A Day in New York City with Real Estate Agent Casey Joe
Casey Joe is a Licensed Real Estate Salesperson at SERHANT in New York City. She is the newest member of the Jennifer Lee Team which has sold over $450 million of real estate and counting. Before real estate, Casey built a career in internal communications and events, first at Hulu and then at The Walt Disney Company, where she spearheaded company-wide and employee experience programs. She has always been passionate about building relationships, connecting with people, and helping others achieve their goals. When she’s not showing homes or running around the city with her clients, Casey can be found indulging in the latest Reality TV craze, sipping on natural wine, or hosting a gathering of her own with friends.
8:00am: My alarm goes off and my dog Gigi promptly crawls up to my pillow to request her morning cuddles. This sweet ritual of ours is the best way to start my day. I check my texts, emails, and social apps, and after about twenty minutes of cuddles and screen time, it’s time to get out of bed. First, my husband Thomas and I take Gigi out together for her morning walk. Then we make breakfast — my go-to is eggs over rice topped with Lao Gan Ma Spicy Chili Crisp — 10/10 recommend — and get ready for the day.
9:30am: I’m a big checklist person, so in the mornings after breakfast I like to plan out my schedule and make a to-do list. It’s difficult to describe what a “normal day” in real estate looks like, because each day is so different and can change in an instant. But today is Sunday, which is typically the prime day for open houses. Today I’m hosting two open houses for our team — one for a sales listing in Brooklyn Heights and another for a rental listing in Greenwood. I’ve also decided to film some social media content before my first open house appointment. Since Thomas isn’t working today, I’ve enlisted his help. I gather my bag, my tripod, and my film assistant and we hop on the subway together to my first stop of the day.
10:00am: We arrive in Brooklyn Heights and check in with the doorman. This is Thomas’s first time visiting this apartment, so we start with a quick tour to get some creative inspiration going. I wanted to create a fun and unique property tour for TikTok. We bounced around with some ideas and filmed a few different clips around the apartment before we settled on a concept. Here’s the final product on TikTok! I’m still fairly new to the world of content creation, but I’m excited at the opportunity to utilize social media as one way to build a brand and a business for myself. It’s been fun enjoying trying out new things and tapping into my creative side!
Casey and her teammate Peyton attending a Broker's Open House in Tribeca.
11:30am: Bring Your Husband to Work Day comes to an end and Thomas heads home just in time for my first appointment of the day to begin. I head downstairs to greet each agent and their client before bringing them into the apartment. This unit for sale is an oversized one-bed, one-bath apartment with a bedroom large enough for a king bed and more — a rare luxury in NYC! After touring the apartment with each visitor, I like to take them to the rooftop for the amazing panoramic views of Manhattan and Brooklyn. It’s the perfect way to end each showing.
1:00pm: This morning’s appointments run a bit longer than expected, so I call an Uber to my next open house. While I’m in the car, I go over the details of the rental unit a few times. There’s a lot of context switching that happens when you are running between different listings, so it’s helpful for me to take a second to refocus and refresh my brain before arriving at a new listing.
1:30pm: I make it to my next open house in Greenwood just in time with a few minutes to spare. There is already a line of eight people waiting outside. I’m not surprised — this particular unit is a beautiful, one-bed, one-bath apartment that’s been recently renovated, with an in-unit washer and dryer, and coveted private outdoor space. After signing everyone in, my teammate Peyton arrives to help with the tours. During the open house, we walk visitors around the apartment, answer any and all questions, and explain the timeline and application process for those that are interested in moving forward.
2:30pm: After the open house ends, Peyton and I walk around the corner for a coffee. I consider myself an extrovert, and I love meeting new people, but after running from appointment to appointment and being “on'' for so long, a midday caffeine pick-me-up is a must. We sip our coffee as we head to the train together, catch up about our day, and debrief about how the open house went. It was a great turnout and we are confident that this unit will rent quickly!
3:30pm: I get home and am immediately greeted by none other than Gigi. After Thomas and I take Gigi out for her afternoon walk, I eat a snack that also doubles as a late lunch. I turn on the TV and sink into the couch for a quick break before I tackle the rest of my to-do list for the day.
4:30pm: Now it’s time to catch up on emails and knock out a few more tasks before the day ends. My first priority is to send follow-up emails to everyone who attended our open houses today. Because rentals move so quickly in the city, we want to ensure we can provide prospective applicants with all of the info they need as soon as possible in order to get the ball rolling.
After I finish with open house follow-ups, I spend some time working on a few things for my own clients. One of my clients is looking to move from Manhattan and start renting in Brooklyn. I sent him a few interesting units that fit his criteria, and we scheduled one open house for us to attend together later in the week.
Another client of mine is moving from California to NYC this summer. We’ve been prepping all of their paperwork so that their application is ready to go once we find the perfect apartment. I reviewed the documents they had sent over to make sure everything was in order, and we also chatted about a unit that they wanted me to view for them. Working with out-of-state clients who are excited to make NYC their new home is always so fun for me. I had dreamt of moving from California to NYC ever since I was a kid, and I feel so grateful to have been able to make that dream a reality. Now one of the best parts of my job is helping others do the same.
6:00pm: Today’s to-do list is complete, and now it’s time to enjoy what’s left of the weekend! Tonight we’re celebrating the recent engagement of our two friends with a wine tasting class at our favorite natural wine bar in the city: Compagnie des Vins Surnaturels in NoLita. This class is focused on Catalonian wines, and we tasted four different wines as the sommelier walked us through their history (my favorite was the Cava). After the tasting was over, we decided to move to the main bar to order another bottle, put our new knowledge to the test, and enjoy some dinner with good company.
9:00pm: Now we’re back home and take Gigi out for her last walk of the night. I typically like to end my nights with more cuddles and TV time with Gigi. I’ve been on a reality tv binge lately, so tonight we’re watching Love is Blind on Netflix.
11:00pm: It’s now past my bedtime! I can’t go to sleep without completing my seven-step skincare routine. Once I’m ready for bed, I turn on a 10-minute guided meditation to help me fall asleep so that I’m rested and ready for whatever the next day brings.