Business Partner of the Month – Kathleen Clifford

Kathleen Clifford spent years as, in her words, “a real estate groupie.” On weekdays, she was a successful sales and marketing executive for a variety of apparel companies. But on weekends, she combed her local newspaper’s real estate section and cruised open houses, just for fun. Then, fourteen years ago, she decided it was time to “marry my passion with my job,” and launched her career as a real estate agent.

Currently a top producer with Pacific Union, Kathleen focuses on representing buyers and sellers in Southern Marin, including Mill Valley, where she lives with her husband, Kiddo! Executive Director, Bill Lampl, and two children who graduated from the Mill Valley School District and now attend Tam High. The area is an easy sell, with its combination of outdoor space and sophisticated urban amenities: “it’s thriving, vibrant, and a very desirable place to live.” The hard part is matching clients with the right home, or the right buyer, and that’s where a realtor’s experience and skill make all the difference.

Kathleen believes she’s a successful realtor in part because she makes it a point to get to know her clients and how they live their lives. “I truly enjoy the process of learning about who they are and what they care about, and entering the incredible journey of finding a new home, or leaving an old one, together.” To her, it’s never “about the quick sale.” It’s about finding the right fit between buyer and home, or buyer and seller, and about forging a long term connection with her clients. “I aim to be your realtor for life,” she says. That includes giving her clients advice long after the paperwork is signed, on everything from schools to contractors to where to shop and hike. Many of her clients become her friends, and “knowing so many people in the community and being intimately linked with the town” is the thing she loves best about her job.
She also has a well-deserved reputation in the real estate industry for her integrity and honesty. As one client notes, “I consider her one of the most competent and ethical persons I have worked with, not only in real estate, but in any service or industry with which I regularly conduct business.” Another says, “Having a high degree of professionalism, integrity and knowledge were all at the top of my list in selecting a realtor. Kathleen was clearly the best.”

A seventeen-year resident of Mill Valley, Kathleen has seen the community in boom times and in lean times. Through it all, the town’s core values have remained intact, including good neighborliness, generosity, and an appreciation of the importance of education. Kathleen shares these values, which is why she supports Kiddo!. “I love all the programs funded by Kiddo!, and I truly think it benefits every student in the Mill Valley School District.” Kiddo! is grateful to Kathleen Clifford for her support of its programs through her real estate business, and is proud to feature her as one of our October Business Partners of the Month.