Broker Agent Magazine:
“Professional Profile - Tausha Carlson & Luisa Mauro - Sprinting Towards Success”
Whether it’s running marathons or their own business, Tausha Carlson and Luisa Mauro take things in stride. As co-owners of Marathon Real Estate in Austin, the two go-getters tackle everything from helping clients buy their homes to ‘green’ building education. Both say it was a natural transition to go from pounding the asphalt to serving the community in real estate. Luisa got her start with a Marketing degree from University of Texas at Austin Business School. After watching her father make money from investment properties, she was sold on real estate.
“Sometimes he’d sell and I’d see the gain he made,” she says. “It just made sense. Buy low, sell high. But it’s not like the stock market; if the real estate market crashes, at least you still have something tangible in your portfolio.”
She has held her real estate license for six years and is a member of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and the Austin Board of Realtors (ABOR). She’s also on the Infrastructure and Utilities Task Force for the Texas Association of Realtors (TAR), and became a Broker in 2006. While Luisa knew early on that real estate was the path she wanted to pursue, Tausha says she ‘fell’ into the industry. Armed with a Bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M and a master’s degree from Michigan State University, she took a job assisting a real estate broker at a start-up real estate company in 2002. She gained priceless knowledge ranging from understanding inspection reports to advising clients on financing and insurance options.
It wasn’t until she made a wise investment as a first-time homebuyer that her future became clear. “We wanted to be able to walk to a coffee shop. In order to do that and live in our desired location, we had to sacrifice size and condition.” Tausha and her husband, Chris, found a home that fit the criteria and within two years it had appreciated more than $60,000. By investing that money in real estate, they were able to flip a couple of houses and purchase rental property.
“As an investor, I fell in love with real estate. I saw the investment opportunity and appreciated the shelter that homes provide. It was the American dream. I decided to pursue a career in real estate with full force.
“People think I’m crazy, but I always described it as an ‘easy’ transition. It was natural to go from assistant to real estate investor to agent to business owner.” She’s followed that path for the past five years, joining the NAR, the TAR, the ABOR and, more recently, the Real Estate Council of Austin (RECA).
Sprinting Toward Success
The partners met through running. They trained for marathons together and found a shared interest in real estate and entrepreneurship. “We talked about it for a year before we opened the company,” Luisa says. “We’d talk and run and share our ideas about what our company would offer, and how we’d be different.”
Marathon Real Estate opened its doors in 2006 with the goal to make the home buying process as easy, smooth, and worry-free as possible. Both women work 60-70 hours a week serving their clients, and somehow manage to fit running marathons into the mix. Tausha says that’s been her mode for years. “In college, I did my best when I was busiest. Being busy makes me more efficient and forces me to use my time better.”
That time is chock full of activities, from spending time with her husband of six years to being president of the Austin chapter (ATX Power) of Business Network International (BNI). She’s also a member of the Austin Chamber of Commerce, Catalyst 8, and the Young Women’s Alliance. She was a finalist for the 2007 Blazing Star Award, given by the Women’s Chamber of Commerce, and was nominated for Rookie of the Year through the Austin Board of Realtors in 2006. Her community involvement is extensive, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t play. Her motto is, “Work hard. Play hard.”
“I love the outdoors and have climbed both Kilimanjaro and Machu Picchu, treasure a good book (she’s been a member of a book club for five years), and enjoy scoping out new entertainment and restaurants in the Austin area,” she says. She even finds time to relax once in awhile for her favorite TV show. “I have never missed an episode of Survivor.”
Marathon’s co-owner Luisa is every bit as busy. Her extensive list of activities includes being a board member of the Austin Sports Commission and the Austin Hotel and Lodging Association, as well as a member of the Tourism Council for the Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau. She also serves Austin Pets Alive (APA), and has rescued two dogs – Nick and Scotch – and her cat, Sofie. “I am forever grateful for the constant love they share,” she says. “They have made me passionate to work with APA and reach the goal of Austin becoming a ‘No Kill’ city.”
In addition to their personal drive, the co-owners are extremely dedicated to the community of Austin. Twice a year they hold a community service event and invite their friends, family and clients to join them. They’ve volunteered with Marathon Kids and plan to spend a day with Habitat for Humanity this fall. The business partners have also raised an impressive amount of money for breast cancer research. Tausha has organized a team of 13 women from Austin to travel to San Francisco in September to walk 60 miles over 3 days, for which they’ve raised nearly $40,000. Cameron Breed of SWBC Mortgage Corporation is joining her on the journey. As both a business colleague and friend, she’s seen firsthand how resolute Tausha can be when she sets a goal.
“Tausha’s commitment to our training, as well as her determination, inspired me,” Cameron says. “I’ve learned that she was just as devoted to her work as she was to her friends and training.”
Luisa says it’s natural for them to be civic-minded. “We love Austin and our community, and it makes us want to give back to our wonderful city.”
Running a Successful Business
The partners of Marathon Real Estate put a great deal of emphasis on taking exceptional care of their customers. As opposed to spending money on advertising, Tausha and Luisa spend it on their clients to show how much they appreciate them. The agency hosts a couple of parties a year, thanking their clients and friends for their support.
Luisa says, “Our clients are the reason Marathon Real Estate exists; we are so thankful and want to celebrate them. We work mainly by referral, which puts additional pressure on each transaction. We want our clients to be 100% happy and refer us to their family, friends, and co-workers.”
To achieve that, they approach real estate from an education and investment perspective. Instead of focusing solely on sales, the business partners take great pride in being a resource for their clients. For instance, they hold seminars quarterly, bringing in experts to speak on topics ranging from eco-friendly building to 1031 Exchanges. For years, they’ve taught free monthly homebuying seminars and investing courses through the University of Texas. And, of course, Tausha’s experience in rental properties, flipping projects, and as both a general contractor and a landlord add up to a valuable education for Marathon’s clients.
“I can quickly assess real estate situations from a variety of perspectives and put my experience to work for a client,” she says. “The number one thing is that clients can benefit learning from my mistakes. I made lots of them,” she laughs.
One thing she got exactly right is assembling a top-notch network of professionals to support Marathon’s clients. Tausha says, “In real estate, it’s so important for us to align ourselves with good people who care about and support us.” The company’s knowledgeable resource team includes colleagues Cameron Breed, Andrea Lowry of Chicago Title and Dayl Spruce with Allstate Insurance. Working with these accomplished business professionals provides the company even more of an edge. “It takes so many people to get to the closing table,” Tausha explains. “It’s great to know that we have a wonderful team behind us. And if glitches do occur, we all work together to make it smooth on our clients. The synergy is awesome!”
Andrea Lowry agrees, and says Tausha and Luisa both possess complimentary traits that benefit their clients. “Tausha’s so goal oriented, and she’s a fierce advocate for her clients. Luisa brings a personal touch to a situation, and she’s really focused on customer service,” Andrea says. “Together, they balance each other out beautifully.”
While Luisa and Tausha came into the industry from two totally different backgrounds, their common love of running and their drive to provide uncompromising honesty and integrity has inextricably linked these two vivacious women. They never doubted they’d make it work.
“We started Marathon Real Estate on faith. Faith that if we do what is right, provide quality service and take care of our clients and agents, success will happen,” Luisa says.
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by Lynn Thorne — photography by Katie Jo Dixon-Blaboe