ADI Scholarship Recipient Spotlight – LaTarra Jones
LaTarra’s passion for real estate is not new. It inspired LaTarra to get her real estate license while building her hair salon business. She learned, however, that representing buyers and sellers is essentially a sales role and she isn’t a sales person at heart. LaTarra kept searching for the right path towards a career she could be passionate about. It took a conversation with a friend in the Appraiser Development Initiative™ (ADI) program for LaTarra to light up. She realized that she too would love to be a real estate appraiser. She applied for the ADI scholarship, received it and has not looked back.
The journey to becoming an appraiser began for LaTarra in December 2023. To date she has completed three classes and is now in the second part of her schooling. So far LaTarra enjoys ADI and finds it to be a great experience. She especially appreciates that the program provides a mentor whom she meets with bi-weekly to answer any questions. ADI appointed Thomas Turner with Fannie Mae as LaTarra’s mentor and his broad experience, guidance and personable approach helps LaTarra feel that she is not alone through her journey.
As for the field of property evaluation, there are a few reasons why LaTarra is drawn to it. She likes that appraising is about reviewing the data and comparables to determine the value of a property. It’s like putting a puzzle together and, even though it can be a challenge, it’s a good challenge. LaTarra is also attracted to the service aspect of the job. As with her hair salon business, a big part of being an appraiser is serving people and ensuring everyone is treated fairly.
With the appraisal program at ADI there’s a lot to learn, especially if students choose to take the self-taught route like LaTarra. For those that do, LaTarra has some simple, straight-forward advice.
Don’t give up. If it’s something that you really want to do, keep going. The more bumps you encounter, the greater the purpose. Just stay focused and stay the course.
LaTarra graduated in 2003 from North Carolina State A&T University with a Degree in Business Management. After University, she worked in Finance before following her first passion – hair. She attended beauty school in 2008 and opened her own hair salon in 2009. She has operated her own business for more than 15 years. Her new goal is to transition from being a hair salon owner to a full-time appraiser by the end of 2024.