Real Estate's most dynamic team has taken over the investing world, and continues to dominate when helping buyers and sellers. Get to know Joe and Chris a bit better here!
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Learn About Joe
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Learn About Chris
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How did you get into real estate?
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I began my working career after college in the development of a local website/business called AllForLocal. Within a year of graduating from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, I stumbled into a part-time job with an appraiser who was seeking help with a website related to real estate. My journey begins there.
I soon discovered the world of real estate, as I engulfed myself in the prospect of becoming a Realtor, side-by-side with my brother, Frank. On May 1, 2010, I made the decision to relocate back to Fairfield County, and Norwalk, where I grew up; with real estate license in-hand. In August, Frank and I joined William Raveis Real Estate, and it was off to the races!
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I fell into real estate: in 2015, my brother and partner Joe gave me 'Rich Dad, Poor Dad' for Christmas and I began to gain interest in the business. While I focused on how to create a business in investing, I became hungry for more knowledge. Money and long term wealth wasn’t the only factor that I considered when I began--helping people fueled me.
After building our real estate investing business, Blast REI, for about a year with the help of Joe, I quickly learned a great deal . This lead me to the next step, getting my RE license and obvious choice to join the well-established team, Hanson Realty Group. With their guidance, I know I can thrive.
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What do you do besides real estate sales?
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In my free time, I do many different things. You might catch me at home playing video games, reading, and cooking; but you might also find me out with friends to a restaurant for dinner, or a bar for drinks.
My biggest passion is my time spent playing soccer: I play defense or midfield for a number of teams throughout the four seasons of the year. I could not live without soccer in my life!
I also love to cook by learning new techniques, new dishes, and still bringing my classic dishes to the table for friends and family. This coincides with my love of eating and trying new things. If you are new to the Fairfield County area, and want to know the best spots for the most affordable, yet delicious food, just ask! I have found every gem you could imagine.
The great thing about being in real estate, with a team to support me, is my ability to travel and know my clients are in capable hands. I am currently working through American cities and have a new love for Paris!
That same flexibility allows me to use my free-time to learn. I have become a life-long learner; I realized that I did not enjoy school because I was studying topics that were not of interest. Now, thanks to my personal growth, I find many topics fascinating, and worth discovering more about, such as American History, philosophy, self-improvement, and investing.
The other great benefit to being in this business, is my ability to know the market in a way that cannot be matched. This has led to the growth of our real estate investment business.
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One of my life-long passions is musical theater. I have performed professionally and in many different states since college. For now, I continue to pursue musical theater as a hobby around Fairfield County. I have been doing shows at Curtain Call in Stamford. Some shows you might have seen me in at Curtain Call: Mulberry Street the Musical, The Who’s Tommy, Beauty and the Beast, and coming soon, Damn Yankees. Also, you may have seen me in Les Miserables or West Side Story at Norwalk High School 2005-2007.
Some other things I enjoy are fantasy football with old friends and watching the games when I can on Sunday.
I enjoy playing most sports which includes Frisbee, football, pick-up soccer, or flag-football. My active lifestyle is important to me—I like to hike in this area, walk around the Norwalk beach. I think that this is important for your body and your mind and I embrace this each day when possible.
Food is another passion of mine. I love to cook healthy (and unhealthy) foods for myself and friends or indulge in the local cuisine in Fairfield County, since there are so many great and diverse options all around us.
Lastly, I love to travel as much as I can, even to local destinations. Seeing the world and being well-traveled is another thing I find important and gratifying. Not only do you get to experience different cuisines and cultures, but it gives you ideas of how you can change for the better. If you stay in the same place for too long, your mind begins to only know that grain of sand in a beach of beautiful possibilities.
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What hooked you into making this a full-time gig?
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As I began this career, Frank and I quickly learned the ropes with Susan and Steve Hanson, our mentors and team leaders. This included learning about how the real estate transaction proceeds, and with each step came a new learning experience. Once we had our footing, we worked hard to find new clients, and get the business rolling forward.
Initially, I think the thing that hooked me into real estate was in learning just how important technology was in this business. I noticed how hesitant the Realtors who had been in the business for decades were, to use those new tools. I knew that having a background in technology, thanks to my education, and my age, would propel me to the top quickly. I did not think that I would discover a large gap in this business, and ultimately, a niche for myself.
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At first, I thought to use real estate as a source of income, with our investing business, but the more I learned, the more I wanted to do it in a full-time. With my work-ethic and personality, I knew I could thrive compared to my Realtor competition.
The buying/selling process isn’t simple despite what many new agents think—I wanted to be part of that. It takes hard work, knowledge, and love to be successful. I want to prove to people that there is such thing as a ‘great realtor’.
What hooked me most was to see where people live, and how different each home could be. It astounds me that even if someone has the exact same floor plan as another person’s home across the street, each home is still a different world comparatively due to personality and culture.
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About Us and Hanson-Balestriere Team
Hanson-Balestriere Team at William Raveis Real Estate has grown from Susan and Steve, to a group of 5 top agents in Lower Fairfield County, Joe and Chris included. As we continue to help new clients, our persistence, follow-up, and honesty have led to many happy homeowners. Our team is proud to boast top spot among teams since 2018. During the calendar years of 2020 and 2021, Joe was the top-selling agent in Norwalk exceeding other agents by dozens of transactions on an individual basis.
We think that there are many things that sets our business apart from other Realtors:
- Negotiating Experience: Now that we have decades of experience under our belt, we have seen every possible market and have learned how to effectively sell homes no matter the circumstance. That has led to closing most of our listings at or above asking price!
- Technology: Our use of technology, specifically in selling your home, is unmatched; we pride ourselves with being the most tech-savvy Realtors in this business, especially in Connecticut.
- Accountability: This word is important to us, because it implies our trustworthiness, but also how hard-working we are, for each and every client;.
- Effectiveness: We get the job done, in every single case. Buying and Selling real estate requires a symbiotic relationship between client and agent. If we work together, it will get SOLD.
What locations do you cover?
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Our strong markets are expanding, thanks to additional adoption of new technology; but physical locations do restrict how well a Realtor may know a particular market. The markets that we know best include Norwalk, Stamford, Fairfield, Trumbull, Wilton, Westport, Greenwich, Ridgefield, New Canaan, Darien, Milford, Weston, Easton, and Shelton.
Don't forget, we can always assist in finding you a Realtor anywhere in the world! We know what to look for in another Realtor, so allow us to help ensure your next transaction goes as smoothly as possible by helping you find someone to represent your transaction.
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