DIGS is the premiere luxury real estate lifestyle magazine serving the most affluent neighborhoods in the South Bay and Westside of Los Angeles, California.
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9.28.2018 | DIGS.NET 37 I t's a familiar tale—a Midwest gal heads to California seeking greener pastures and bumps into her destiny. "I was in my twenties and working in marketing and PR, and probably making $60,000," explains leading Westside real estate agent Darlene L. Hutton. "A decent salary, but not a lot." While flipping her first home, her interest in real estate was piqued aer discovering what the agent earned on the deal. "She made around $40,000. Almost my salary, and she didn't do a good job!" Armed with a marketing degree and a contact list of sports and entertainment f igures, Hutton earned her real estate license and found quick success: "In my f irst deal I earned what I made in my f irst year salary," she says of this early achievement, which was laden with elbow grease. " You def initely have to pay your dues. You're at the bottom of the pool. I used to door-knock all the time. That 's how I used to build my business. I would network, go to women's events." In 2009, she moved from Sotheby's aer being selected to be among the first round of agents at the newly formed Partners Trust, now Pacific Union—and soon to be part of Compass. e upcoming union will result in a 6,400-agent team nationally, and become the largest independent brokerage in the state. "It's a very interesting time," says Hutton of the merger. "e market is definitely starting to shi." Listening to Hutton's voice, rapid-fire and friendly, one gets the impression of a person who moves quickly to get what she wants. "I've been a go-getter since a very young age," remarks Hutton. "My father was in sales, and I've always wanted to be in business for myself." Her attaché of real estate knowledge includes flipping homes and working in marketing, in addition to buying and selling homes. "It helps on another level" she says of these experiences, which connect her to her work in a personal and deeply satising way. "It's not just my job, giving you firsthand experience," say Hutton. "It's me as a person, because I've done it." A current special of Hutton's is off- market listings, which she points out as ideal for buyers who are not finding their dream proper in the open market, or who are losing out in multiple offer situations. "e off-market stuff gives you a special edge, and I have a lot of experience in that, so it attracts certain buyers to me," she notes. Another is the range of price points that Hutton deals in—anywhere from $300,000 upwards to $30 million—with the goal of servicing clients beyond the super well- heeled and, more strategically, knowing that today's first-time condo buyer will be buying more substantive properties with her help in the following years. e meet-and-greet marketing of her early real estate days has not gone by the wayside for Hutton, who still cites networking as her most valuable strategy. She places a special emphasis on past clients. "It's a built-in referral," she says, considering how closely a client will link their home to their real estate agent. Love your home? You probably love your agent. And vice versa. "It's one of the top three biggest decisions people make: getting married, having kids, and buying a house," says Hutton. "It has to be taken very seriously, and it can only be executed perfectly with people who know what they're doing." DARLENE HUT TON PACIFIC UNION 310.428.4861 | PACIFICUNIONLA.COM One of Darlene Hutton's sold listings, a scenic Brentwood Park compound located at 270 South Canyon Drive.