It was always cramped growing up in a small house with seven crazy siblings. As a teenager I yearned for freedom, space, and adventures of my own. Things did not always go according to plan, but those bumps in the road brought me to where I wanted to be.

My childhood in Poulsbo, Washington had truly idyllic features. I lived next door to my best friend, our house had a mountain view, we were walking distance from the beach. We would host neighborhood Kick the Can and Hide and Seek parties that my very strict dad would officiate, like it was the Olympics, which was somewhat annoying but made it super fun and competitive.

Then, my dad’s job took our family to Salem moving into a three-bedroom house. He always thought being brought up with small town values would do us kids some good. Apparently, this included my three brothers sharing one room, and me sharing another with my four sisters.  Selfishly, I did not always realize the sacrifices my parents needed to make as well. All I knew was there was no such thing as privacy and a lot of responsibility fell to me as the second oldest.

“Well, looks like I’m babysitting again tonight,” I would sulk, but only after being sure my mother was out of earshot.

I love my siblings and have great relationships with them now, but when I was a teenager, I’d daydream of just having some time to myself, which was literally impossible in a house that was bursting with people yet filled with love.

When I was in high school, I got really into fashion design and was accepted into the Otis Parsons College of Art and Design in Los Angeles! I saw an opportunity to get out of my crowded house, the responsibilities with my siblings and freedom from restrictive parents. No more small town for me!

While my parents always provided for us, they could not set us all up with college funds. What they did instill in us was ambition, discipline, and the ability to solve problems. I was not going to let a little thing like money stop me!  In order for Otis to be feasible, I needed financial aid, which was luckily being offered to me. I sent all the necessary materials in the mail and waited.

And waited.

I decided to contact the school, just to be sure that everything was on track. Apparently, the school never got the paperwork, believed I had opted not to accept it, and offered the aid to someone else.

“There’s nothing we can do,” they told me. “That aid is being used by another student. You can apply again next year.”

After a scramble, I was able to enroll in Western Oregon University. Not the leap I‘d envisioned, but a step in the right direction. I would take as many of the equivalent classes for Otis that I could, then transfer the units over in my second year.

When I reapplied to Otis, I discovered none of the units were transferable. Zero!

I had to admit to myself at this point that Otis was a lost cause and turned my attention to other things. I briefly went to a small design school where I met lots of wonderful people and received a very mediocre education. I realized fashion design had become less of a passion for me. And once I was not living in the same house as my family, I enjoyed living near them.

I ended up having a family of my own and that was the job I think I was truly meant for. Raising my kids continues to delight me. I have watched them overcome their struggles and grow into incredible young men, following their own paths to success. Of all my achievements, raising them remains the one I am most proud of.

I walked into real estate somewhat by accident, but after a crash course in the industry and a tumultuous first year, I have found myself ever so happy in my work. I look back on the good times in my childhood, even when I was older and thought I had it rough, and I look at the life I have now, and it all comes down to one important thing: family. I did not always appreciate them, but I do not take a single family member for granted now. That is what makes me happy. My hope is to bring the same opportunity to you and your family by helping you to buy or sell your home.

I feel my primary role as a real estate agent is to be available to educate the client. I work with a lot of first-time home buyers. Most of them do not know the basics. I am there to walk them through the difficult process. I also work with a lot of people who are either downsizing or upsizing and could use some advice. It is important to me that I am able to provide that. I see things through a very particular lens and know to recognize what clients might overlook. Another element to my approach is I remain a resource forever. Even if someone does not use me as their agent. I help in any way I can. I have gotten to work with all different types of people, and we grow close knit, almost like a family, definitely like friends. This seems to be a major reason for my success. I would love to have the opportunity to grow that same type of relationship with you!

With gratitude,

Victoria Wriglesworth
REALTOR®