Title: 
Broker-associate
Company: 
Climb Real Estate
Location: 
251 Rhode Island #105
San Francisco, CA 94103
United States
California US

Kim’s mother had been in real estate just six months when she was in a near-fatal car accident on her way to prepare for an open house. It was 1993; the elder Kim survived but is severely brain-impaired. Almost 10 years later, Christine Kim decided to take up the career her mother had tragically left behind. Her father wasn’t thrilled about the Northwestern graduate’s decision to jump from a high-paying job with Internet networking giant Cisco Systems for the unknown income of a real estate career. But her determination to fulfill her mother’s dream of real estate success has paid off—with $11.7 million in sales volume in 2004. “Dad couldn’t be prouder,” she says.

Sniffing out listings: Being a dog lover has propelled Kim’s business. When she changed careers, her “dog group” was the first to know, and Kim’s first listing in the neighborhood came from a fellow dog owner.

Dedicated to her mother: Every time I close a deal, I think of my mom and that I’m doing this for her because it’s something she always wanted to do,” Kim says.