The Roanoker September/October 2017 - 16

LUNCH WITH...

A Big Fish in a Small Pond
As a Long & Foster real estate agent and Rookie of the Year, Chris "Kidd" Carter
is excited about opportunities for prospective buyers in Roanoke.

LIZ LONG

CHRIS "KIDD" CARTER is what some might call "Roanokefamous." If you haven't met this busy young man, you may have
heard him on K92 for several years as a radio host. Nowadays, he's
in the real estate game as an agent for Long & Foster Real Estate.
Recently awarded Rookie of the Year and First Place Rising Star of
the southwest Virginia region, he also made Presidents Club, an
honor for agents with 20-25 closings within a year.
"It's been a lot of fun. What I love about real estate is that it's
cool to see prospective buyers' eyes light up," Carter says. "It's great
to be part of the experience and be responsible for that happiness.
You can't put a price on that."
Carter is from Roanoke and primarily works with potential buyers in the area. When he first started his new career, wanting to
work full-time for himself, he didn't know about the high demand
for agents. He often works evenings and weekends. However, he
doesn't mind odd hours to get the job done.
Even on his days off, he still finds himself working, thanks to
technology. He can do nearly anything from his smartphone, whether it's sending contracts to get electronically signed, pulling listings
or printing contracts in his home office.
"Real estate is evolving just like the rest of the world. Every field
has new innovations to make life easier for workers and it's no different in real estate," he says.
For him, friendliness and knowledge are key, as is the willingness
to put the work in. He believes it's "absolutely without question"
easier to be a realtor now than it was even a decade ago.

Realtor Chris "Kidd" Carter loves to stay busy, whether it's real estate,
comedy clubs, pool teams or DJing.

16 | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2017

"When my mother was an agent, they had the thick listings book.
Now we have the internet, apps, search results, all of it at your fingertips. There wasn't GPS back then, either!"
Carter also has high hopes for the market, believing it will continue to grow due to people seeing opportunities. He encourages
prospective buyers to check out everything Roanoke has to offer,
whether they love the outdoors or city life, enjoy festivals and breweries or arts and culture.
In addition to his role as a real estate agent, Carter owns his own
business, Blue Ridge Entertainment, providing disc jockey services
for weddings and other events. For the past seven years, he's run Star
City Comedy, booking headliners and getting people in the door.
The list keeps going, too. He also leads trivia nights at Buffalo
Wild Wings on Wednesday nights, and is the captain of two separate
pool teams that meet two nights a week. You can also occasionally
catch him back on K92 radio when he helps out should a DJ be
out or on vacation. Carter thrives off a busy schedule and says it's
easy to enjoy work when it's this much fun.
"I'd rather be a big fish in a small pond than a small fish in a big
pond," he says. "I hope we continue to have great people work"What I love about
ing hard to provide fun things
real estate is that it's
for people to do in our area. I
cool to see prospeccan't imagine anyone visiting
tive buyers' eyes light
the area and electing not to live
up," Carter says. "It's
here!"
When he's not working-obgreat to be part of
viously a rare occasion-he loves
the experience and be
spending time with his daughter
responsible for that
Brooke, a rising senior at Patrick
happiness. You can't
Henry High School. He moved
into his own home a year ago
put a price on that."
and tasks himself with renovations and work around the home, such as adding a custom bar and
a pool table in his basement. Above all, Carter enjoys working with
people, which pairs well with his extroverted personality.
"I like being a part of a chapter in the story of people's lives,
whether it's making people smile for the radio, making them laugh
with comedy, being part of their wedding day or selling them a
house," he says.
He smiles at me as we finish up lunch at 419 West. "I mean, how
many agents can sell you a house and then DJ the house party?"
-LIZ LONG
THEROANOKER.COM

http://www.THEROANOKER.COM

The Roanoker September/October 2017

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