Roshonda Coleman is a Realtor with Keller Williams Atlanta Perimeter

Atlanta Agent (AA): You have a very rich resume in volunteering. What are some of the most valuable volunteering activities you’ve participated in?

Roshonda Coleman (RC): I volunteer quite a bit with different groups, but one of the themes I stay consistent with is education. I am the chair for the American Marketing Association DECA program, which involves mentoring different high school students in Georgia who are looking to fulfill entrepreneur endeavors in marketing and other fields; here in Atlanta, I’ve helped re-write the marketing program.

I’ve also worked with Junior Achievement, Principal for a Day, and the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce board, and I volunteer with its education committee. The main goal is to motivate people in the business community to go inside the classroom and become more involved with schools, because what you see is schools with strong business support really are able to incur many benefits, such as stronger test scores.

Education is such a key to unlocking so many doors, and that is proven in my life. I’m a small town country girl, and all the doors that opened to me were because of the educational endeavors that I pursued. A focus on education also increases the value in the community. I’ve seen firsthand how some communities grow from an area where people did not want to live to one that was highly desirable, because the rising test scores made the area more attractive to families.

Also, volunteering really helps prepare the next generation, and I get so much energy and creative spark from working with that next generation of entrepreneurs, and those who are looking to better themselves through education.

AA: You have an interesting background in both the energy and marketing sectors. How does that background help you as a real estate agent?

RC: My background has been extremely beneficial to my real estate career. For instance, one of my responsibilities in the energy field involved launching programs that supported communities and counties; as a result, I worked with more than 10 different city governments here in Atlanta, which allowed me to learn the Metro Atlanta layout by my involvement with local economic development efforts, develop relationships with people across the area, and understand where the market’s hot spots were. I go everywhere in Atlanta because of those relationships, from Green Manor in Union City, to Canton Street in Roswell, to Acworth Beach, to downtown Decatur, to the condos in Buckhead.

The other two segments that really helped me being an agent was starting the builder/broker program. I worked with all the major brokers and builders in Atlanta, so I really know the full aspect of the area’s real estate, regardless of whether the buyer is looking for new construction, existing homes or an investment property.

AA: Finally, you work in Keller Williams’ Atlanta Perimeter office. How have home sales been in that area so far in 2016, and why?

RC: This year, we’ve seen an increase in home sales. It has been a seller’s market the majority of the year, with homes being on the market for around 20 days – in some markets we have three to four months of supply.  We have not seen many price bargains, if you will, with little over 8 percent less in sales price reductions compared to last year.

The school systems within the Atlanta area are really driving demand, as are the transportation changes in the perimeter area; the new interchange, which has helped the flow of traffic from one community to the next, has been particularly influential. The majority of my clients have families. They have transitioned from that newlywed stage to having kids, so their homebuying priorities have shifted from the convenience of living in Atlanta’s hottest single neighborhood to being in an area with great schools.