The Heart Behind the Key

My love for homes started in high school. I didn’t draw blueprints or talk design—I took long walks. I’d pass through neighborhoods and wonder what life looked like behind each front door. What did it feel like to truly belong somewhere?

When I told my parents I wanted to be a realtor, they shut it down. “That’s not a real career,” they said. So I became a teacher. I built a life I was proud of, but I never stopped loving houses.

After high school, I moved constantly. Never in one place for more than a year—not because I didn’t want to settle, but because life kept shifting under my feet. At one point, my lowest, I was pregnant, living in my car, and completely on my own.

That experience changed my view of what a home really means.

A home isn’t about the number of bedrooms or the size of the kitchen. It’s about having a place to exhale. A space that feels steady when everything else doesn’t. A place where real life happens—good, bad, and everything in between.

My childhood home wasn’t that place. It was tense and silent, not filled with love or safety. So I set out to create something better. With the help of my husband, friends, and a realtor who guided us through it all—I did.

Now, I help others do the same. I don’t just sell houses—I help people find the space where they can finally feel at home.

-Christine Switzer
christine@larsoncollective.com