“I was in business administration, supporting C-level executives for more than 20 years,” says Courtney Mazal, Supervising Broker of Bliss Realty Group. “It was time for me to be a more present parent as I began navigating the journey of divorce and becoming a single mom.” She recognized that dropping her daughter off at 7:00 AM for daycare and retrieving her sometimes as late as 7:00 PM was costing her valuable family time that she would never reclaim. Her sister is a successful real estate agent in Texas and encouraged Courtney to consider real estate. Taking her advice, Courtney started studying for her license in her downtime, at the last corporate job she held. “They basically paid me to get licensed in real estate,” she remembers with a chuckle. “I was working long hours and studying on my time off, so when I passed the test on my first try I knew it was time to make a decision.” 

Courtney got her license, but it was the timing that made her a believer in fate. “I walked into work two weeks after taking the test and was told I was being let go,” she recalls. “I was devastated as I drove home, and when I looked at my email at a stoplight I discovered my license had come in.” It wasn’t easy from there, but Courtney jumped in with both feet and was grateful she had a plan that would provide the flexibility she was going to need to balance work and motherhood, something she’d watched her mother struggle with as she was growing up. 

“My mom raised three girls by herself, waiting tables and driving a cab,” Courtney recalls. “She did everything she could for us, but I quickly learned that I would need to make my own way in life.” She got a job as a paper carrier at age 11, slinging papers out of the back of her mother’s station wagon. She says, “I’ve been working my whole life, and anything I had, I had to earn.” One of her most poignant memories was the feeling of housing instability, and that was another driving motivation that led her to real estate. 

“Growing up, we never owned a house, we just moved from house to house as our circumstances changed,” Courtney remembers. “At one point as a teenager, my car was repossessed because we couldn’t afford the payments.” She vowed that her daughter would never experience the financial insecurity she did in her childhood and early adulthood. “I wanted to make sure that my daughter had more opportunities and didn’t have to worry about the things I did growing up, and I was able to realize this dream in the first two years of my business,” Courtney says with wonder. “I didn’t do it by myself, I had Jonas helping me along the way.” She’s forever grateful to Jonas Ginther, Managing Broker/Owner of Bliss Realty Group and childhood friend who brought her on to help with structuring the administrative side of his company when it started. 

“My administrative background came in handy in helping to start Bliss,” Courtney says. “I handle the new agent onboarding, manage our website and review all of our transaction files, as well as tackle other back office work that people don’t always consider when they see a business growing.” Jonas has been a godsend to her in many ways, from guiding her as a new agent, to helping financially between commission checks to help her make rent as she built her business.  She acknowledges that she wouldn’t be where she is without his support. “He’s my best friend and one of the best humans I’ve ever known,” she says. “He’s been in real estate for close to three decades and excels at what he does - he’s an absolute bulldog for his agents.” 

Courtney is gratified that her hard work is starting to pay off. “In 2021 I figured out how to make money and became more self-sufficient,” she says gratefully. “I was able to buy a home and a car for my daughter, completely on my own.” Her daughter, Isabel (17) is a competitive softball player and the driving force behind Courtney’s motivation. “I can’t fail,” she says simply. “She is my entire world and I have to set a good example for her.” Another important soul in her world is the family’s Golden Retriever, Nellie (3). “She was a Covid puppy and is a certified emotional support dog,” Courtney explains. “If it weren’t for her I might not have been pushed to buy our home.” While the home purchase was a dream turned reality, Courtney learned a valuable lesson. “It’s not easy money and I wish I had set more aside for the slower times,” she says. “It’s not for the faint of heart but if you are open to learning and adjusting your expectations you can make your own success.”  

Courtney is grateful for the experiences - wonderful and painful - that have paved her way to real estate. “I’m passionate about helping people cope with real estate sales - not just the happy first-time homebuyers,” she explains. “But the divorces and dividing of assets, downsizing because kids have flown the nest, and the estate sales - supporting people in all aspects of their real estate journey.” She knows - she’s been there - and her clients know that she will support them every step of the way. “When you love what you do and focus on the work at hand, success naturally follows,” she says. “It’s not easy but the success definitely far outweighs the struggle.”