Kathi Obendorfer Shares Passion for Englewood through Real Estate, Giving Back
Real estate didn’t bring Kathi Obendorfer to Englewood.
For years, Kathi spent a great deal of time traversing the United States and Canada as a boat manufacturer sales representative. Seeing the highs and lows of every major city in the United States, she knew that lifestyle wasn’t for her.
In 2008, Kathi was living in Wesley Chapel, Florida, when one of her dealers introduced her to Englewood — a coastal, yet laid back community nourished by abounding kindness, a viable economy focused on family-owned and local businesses, and thoughtful, but not rampant, progress.
It was love at first sight.
Making the connection immediately, one of the dealers’ had a relative in local real estate. On her second visit to Englewood, she toured a Manasota Key home for sale and sealed the deal on the same day.
Englewood felt right.
FINDING A PURPOSE
Nestled in her comfortable abode, Kathi’s travel-heavy career as a boat sales representative resumed as normal.
Meanwhile, Kathi naturally took her residency one step further and started to volunteer her time and efforts for the betterment of the community. She joined the Manasota Key Association board and kept an active pulse on beach nourishment and other local issues.
She currently serves as president of Old Englewood Village, was recently nominated as president of her homeowners association, and remains active in her church as a lector and Eucharistic minister.
“No matter where I am, I like to give back and help make it the best place it can be,” Kathy says.
ABILITY TO PIVOT
In 2008, the stock market crashed and a nationwide economic downturn in the housing market and financial sector began to unfold, known as the Great Recession.
During the years to follow, many luxury markets such as the boating industry saw rapidly declining sales and widespread bankruptcies. Kathi had to pivot.
In 2013, she looked to real estate for her next career jump and secured her license. Her next step would be to find a brokerage firm, but like many experienced during the Great Recession, employment was hard to find.
“It was hard. Even though I was very experienced in communication, negotiation and building relationships, no one would hire me,” she says. “So I decided to start my own business.”
PURPOSE-DRIVEN SUCCESS
Kathi O Group launched in September of 2013 with a great deal of success to follow over the next decade.
She credits her success to one simple philosophy: loving where she lives and putting people first. Real estate isn’t about transactions, it’s about helping people find permanence, safety and a sense of home.
This is exactly what she found when she met Englewood.
ENGLEWOOD APPEAL
People who are navigating major life transitions — relocations, downsizing or selling family homes through probate — need a real estate agent they can count on.
Working exclusively in Englewood, Kathi O Group has been the backbone for many clients over the last decade.
“Not everyone understands the real estate process. People need someone they can trust to lead them through it,” Kathi says. “Every transaction is different and every one of them matters.”
Steadfast in her people-first commitment, Kathi says buying or selling homes is one of the biggest investments people make, and it deserves ethical and careful handling.
Very few people Kathi has ever met regret choosing Englewood as their forever home, she says.
Her advice for future clients looking to experience the same Englewood she’s known and loved: “Live in a place you want to come back to when you travel — that’s how you know you’re home.”
To reach Kathi O Group, call 941-208-5246. The office is located at 170 W. Dearborn St. Unit B, Englewood, Florida, 34223.
