Harcourts The Garner Group (HTGG) welcomes Kathy Lang to the team. Kathy was born in Eugene, where her family relocated to in 1963 when her dad started working with Eugene's Register Guard, a newspaper that is still in production to this day. While her family left Oregon when she was young, she and her husband came back to the state in 2022 when he took a job with Summit Health. Since moving here, two of their four daughters have moved to Deschutes County; they are working on getting Kathy’s mom back to Bend, as well.
With stints in California and Washington and many trips to Bend in between, Kathy has watched Bend evolve over the years.
“I understand some long-time Bend residents miss the old Bend, but I remember many years Bend struggled economically. I now see a city filled with local entrepreneurs and so much opportunity. Bend is a beautiful city with beautiful people. I feel so welcome in this city. Good people!” said Kathy.
Kathy’s work history is in various industries and always serving her community. Her past industries include financial securities, healthcare technology, public education, urban design, and social services. In the late 90s, noticing a growing presence of homelessness in her then hometown of Spokane Washington, she became curious about what leads a person to homelessness. That curiosity stayed with her for more than a decade, during which time she took her questions to city leaders, community organizations, and her city’s unhoused. Knowing the work would be hard emotionally, she kept herself at a safe distance until 2020, when she started working for Washington State's Housing and Essential Needs program (HEN), a program funded by HUD, that aims to locate stable and sustainable housing for individuals experiencing homelessness.
“My work with HEN was the most rewarding of all my work experiences . And, as I had imagined, it was also the most emotionally challenging. I came to know so many people whose hardships led them to very difficult situations. In this role, I worked with landlords, tenants, and leases. I quickly learned the complicated web of housing and unhoused services, the lack thereof, and how to negotiate on behalf of my client. It was during this time that I became a housing advocate. While working under this HUD program, I started to see other housing insecurities and became focused on working professionals who cannot afford homeownership in their community. There are few programs for those who earn 100% AMI, but whose income is far below homeownership needs. I sat on Spokane's Design Review Board for six years, chaired for the second three. This brought me close to many city leaders. I became too aware of the housing shortage and the vulnerabilities of renting. This is really what led me to become a realtor.”
Kathy now notes that she is grateful that Harcourts The Garner Group welcomes all transactions. Not all Bend brokerages want lower priced transactions on their books.
“When I met Shelley Griffin and Sara LaFaver (co-owners) to discuss the possibility of working with HTGG, they were clear that they welcome all prices. They welcomed me to focus on more affordable home purchases. I certainly won't turn down any transactions, but my hope is to assist clients whose financial situation makes homeownership challenging or perceive it to be challenging: first time home buyers, recently divorced, recently widowed, retirement, assisted living. Myself or my family members have had personal experience in each of these scenarios. I understand how vulnerable a person can feel when their housing is in question. I want to see more people exit tenancy and enter ownership and equity building. I want to help people enter into or remain in safe and secure homeownership. To me, real estate has to be about housing.”
“My real estate experience spans many years. I've shown homes for friends that went on to successfully buy or sell. I've personally bought and sold several properties. I've designed two homes and saw both come to beautiful completion. I've walked through first home purchases with each of my four daughters and their husbands. And I have successfully guided numerous individuals into housing security. Now, as a licensed REALTOR®, I am working hard to create a business that serves my community and am involving myself to better understand Deschutes County’s housing challenges and opportunities.”
Through her work and life experiences, Kathy has fine-tuned her ability to listen and learn from those she serves. She leans in closely to understand a person's story, needs, and concerns. She easily recognizes barriers and is resourceful at finding solutions. She lets her clients set their agenda. From there, Kathy applies tact, persistence, and diligence to help them achieve their goals.
Kathy and her husband are nearing completion of a full renovation on a 1979 home in SE Bend’s King Forest neighborhood. Kathy has led the design of their home’s transition.
“The minute I walked into the house I knew exactly what I wanted to do. All our changes are coming together beautifully. I am fortunate to see what can be in a home. I think this comes from my parents and the many homes they renovated. This has helped me with past home designs, our current renovation, and with others in their home search. Our current home reno has allowed me to build amazing relationships with our contractors and subs. All are artfully skilled. I can refer these skilled individuals to other with great confidence. That has come in very handy with many real estate clients.”
“My husband, Greg, and I have four amazing daughters, four equally amazing sons-in-law, two cute pups, and will soon welcome our first grandchild. All are healthy. All are serving their community. All are happy. We are very fortunate!”
“At the end of the day, I am a community person. If I could spend my life bringing people together and watching things happen, I would be my happiest self!”
You can reach Kathy here:
Kathy Lang
Harcourts The Garner Group Real Estate
c: 719-338-1632
e: kathy@thegarnergroup.com