Marcus Skenderian sees his strengths in helping people, an outcome from his good fortune growing up in various neighborhoods in Laguna Beach and his thorough knowledge of the real estate industry. Though it took him some years before he realized his true career was in real estate, it didn’t take long for this second generation Skenderian and father of three to use that blend of experiences and skills to make his own mark.
Q: What is it about real estate that you like so much?
A: It encompasses all the things I love to be around. Through my father I gained a love and appreciation of architecture that led to several years in the construction business. Helping people by building relationships and conducting transactions was something my mom exposed me to through her years in real estate. I bring it all together in my work every day helping people with their real estate needs.
Q: Do you credit your mom for your having entered real estate?
A: It was my mom who always said I’d be a good realtor. But it took me awhile to go down that path. I went to college where the first two years I realized becoming an architect wasn’t for me. After graduating from Arizona State, I joined my dad in constructing homes, getting my general contractor license. It was a good source of business. The time was just after the ’93 fires had run through the canyons. I ended up building 12 custom homes, but felt construction wasn’t my passion. My mother wanted me to join her, but it wasn’t the right time yet.
Q: Did you feel overshadowed by your parents’ success?
A: I just felt a need to do my own thing, and create my own identity. Both my parents were well known and well respected in their fields. I felt it necessary to walk my own path. I went into commercial real estate. I wanted to be a developer and did that for about fours years. An opportunity to get back into the construction business opened up and I took it. It was construction management for the L.A. Unified School District. It was a great opportunity. I was commuting daily to downtown Los Angeles, which took time away from my family. But it gave me plenty of time to contemplate I wanted to play more of an active role in my family. That’s when I decided to come back to Laguna Beach and work with my mom. It was the best decision I ever made.
Q: In what ways did your mother influence you in your work?
A: I think the biggest thing, more than anything else, was she taught me about the importance of integrity in business relationships. I observed while I was growing up and during the time I worked with her, she always put her clients first. It was how she lived. And I do my best to incorporate those same ideals into my business. I’m always asking myself during a transaction, is it the best decision for my client? Working on behalf of the client builds long term relationships. I’m not here for the short term. I want to be here 20 years from now doing what I do. I’ll take the short term sacrifice for the long term gain every time. She was the one who ingrained that into me; to be sensitive, empathetic and do everything in the best interest of the client. She is an amazing woman and I learned so much from her. After working together with her for about three years, she retired and I continued with the business. At 40 years old, I finally found out what I wanted to be when I grew up!
Q: How personal is Laguna Beach to you?
A: I grew up here. My family moved to Laguna when I was one, and they bought a house in Arch Beach Heights. My father, being the incredible architect that he is, continued to buy open lots and build on them. After my parents split up when I was 9, my mother, a single mom of two kids, decided to get into real estate. She worked in Laguna Beach for 40 plus years as an agent. She also ended up buying and fixing up homes at the same time she was an agent. We’d move into them and move out of them after they sold. By the time I was 18 years old, I had moved 20 times.
Q: What this hard on you as a kid?
A: In hindsight, it was probably the best thing to ever happen to me. I ended up living in just about every neighborhood in Laguna Beach. It gave me the ability to speak from first-hand knowledge to people about living in this town. I literally know every neighborhood. Coming back to Laguna to work with my mom in 2005 showed me just how special it was growing up here. I didn’t realize it as a kid. But as an adult and having seen more of the world, I gained an appreciation on just how magical it is to work and live in this town.
Q: What was your father like?
A: My dad has always been my hero. I wanted to be like him when I grew up. I started in an architect program at school, but two years in I knew it wasn’t in me. To this day he still makes a huge impression on me. What made him so special is his love of community so evident in the architectural culture he helped develop in Laguna. He always has, and still does, what is best for the community. He isn’t influenced by money. His passion fuels him. He has done so much behind the scenes. I can stand in any point in Laguna and point out something he has done or touched with his work. He showed me what it is like to give back to the community with the idea everything comes back around.
Q: His legend must still follow you around.
A: As a kid it drove me nuts. He was super well-known. I was always “Morris’s son.” Older and wiser, I love and respect that now. We remodeled a house and he was the architect. It’s the home we currently live in. It’s a full-circle thing for me to have him work on my home. Also, growing up he coached baseball and soccer. He still sees some of those kids after all these years. He inspired me to be an active member in my kids’ lives as well as in the community.
Q: How does real estate differ from the days your mother worked in it?
A: Funny, the thing I feel most different is it’s more of a “now” business. With all the technologies and expectations, you need to be responsive, adaptable, and quick. If not you will lose out to competitors. And there is so much more documentation. Technology has made the sense of availability and accountability a 24 hour business – texting, emails and properties to view any time of day. You don’t have to wait until the MSL book comes out to see listings. But the speed at which technology has pushed our industry has also made it easier for us at the same time.
Q: Do you think technology will take over the industry?
A: At the end of the day, I believe it is still such a personal business which can get lost in all the technology if you are not careful. People still want to feel related to, so we have to keep that in the forefront. For Laguna, it is a unique town – the homes, the streets – and you have to have a real pulse on what is happening in the community, the human aspect of it. You just can’t forget about that.
CONTACT INFO
Marcus Skenderian
The Skenderian Group
Surterre Properties
1088 N. Coast Hwy
Laguna Beach, CA 92651
949-295-5758
Marcus@SurterreProperties.com
www.TheSkenderianGroup.com
By Gina Dostler
