Fine Design Included
Ashley Petroske saw an opportunity. A recent building boom had glutted the market with homes that didn’t live up to current design expectations. Petroske, 28, had worked as a builders’ rep for years and saw buyers’ need for a trusted advisor in the build-out process. She obtained her broker’s license and opened a real estate and design firm. “We provide those two intrinsically linked services for one fee,” Petroske says. “It really creates a word-of-mouth niche.” Does the bright red hair put people off? Hardly. Recently, a woman approached her and asked about her color process. Turns out the woman was a colorist in an upscale salon. “By the end of the week,” she says, “we’d written a purchase agreement for her new condo.”