As a REALTOR®, it is easy to follow others and mimic their paths to success, but it takes a great REALTOR® to take a step back and ask yourself, “Would I want to hire me as my real estate broker?” This is how David Chung and Sunny Kim of Team David & Sunny approach their business. David and Sunny are Realtors at COMPASS (Los Altos) and the lead partners of Team David & Sunny.  Together, they consistently go above and beyond so that their answer is “absolutely yes” every single time.  In 2004 Team David & Sunny were Real Trends Verified and ranked #157 in California (small teams). 

Since her father worked in the airline industry, Sunny grew up all over the world. She was born in South Korea, lived in Switzerland from three to six, moved back to South Korea for four years, lived in Vancouver, Canada for a few more, back to Korea again for middle school, then to Los Angeles for high school. After high school, her family moved back to South Korea while she stayed in California to attend UCLA. After four years at UCLA, she moved back to Korea where she worked at Hana Bank – International Business Department. Then she came back to Los Angeles to attend Loyola Law School. After graduating from law school, she worked at a boutique law firm in downtown LA, got married, bought her first home, had her first baby, and then moved to the Bay Area. She has since then lived in the Bay Area for 20 years. Needless to say, Sunny is not from anywhere specific. Despite it all, she considers the Bay Area her home.

Ironically, the move to the Bay Area was also meant to be temporary, but the temporary stay was turned into a long-term one due to the 2008 recession. “At such time, my husband suggested that I get my license and he thought I had the right personality and qualifications to be a successful real estate broker. Also, as an attorney, it was much easier/faster to obtain the license. I got my broker license and joined David Chung at Alain Pinel REALTORS® (later acquired by Compass) in 2009.  David and I were church friends. I did quite well during my first year and became his business partner only after 1 year and the rest is history.”  

As for David, he was born and raised in San Francisco. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology and greatly considered going to med school, but he ultimately decided against it. Since his mother was a real estate broker, he decided to give a career in real estate a try. Before that, he was working in the restaurant industry in a management position. As David puts it, “Everything happens for a reason and when one door closes another one opens.” He shares that at the time that he was laid off from the restaurant business, “I got a letter in the mail stating that I had passed my real estate license exam.”

Sunny’s life experience in numerous places has enabled her to work seamlessly with people of various backgrounds. “Being in real estate, I’m constantly interacting with people from different backgrounds, ethnicities, cultures, etc.” In addition, she ties in her experience as an attorney to further elevate her service.

David takes pride in his patience and persistence. “I am a very good listener and also am very patient and very persistent. I will work tirelessly until I get results. Never give up and always work towards the goal.”

Most real estate teams consist of husband-wife or parent-child teams. David and Sunny pride in themselves in that they have successfully maintained their business partnership for 15 years.  As a great partnership with a combined total of over 40 years of experience, they exemplify their business’ tagline: “Changing Lives Through Homes.” 

They are both very committed and dedicated, going above and beyond for each and every one of their clients. As such, Sunny places loyalty as her highest priority. “Once I establish a relationship, I’m extremely dedicated, absolutely loyal, and I go above and beyond for the people in my life/circle whether they are my family, friends, or clients.”  As for David’s greatest advice, he shares the wisdom that “no matter how successful you become, always remember where you came from and be humble.”

Sunny makes sure to live life with a “no regrets” attitude. Sadly, she learned to live this way greatly due to a tragic, pivotal moment in her life. “My father passed away from pancreatic cancer when he was only 55 years old. It was the most traumatizing event for my family. He passed away 3 months after his diagnosis so we were not prepared in any way or form. It’s been almost 25 years and our family is still in the healing process.” From this, she learned to never take anything for granted and to live life to the fullest. She shares, “If I want to do something, I just do it. Through this tragedy, I learned that life is short and it can be taken away from you anytime.”

David, also experienced tragedy early in life, losing his younger sister to cancer when she was only 18 and his father also passed away from cancer.  David also believes in living life to the fullest and not “wait” for the next time.  He further believes in being truly grateful for everything in life and he considers all that given to him a blessing. As already stated, David always looks for the next opportunity. “We pride ourselves in giving our clients the best experience when either purchasing or selling a home and making it a successful one.”

Both David and Sunny define success as “accomplishing goals that you set out to do,” and both also expand on the definition to include forging a goal at every success.

David and his wife have two daughters and a senior Maltese named Biscuit. Together, they love to travel, ski, and try nice restaurants. “We also like to volunteer for church activities to help the less fortunate.” Outside the office, he likes motorcycle riding and playing poker and basketball with friends.

As her greatest achievement in life, Sunny lists “becoming a mom.” She and her husband have a son and a daughter. In addition, they also have a mini golden doodle named Leo who is six years old. “Every Friday, we order pizza and have a family movie night,” shares Sunny. In her spare time, Sunny enjoys hip hop dancing and performs regularly with various local dance groups. 

It is abundantly clear that Team David & Sunny have and continue to fulfill their definition of success. With every day, every moment, and every interaction lived to the fullest, it is without a doubt that she will continue to find success in her own life and continue to bring that success into the lives of others.