Huntsville realtor grows business, breaking the glass ceiling In Huntsville

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF) - can remember the day that she entered the real estate business.

"It was January of 2004 and I remember the exact date, even, of when I got my license," recalls Howard.

Her parents moved to Huntsville first and then she and her husband soon followed.

"We just loved this area, it was so beautiful. It was a great place to raise a family," said Howard.

Howard says she started small, working hard and learning as much as she could with two small children at home. More than a year later, her husband soon joined her business.

"He had worked at the O'Hare Airport at the Y2K time to ensure that everything was going to be running fine," said Howard.

Howard says her work philosophy is a simple matter of common sense and problem-solving for her clients.

"As I was dealing with these families, listening to what their needs were, my whole goal was they have a challenge or a problem, how can I eliminate that for them? How can I be their solution?"

Howard says while other realtors complained about engineers, she did her homework, targeting their specific wants and needs. Soon, her business soared, and she shattered the glass ceiling in the Huntsville area, a place where large agencies were dominated by men.

"My daughter's saying why don't we have a woman president yet," said Howard. "And those are the things, I think, every woman wants to hear and that's what they're striving to do is to be a good example and how better to be a good example than to live it."

And Howard's lessons are passed on to everyone she meets.

"My kids come here to the office, other children come here to the office," said Howard of her family-oriented business. "We teach them all the same things that are important to us in our core values and our culture and we live it at home, we live it here."

For example, Howard steers away from using the word 'try' because it has a negative connotation toward commitment. She said she's raising her children to know the value of hard work.

"They don't get an allowance. Why would you get an allowance doing home duties? That's part of being a family. You have to help out."

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