Today we’d like to introduce you to Kayla Gustafson.
Hi Kayla, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
Hi! And thanks for having me. I’m in real estate and I actually came to the industry a little by accident. I was in corporate risk management and compliance when I decided to get my real estate license. My husband and I were flipping homes on the side for fun and we decided the next step was for me to get licensed and represent ourselves. Then clients came and suddenly, I had a full book of business buying and selling other people’s homes. Shortly after I was offered the position of COO at an independent brokerage. I jumped at the offer to move full-time into the industry and never looked back.
Over the years, I opened satellite offices, started my own brokerage, finished my MBA, and became a licensed general contractor. Then, 4 years ago I got an offer to become a partner in a brand-new land development firm. I joined and we created High Pointe Land, which is a full-service land development company focused on small to medium residential land development projects – typically building villa homes. My main role is COO and Developer II, but at a nimble company, I wear all the hats when I need to. I have a real estate team and still help clients buy and sell homes (through my Lux High Pointe company).
After 4 years, I am lucky enough to have the opportunity to speak at events throughout the Twin Cities as well as represent builders and consult on land development projects, marketing, and training agents. In my spare time, I am a professor at Metropolitan State University teaching undergraduate courses in project management and the US Healthcare system (yes you heard that right – I have a medical background from way back). I also chair the board of the local non-profit: Emerge Mothers Academy.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has not. Nothing worth having is easy. I have struggled with everything. I struggle with working for myself. I am the best and worst boss. Accountability is hard when you’re working from home and it’s a beautiful day. Having partners is also hard. We are individuals with different visions for the future, different capacities, and different skills. But ultimately I have found that you have to show up, always. If you’re not there, you are left out; of deals, of conversations, of decisions. It’s very hard to be a younger woman (let alone a mom) in this game. I have had to work hard to get access to the rooms and conversations. Then I had to work harder than anyone to be heard, valued, and respected. I still get mistaken as an assistant or one time as the daughter of my business partner. I’m used to it but also still irritated by it.
I married my high school sweetheart which made a difference in my trajectory. I’ve had someone in my corner, cheering me on for 18 years now. We got married young and have supported each other since day one. I would not have done some of the crazy leaps I have without having a strong support system. Well maybe I would have, but it helped a lot. We decided to wait until our 30s to have kids so we could get strong footholds into both our professional and adult lives before shaking it up. We now have a 4-year-old daughter who came along at a time in my career when I was settled enough in who I was and what I had accomplished so that I could make space in my life for family, living, balance, etc.
Doesn’t mean I have it all together but I would do it that way again. I feel like I finally have a balance between my desires, and needs as an individual, a family member, and as an entrepreneur. I have enough power, voice, and respect to command my schedule and prioritize my work and hours. And I have enough support to still go out and do hard or new things in my professional life. Things are always changing though so ask me again next year.
Thanks for sharing, that is so interesting. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
I am a Senior Partner and Owner of High Pointe Land. We operate primarily on the northeastern side of the Twin Cities. Our office is in Shoreview, MN and we are very focused on developing villa communities in the Chisago Lakes area at the moment. We specialize in the development and sale of villa homes with an amenity. Typically for us, that’s a lake or water feature, but it has also been a golf course or other special feature.
We do everything from sourcing and purchasing land, entitling the property by working with the city, moving the dirt to turn the land into buildable lots, finding builders for the community, marketing and selling the homes, and representing the builders and sometimes the customers. We believe in creating value and pride in our communities so we immerse ourselves into the local community. We listen to what people want and we create opportunities for our customers to live the lake life they want. We consult with our builders to make the build-sale process as seamless as possible for them as well as their customers.
We bridge the gap between all parts of raw land to customer move-in because we know the process and the land from start to finish. We are different than other developers because we are transparent and we never put something under contract we don’t intend to buy. We do what we say we’re going to and we always include more than the standard. We are creating legacy communities that will be good for years and years. We are proud of our reputation. We have made a name for ourselves that exceeds any marketing we could do because we do good work, we do the right thing, and we try to exceed expectations.
We also try to teach what we know through consulting services. We are experts in production building and new construction agent training which is severely lacking in the industry. We are trying to bring our knowledge into the broader industry to help better the craft and facilitate better experiences between developers, builders, builder agents, and the public.
We (And I) have worked really hard to make the jump from a real estate agent to a land developer, a broker, and a business consultant. As a woman (and as I am younger than my partner by 30 years) I have had to work incredibly hard to get to the place I am now and I’m pretty proud of it. I’ve self-funded each business and have worked my butt off building my business, my knowledge, and my strategic partnerships to become a very productive broker and the only female developer of my age in the state.
What would you say has been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
This is tough. I’ve learned so much that I could write a book! (and probably will…)
I think the number one thing I can tell anyone is you have to stay curious. Forever. Never close yourself off to learning new things, to being interested, to not being the expert, to change.
Also…
Show up. Consistently. To the meetings, to the coffee date, to your work, for yourself, for your family. You don’t have to be perfect, but you have to be present.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.highpointeland.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kaylagustafson_realtor/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kaylagusrealtor/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kayla-gustafson-mba-45505030/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@highpointeland8748
Image Credits
Boo Creative and Caitlin Nightingale Photography
