Meet Mark Kitching | Real Estate Advisor and Investor

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

Hi Mark, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I saw first-hand that “climbing the corporate ladder” wasn’t necessarily a direct relationship to the hard work and effectiveness of that work. I quickly decided I didn’t have the patience to “pay my dues’ and that the only person I could count on was myself. I knew if I went into business for myself, I controlled my trajectory and controlled my life. Real Estate Sales was a perfect vehicle. If I learned enough about the market, sat enough open houses, met enough people and proved day-in and day-out that I belonged at the table, I could earn the trust that was needed to have them work with me on either a buy or a sale.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I started in the RE business in 2006. I was an assistant for two years under very successful brokers. In September of 2008, I decided it was time to cut the umbilical cord and see if I could survive swimming with the sharks in the LA RE market. Just so happened that it would be during America’s worst Recession of modern times. I sold one condo in 2009 and made $16,000. On the brink of having to get a day job, my would-be wife, encouraged her boss to meet with me to list her home. She hired me, I sold her home and then worked every day of the week for the next 10 years. There was no way in hell I was going to get that close to a day-job again. I’ve since built my business mostly by referral and have expanded into investments, development and advising. I’m truly grateful for all the clients and relationships I’ve built over the years.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I spent so much of my time in LA on the Westside, specifically in Venice Beach. I know it like the back of my hand and will forever have a love for it. I now have the privilege of living in Topanga Canyon with my family and there is no where in LA I’d rather be than here.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I attribute a tremendous amount of my success to my wife. Although I was very ambitious and driven before we met, it was after meeting her that my goals had a true purpose. Earning money and being stable is one accomplishment but a far greater accomplishment is having a rock solid relationship with your partner and building a life that you’ve always dreamed of.

Website: www.markkitching.com

Instagram: Mark_Kitching

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/markkitching

Twitter: @Kitch310