BenitoLink introduces readers to Marilyn Ferreira of Ferreira-Kunz Group Real Estate.
Marilyn Ferreira is a San Benito County-based realtor with nearly 48 years of experience. She is now working with the “third generation” of buyers, selling properties to the grandchildren of clients she worked with earlier in her career. The Sponsor Highlight section introduces you to the people behind the businesses in our community. Our sponsors are proactive and choose to support local news and information for the community’s benefit.
When Ferreira entered the real estate business in 1972, she was a single mother with three young daughters. She thought real estate offered her more flexibility to be with her children. At the time, she said, it was difficult to get a job because there were not many women in the field. The San Benito County resident had to commute to San Jose in order to find a job and receive training.
She was a natural. On her first day of work at Van Vleck Realtors, she sold a house.
“I was told once that I didn’t have a head for business,” Ferreira said. “Every time I do something now, I get so excited like it’s the first time.”
Ferreira continued selling, and throughout her career, her sales record has been in the top 1% of major real estate companies, including Contempo, Century 21, and Coldwell Banker. Currently, she works for Intero Real Estate Services, where her daughter Renee is her manager. She primarily sells properties in San Benito, Santa Clara, Monterey and Santa Cruz counties.
Since the beginning of her career, Ferreira has committed herself to “service to her clients.” Her key to success, she said, is by listening, not selling. As the buyer prepares to make the important decision to purchase a home, Ferreira provides them with the “tools and information to make a good decision.” In a small community, she said, she has had to know something about everything, from commercial to investment properties.
She knows how to read her clients’ level of interest through their body language.
“I recognize something in a client when they walk into a house. You can tell when they really like it through their body language. They communicate more easily.”
While Ferreira’s extensive career has certainly kept her busy, she said her family has always been “number one.” A career in real estate allowed her to spend more time with her daughters and her six grandchildren, and, because of her career, she met her husband Richard, a retired general contractor and developer, of almost 41 years. She credits her husband’s expertise with providing a “new dimension to her job.”
“When you have almost 48 years of experience, if you don’t remember what you know, then you’d better retire. This was the greatest career anybody could ever have. It has given me everything I could ever dream of. I do this because I find satisfaction in assisting people in making the most important purchase of their lives.”
Ferreira has not only been a pioneer for women in real estate, but also for women in San Benito County leadership positions. In the late 70s, she was president of Children’s Home Society, now known as the Kinship Center. In 2002, she was elected the first female president of Hollister Rotary. From 2002 through 2008, she served on the Board of the Hollister Downtown Association, and was president during the 2006-2007 fiscal year. Today, she still serves on sub-committees within the organization. She is currently president of the Community Foundation’s Board of Directors.
Additionally, she served as director of the California Association of Realtors for over 18 years, representing the organization nationally for 2 years.
“I want to inspire women so they can do anything they set their minds to,” said Ferreira.
Her sponsorship of BenitoLink is one more way she gives back to the community. She said she began sponsoring the news organization after Executive Director Leslie David approached her.
“She has the only product in San Benito County that reports the news correctly,” Ferreira said. “BenitoLink is there to hear the truth and tell both sides. They have good reporters, and Leslie cares a lot about the community.”
Sponsors such as Marilyn with Ferreira-Kunz Group help keep all our county residents informed by providing funding for ongoing coverage of government and politics, transportation, housing and development, education, and investigative reporting. Individuals and local businesses can help keep the community informed by supporting BenitoLink, San Benito’s nonprofit, community news. To learn more about these opportunities, contact Executive Director Leslie David at [email protected] or (831) 801-1356.
This article was written through the BenitoLink Junior Journalism, Latinx and Inclusionx program. These community funded programs come from the generous support of United Way of San Benito County, AT&T Monterey Peninsula Foundation and Taylor Farms. These programs enable local San Benito County youth to develop professional and employable skills that help pave their way for a more successful future.
