were higher, people weren’t as eager to purchase, but ever since the rates dropped a few weeks ago, I’ve had more people reaching out.”
Weiss will answer when they call, and she’ll have their backs as they look at houses, she says, repeating what might be her unofficial motto. Also, even though it wouldn’t be easy, she’ll insist on seeing what’s on the other side of every locked door.