Condo Media - July 2019 - 72

Ask a Busy Person
Why did you choose real estate as a
career? My father was in real estate
and I'd always told myself I didn't want
to follow him in that business, but he
asked me to give him a hand with some
administrative work. Before I knew it,
I was involved in selling real estate.
I got a taste of it and I loved it. I've been
doing this for 40 years now and I can't
imagine doing anything else.
What do you like most about what
you do? Working with people. I've
always been a people person. Helping
people find a home they love gives me
a lot of satisfaction.
How did you come to focus on condominiums as a specialty? Condos were
still a new concept when I started selling
them. I was assigned to do the marketing
for a new condo development that was
under construction in Medford, and I
liked all aspects of the process-meeting with the developer, monitoring the
construction, working on pre-sales and
then post-construction sales. I decided to
get my construction supervisor's license
to learn more about construction, so I
could talk intelligently to developers and
contractors. My husband (who is also my
real estate partner) and I also bought a
couple of condos; I served as a trustee in
one of them for almost 20 years.
I'm told you've
had some actual hands-on construction experience. I helped to
build a Habitat for
Humanity singlefamily house in
Haverhill, Mass.
It was a competition between two teams-one all men,
the other all women-to see who could
finish first. The men won, but it was a
friendly competition. We learned from
each other. It was a great experience
and a real eye-opener for me to see how
much work is involved-not just physical but mental. Seeing a building on

CONDOMEDIA July 2019

CHARLOTTE SCUDERI
RE/MAX ANDREW REALTY SERVICES,
MEDFORD, MASS.
paper is one thing; building it from the
ground up is another thing entirely.
From a broker's perspective, what is
particularly interesting or challenging about the condominium sector?
With condominiums, you're not just
helping buyers find homes they like
and that are right for them-you also
have to explain what condominium
ownership involves. You have to
explain that it's not like owning a
single-family home, where owners
can do anything they want. There are
rules they have to obey and restrictions
they have to accept. Condominium ownership requires a
different mindset.
Some condominium
industry professionals
say real estate brokers
should do more to educate buyers about condominium ownership.
That is fair criticism.
I think it's very important for real estate agents
to sit down with their clients and explain the ins and outs of condominium
ownership, so they know what to expect
before they move in.

You've been active in CAI-New
England for a long time. How did you
discover the organization? I owned
and was a trustee in a condominium in
Medford and became friendly with owners living in other buildings who were
wondering, as I was, why condo owners
had to pay for trash services when the city
provided that service at no charge to other homeowners. Richard Brooks, a partner in Marcus, Errico, Emmer & Brooks,
advised our group on how to present our
argument to city officials-and we won.
That's how I discovered CAI and I joined
shortly after that. It's been one of the best
experiences of my life. CAI is an invaluable resource for information and business contacts. Any time I have a question,
I can always find someone who is willing
to answer it for me.
You've served on the CAI board,
helped to plan expos and seminars,
served on just about every committee
CAI has-why do you do so much?
I don't think about it that way.
Being involved is just part of my personality. If I can contribute and make
something better, I want to do that.
It's why I belong to so many organizations in Medford, like the Chamber of
Commerce, the Historical Museum, and
the Historical District Commission. In
different ways, they all involve providing
information about the community and
improving the quality of life for residents.
What do you do in your spare
time? I love to cook and bake.
I used to offer informal cooking
lessons to friends occasionally.
They would come over one
night, I'd teach and then
we'd eat. I don't have
time to do that now, but
I am the official cookie
maker for most meetings
I attend.
What's the best advice you got
and from whom? It's a message
I absorbed from my parents and
grandparents: "Family comes first."

Condo Media - July 2019

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