Meet Dina Young | Northern Colorado Realtor and Investor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dina Young and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dina, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I was a stay-at-home mom going through a divorce. With 1 child in college and another heading that way, it was necessary for me to save money and learn how to support myself. My mother had been a successful realtor for nearly 40 years at that point so it seemed natural, albeit scary, for me to follow in her foot steps. Being a realtor is every much the equivalent of starting your own business. Not only did I have to break into the real estate market, which seemed flooded with agents, but I had to learn how to manage my income, expenses and taxes. That was 10 years ago, and although I’ve made some mistakes, I’ve learned how to leverage professionals that can help me manage a business. I hired a coach, an accountant and a bookkeeper and keep a very close eye on my expenses. Today, I own 2 rental properties and plan to continue to invest in real estate as an avenue to retirement.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
About the same time that I was going through a divorce, I started playing hockey while entering my 40’s. I played on co-ed teams against players twice my size. When I first started playing, I didn’t know how to skate and didn’t know how to stop on the ice, a critical step in playing ice hockey. I hired a coach and practiced stick handling and different skating techniques until I became a much better player. I believe throwing myself into a new sport helped me gain confidence in my personal and professional life. As my confidence grew, other players stopped taking for granted my small stature and started seeing me as a tough opponent. I’m a fierce but fair negotiator for my clients and do everything I can to secure their property and strongly believe that competing in such a physical sport has played a key role in my professional success.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If I had a friend staying in Colorado for a week, we would take in downtown Denver and then head to the mountains for skiing and tubing. After picking my friend up from the airport, we’d head to the Gaylord for two nights and have dinner at the Old Hickory Steakhouse. If it were summertime, we would hang outside by the pool and ride the lazy river. If it’s winter, we’d hang out in the indoor pool or the sports grill the first day. The second day, we’d go to the 16th Street Mall and Larimer square to people watch and/or take in a game. Winter Park is my favorite place to ski and deserves at least two days. There’s a Tubing hill north of Winter Park in Fraser where we would spend an afternoon racing down the hill and then spend the rest of the day shopping in the quaint mountain town. If there’s time, we could get a tour on the dog sleds. We would head over to the Hot Sulfur Springs for the night and then on to Grandby for a day of snowmobiling and, yup, more shopping in that awesome mountain town. My friend would not be allowed to leave Colorado without visiting Estes Park. There are hiking trails and cool shops, fishing and camping and of course, The Stanley Hotel. On the way back to the airport, I’d make sure we had one last stop at the most famous Mexican restaurant in Colorado, Casa Bonita.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d like to recognize my parents, Alice and Richie James. My father for his insight and encouragement to pursue real estate, and my mother who helped me with my confidence and trained me to be a conscientious and caring agent. She taught me that it’s not about earning a paycheck but helping two parties to get to the closing table, even if it meant giving up some (or all!) of her commission to get there.

Website: www.listingsbydina.com

Instagram: dinayoungrealestate

Linkedin: Dina James Young

Facebook: Dina Young /dina.m.james

Other: tik tok: listingsbydina