Nikki Duke

Broker
Manor Real Estate
360.852.2035
www.lrestore.com

How long have you worked in Real Estate?
The opportunity to be licensed broker arrived in 2012. However, my first serious pondering about real estate was in the eighth grade. I flipped my first house during high school. Today, I am involved in new construction; yet, I believe I have a niche for finding existing homes that can be refreshed – my word for remodeling!

What is your specialty?
Finding inspiration for the people who live in the places they will call home is what I do best. The key to finding a great home is to be really considerate of the people looking for their home. It’s not about me. I specialize in having a home-connection relationship that comes from things shared with me to find a home.
My specialty is finding a rock and turning it into a diamond. Every home has potential it just needs to be found. I work with clients and help them see how a not so perfect house on the perfect lot can become their ideal living space, it’s just a matter of a few changes. I can help you see how you can buy in your ideal neighborhood and still get your new home even if there isn’t a lot to be built on.

What is one tip you have for someone looking to buy or sell a home?
The worst situation is trying to change who you are to be able to live in a house. It’s like giving someone perfumes because you don’t like how he or she smells. I’m really inspired by women who are comfortable with being the first to try something different in building or refreshing a home. Ever hear of the Fabulous Moolah? Her real name was [Mary] Lillian Ellison. She was a wrestler in a way that was so unfeminine but just very cool [for the 1950’s]. I imagine the home she would want to create!

What is the most unique property you’ve listed or sold?
Besides wanting to create a home for the Fabulous Moolah, my propensity for reworking spaces [Parade of Homes, 2014], an incessant desire to refresh by tearing apart existing homes in favor of new concepts, has become the stuff of unique – I get the build, re-design and build over [existing homes].

What is the most unusual thing you’ve encountered while working in real estate?
If I can say I love anything, it is the idea of a client discovering that something is possible. It seems unusual that people keep getting surprised that they can accomplish the home they want even if it doesn’t look that way when they buy it.

What is the most challenging/gratifying aspect of what you do?
Here’s what I love to hear: People come back because the experience was so rewarding. If someone comes to the conclusion that they want another home or to reconfigure their home due a life change, I think I’ve done a pretty great job.

What do you see in the future for real estate sales/prices?
The best real estate is in the area you love; the best value is the difference between what you see when you buy and what a home becomes after being refreshed. Clark County offers a great quality of life and is very affordable. I believe that will continue through this year.

What do you enjoy doing when you are not working? Hobbies, volunteering, family, fun?
My husband and son Tucker love being outside. We have been working on our outdoor space since completing a complete refresh of our 1970’s home in the Felida area.
I am very proud of the Young Life organization and work hard to help this world-class organization to focus of developing fun, adventure, friendship and a sense of significance. In doing this, we earn the privilege to talk to them about something that matters most of all — the truth in God’s love.

What do you like about living in this area?
I believe very strongly in this community like I find others to believe as well. I like that people work hard at what they do — and I work hard to inculcate those values into everyday life.

Anything else you would like our readers to know about you and your company?
I am co-owner of Legacy Restoration with Sam Vilhauer. I love being able to work with clients and help bring their dream home to life. Read about my experience with home building and refreshing in my weekly blog.