Erica Kirk – Aviation, Residential, and Commercial Real Estate Agent in Kansas and Missouri

KS/MO – At Aviation Property Network, we’d like to introduce our affiliate agent for Kansas and Missouri, Erica Kirk, the owner and operator of WildBlue Properties. She specializes in selling residential, commercial, and aviation real estate. We had the pleasure of talking to her ahead of the NBAA-BACE conference in Las Vegas, October 17th to 19th. APN will be exhibiting at the show and can be found at booth C10443.

APN: “How long have you been involved in real estate?

Erica Kirk: “I’ve been in real estate for about 14 years but didn’t start out in real estate. I have a Master’s degree in Audiology, and before becoming a real estate agent, I sold hearing aids. Of course, during this time, I met my husband, got married, and we decided to buy our first house. As we searched for homes, I realized I didn’t know anything about the home-buying process, and I felt that in order to do this correctly, I needed to know everything about the process, so I got my real estate license. In fact, that’s pretty much how I run my whole life. If I don’t know something, I like to learn all about it.”

APN: “What aspects of the real estate business have you been involved with throughout your career?”

Erica Kirk: “Real estate, construction, and buildings are in my family. My father is an architect, so I grew up around buildings and blueprints. I was a home stager for a while, so I got into the design aspect of selling homes and positioning furniture in order to make the best impression on buyers. I did take some time off to raise my kids, but once they were old enough, I got back into real estate and received my first real estate license in Missouri in 2013. Then, about three years ago, I received my real estate license for Kansas. Once I had both licenses, I opened my brokerage, WildBlue Properties, to sell commercial, residential, and aviation properties.”

APN: “Do you have any areas of specialization?”

Erica Kirk: “My specialty is aviation properties. My husband is a pilot, and we own a Piper Saratoga. I really enjoy educating first-time buyers and sellers on the process of buying and selling their properties. I consider myself a natural educator, so any time I can increase someone’s knowledge, I feel I’ve done a great job. I also enjoy selling difficult properties. This could be a property that’s in disrepair or doesn’t have a lot of amenities, or it could be an unfinished home. In fact, I had an unfinished home in my listing several years ago, and these homes are usually unfinished and controlled by a builder. However, the owner was building this particular home, and the owner was acting as the project manager. He hired the general contractor and all of the subcontractors, and before he finished this home, he decided to list it on the market. This can be great for a buyer if they’d like to do their own personal touches to the property. However, when the owner controls the build, you must get releases from all the contractors. These are signed documents stating that the contractor has been paid, that nothing else is owed to the contractor, and that they are releasing their work. I was running around on the last day of closing for this property, still getting all those release forms signed. I managed to do it. We closed, and the new buyer took possession of the home.”

APN: “What is your involvement in aviation?”

Erica Kirk: “I love aviation as a whole, and I love flying. My husband is a pilot and has been a pilot since he was 15. We own a Piper Saratoga and take that out almost every Friday. We like to fly into St. Joe (KSTJ) and get breakfast. I was a student pilot in the 90s, and I’ve recently become a student pilot again. I hope to get my private pilot’s license in the near future.”

APN: “How long have you been involved with aviation real estate?”

Erica Kirk: “I’ve lived in airport communities most of my adult life. All of my friends are aviation enthusiasts, and most of them are pilots, like my husband. Regarding selling aviation real estate, I first got involved on the business side two to three years ago. I was at Oshkosh, which is actually the EAA AirVenture Fly-in and Convention. I was there doing the Challenge Air for Kids and Friends. That program pairs special needs kids and young adults with pilots so they can take their first flight. At that event, I met David Vaughan of Business Aviation Group and Iver Retrum of Aviation Property Network, and we talked about aviation real estate. Well, needless to say, I thought that was a great idea, and I started selling aviation properties along with residential and commercial properties.”

APN: “How would you categorize the aviation property climate in your area?”

Erica Kirk: “I would categorize it as good. In Missouri and Kansas, many smaller residential airparks and airstrips can be challenging to sell, but I love that. I love walking onto the property and putting together the puzzle of how to list it and what types of buyers might be interested in it, and then matching those buyers with the property.”

APN: “Do you have any degrees or distinctions you’d like people to know about?”

Erica Kirk: “I am a licensed real estate agent in Kansas and Missouri. I’m also a student pilot, and I love learning and educating people on home buying and selling. In fact, I’m a can-do person. Give me a challenge, and I will learn about it, figure out a solution to solve it, and do what needs to be done.”

Erica Kirk is the agent to talk to if you’re looking for a can-do aviation real estate agent in Kansas and Missouri. She’ll walk you through the process of buying or selling a property. To learn more about Erica’s residential, commercial, and aviation properties, you can find more information at WildBlue Properties.