About Caren Greenwood

Before becoming a Realtor I was an elementary school teacher and taught at Fifteenth Street School in San Pedro.  As a teacher, I was always thinking of new ways to help my students learn.  I have transferred that same attitude to my real estate career.  I am always learning something new which helps me provide a better service to my clients.  Each home we sell has a new lesson to teach about how to achieve our clients’ objectives.  Real estate is complicated, and there are many aspects which are unpredictable.  I review every aspect of each transaction to be sure that nothing goes wrong.

As a part of my effort to learn more, I have become involved with the South Bay Association of Realtors.  I was elected to the Board of Directors of the Association and also serve as a director of the California Association of Realtors.  I chair the Community Action Committee of our Association.  That gives me the chance to meet the political leadership of each community in the South Bay.  I am also a member of the Professional Standards Committee (ethics) of the Association and have been trained as a mediator.  Mediators resolve issues between Realtors or between Realtors and the public so the dispute doesn’t end up in court or arbitration.  I use all of the information and skills I gain from these involvements to insure that our clients are well protected in their purchase or sale of property.  Because of my efforts in the community and at the Association of Realtors I was selected Realtor of the Year by the Association in December 2005.

My husband and I believe it is the responsibility of those who make a living in a community to volunteer to improve it. Thus I have been involved in the Bids For Kids dinner, which benefits the Harbor Area Boys and Girls Clubs and various other non-profit organizations over the years.  John and I were given the Community Builder Award by the South Bay/Long Beach chapter of Habitat For Humanity for our work with that organization.

Over the years my husband and I have received awards from ERA for Customer Satisfaction and for the highest volume of sales by a Southern California team.  We live in San Pedro with one rescued cat, Jack, and have lived here for more than 30 years.  Our daughter Liz went to San Pedro schools, California State University Dominguez Hills and Loyola Law School.  She is now a prosecutor for the City of Los Angeles.

Although some people are surprised that John and I can work with each other and stay married, it is not a problem for us.  We love working together.  We each bring something different to the real estate process, so we can serve you better as a team than either of us could separately.

About John Greenwood

I joined my wife as a Realtor in 1988 after ten years as the Director of Development at San Pedro Peninsula Hospital (now Little Company of Mary San Pedro Hospital) and eight years as an elected member of the Los Angeles Board of Education.  I have spent many years learning how to solve problems in a win-win manner, and continue that expertise in real estate.

Caren and I want to be sure that our clients think positively about their real estate transaction and about the two of us during our interaction and for years afterwards.  I enjoy working with the computer and negotiating real estate transactions. To help in these areas I have completed my Broker’s License and the e-Pro certification offered by the National Association of Realtors.

Caren and I both believe that all Realtor should be involved in improving their community through volunteer efforts.  An improved community certainly means that homes sell for more and your real estate investment becomes more valuable.  Even more important, we all want to leave a better community for our children.  Here are some of the areas where I have been involved:

• In 2001 the voters of Los Angeles approved $600,000,000 in bonds for police, fire and 911 facilities.  At the request of then Mayor James Hahn I am chairing the Citizen’s Oversight Commission that monitors the spending of that money.
• I served as founding President of the Northwest San Pedro Neighbor-hood Council from 2002 through 2005 and am a Board member
• I am a member of the San Pedro Rotary Club, previously served as its President and was selected Rotarian of the Year in 2002.
• I am a Board member and former member of the Gang Alternatives Program
• I was chosen as the Regional Citizen of the Year in 2004 by the Southern California Association of Governments and given the Founders Award by the Southern California Leadership Network
• I was selected as Citizen of the Year for the South Bay Association of Realtors in December 2007.

In all of these activities, I learn much more about our community, which helps us solve potential real estate problems.  It also allows us to share with our clients the local resources available to them as homeowners.

John Greenwood