Successful Southside Real Estate Expert
Following the footsteps of her mom and one of the first women making her mark in the real estate industry on the South side of San Antonio, second generation and broker Sara Briseño Gerrish shares her passion of helping our community find their dream home along with some great real estate tips.
Sara has been in the real estate industry for 17 years. She currently serves as a director for the San Antonio Board of REALTORS®, is a former Chairman of their Young Professional Network (YPN) Chairman and is a director for the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR). 
Here are some of the tips and things Sara shares about the real estate industry:
What are some tips for buying a first home?
Get with a realtor who is knowledgeable of where you want to move to; they can give you expert advice on the neighborhood and the area you’re interested in. They can work with your real estate goals to make sure you find the right home whether it’s your first-time home and/or your forever home.
Speak with a loan officer to see what kind of loan you qualify for. If you are a first-time buyer, there may be programs you are eligible for. When buying a home (especially for the first time.), there are a lot of questions you’re going to have, working with an experienced lender helps in making the best decisions for your purchase.
What neighborhoods of the South side are growing fast?
Interests in areas closer to downtown have seem to be the peek of interest lately. The homes in Highland Park (one of Sara’s favorite neighborhoods.), Roosevelt Park for example, and areas closer to downtown seem to be in demand. These older neighborhoods are not yet as expensive as downtown and they have beautiful homes with hard word floors, arches, and built ins.
If you are wanting a newer neighborhood, Monte Viejo in the Brooks area is a great place to look for a home.
Price range in the South side
“You get more for your buck in the South side of San Antonio because the price for square footage is lower”, Sara mentions. The average sales price in the San Antonio general surrounding area is about $253,000. Prices drop when you go south of highway 90 and you can find a nice home under $150,000-$200,000.
Passion for real estate
Sara shares how buying a home is a big deal and its rewarding to help and be a part of her client’s home buying goals. “To see people, get genuinely excited is a nice thing to be a part of. Especially when they’ve worked so hard, like working on their credit, or have been saving their money. When your client finally close and get the keys to their home, it’s nice to be a part of that moment.”, said the real estate expert.
Advice for someone who wants to get into real estate
Meet with a full-time realtor and talk with them about what the job entails. Its not as easy as people think it is. You must be on top of all the rules and all the laws. You also must be available for when your client needs you and work around their schedule.
When people are buying/selling a home, sometimes a lot of emotion comes with that. You must be prepared with being there for your client even when times are challenging and to deal with different personalities.
Another tip Sara gave for those interested in getting into the real estate industry, is to save money. It’s becomes costly (especially for someone new to the industry) to join the board, purchase your license, and maintain your vehicle if you do not have income coming in right away. (She currently runs the training programming at her brokerage.) 
Being proud of her South side roots
One of the highlights of interviewing Sara was seeing her face light up when she talked about how proud she was of being a successful Latina business owner in the South side of San Antonio and how she contributes to her community despite the negative views of the part of town she grew up in.
Not only is the successful business woman an inspiration in our community, she also comes from home grown roots of the same kind, her mom, real estate trailblazer Beatrice Briseno, who was the first Latina broker that owned a franchise in the South side.
Sara is an active member of Centro San Antonio, board member for the South San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, Founding Storyboard Member of Texas Public’s Radio’s Worth Repeating and the Junior League of San Antonio.
In closing, Sara mentions, “when you have passion for what you do, success will fall.” She’s definitely proof of that.
To connect with Sara Briseño Gerrish on social media, here are her links:
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