EP #1: From Chalkboards to Property Deals: Embracing South Florida's Heart and Opportunities on 'Real Life with Lee'

Have you ever wondered what might happen if you swapped your chalkboard for a chance to change lives in a whole new way? That's exactly what I, Lee Aloni, did when I traded lesson plans for property listings, and it's been quite the adventure under the South Florida sun. Alongside Jeremy Wolf, we invite you into our world of warm weather and warmer community ties on "Real Life with Lee." This isn't just a podcast; it's a front-row seat to the transformative power of following your heart right into the epicenter of where dreams meet real estate opportunities.

As the sun sets on our first episode, it's clear that the essence of South Florida isn't just about what you see; it's about the people you meet and the connections you forge. Whether you've been a part of our journey from the start or are just joining us, your contributions make our tapestry richer. We're here to celebrate every story, every transaction, and every laugh that comes with living and working in this vibrant community. So, until our paths cross again, remember that the spirit of South Florida is just a play button away.

For more information visit https://leealoni.com/ or give me a call (754) 244-3352.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:05

Welcome to Real Life with Leigh. Powered by Leigh Ohlone, south Florida Real Estate at G&E Realty Group, the show where Leigh and her guests talk about everything South Florida, 24-7, 365, and why you should make it your home, sweet home. Leigh is a realtor, a South Florida resident since the age of five, devoted wife and mom and a dedicated community volunteer. Now, without further ado, here's your host, lee Ohlone.

Jeremy: 0:41

Hello, hello everyone, and welcome to episode number one, numero uno, of the Real Life with Lee podcast, real Life with Lee sitting here with none other than your host, lee Eloni. I'm your co host for the day, jeremy Wolf, and you know I got to say Lee. It seems we've come full circle here because I believe about a little under a year ago you were the first guest on my podcast, the Good Neighbor Podcast, and here we are now today with your very own show. So congratulations.

Lee Aloni: 1:11

Thank you, it's so exciting.

Jeremy: 1:13

Yay, we did it Always like to set the stage when we start one of these off and we kick this thing off here. So, first off, why don't you tell us a little bit about Leolone, right? What do you do? I know you're a realtor, you're very active in the community. Tell us a little bit about yourself, your story and what you do here in the community, and then we shall proceed from there.

Lee Aloni: 1:36

Oh, wow, okay. So, as the intro states, I've lived here since I was five years old. I'm years old and I'm still here because I love it so much. Raised our kids here, our kids have grown and flown and again I'm still here. I love what I do. Before I was a realtor, I was a teacher, so I bring all of that with me into my real estate business and I really love my community. I love helping and I'm just so excited to be on this podcast with you.

Jeremy: 2:10

I am definitely With me. It's your podcast, come on.

Lee Aloni: 2:14

It is my podcast.

Jeremy: 2:15

I'm here with you, lee, this is your podcast.

Lee Aloni: 2:17

That's right. I'm owning it. I've been wanting to do this for a very long time for years, and it's just. I'm so happy I jumped on the train here.

Jeremy: 2:29

Yeah, well, I'm honored to be here with you and I want to unpack some of this because I myself I haven't been here since I was a child. Well, you know, I moved down to Florida when I was about 15 or 16. So I've been here a majority of my life now. But I do love living in South Florida. Obviously, we both live in Cooper City. It's a wonderful place. I have kids going through the school system. You've been here for a lot longer than I have and you're doing a lot of great things in the community. Tell us a little bit about Leolone Real Estate and your real estate career and your background and how you got into it, and then we can get into the teaching stuff that kind of led you there.

Lee Aloni: 3:09

Awesome how I got into real estate. First of all, it's our family-owned company, it's G&E Realty Group and it's in the heart of Davie. I take a lot of pride in the business and I've been a realtor for about eight years now and I've seen a lot of changes in Broward County in particular and in South Florida throughout the years. I really enjoy helping my clients find their home, sweet home, and I also enjoy helping business people find a new office to lease, to buy what have you? I've done it, I want to continue doing that and I really like to spotlight how South Florida can enhance everyone's lives. You know people are going to see this podcast coming from out of the state, hopefully, and I want to show them how great it is here. It's not just the weather, it's all of the wonderful activities that go on here, it's the people and it's the communities.

Jeremy: 4:12

Yeah, it truly is a wonderful community and I must say I was recently. I've actually told the story several times now. I was up visiting my brother. Some of my family is still stragglers living up in the Northeast. I was up in New Jersey over the holidays and we had a wonderful time but, like man, it was like gloomy every day up there. It was congested, it was just, it was depressing. And when I got back to Fort Lauderdale my father picked up my family at the airport and we drove out of Fort Lauderdale airport and it's just so open and spacious and bright and I had this. I just had to say I was like I love living down in sunny South Florida. It really is amazing.

Lee Aloni: 4:49

Yeah, and you know people look at the. It's March and the weather is gorgeous. Yeah, it is, I'm not going to lie. The weather is a big draw for a lot of people. You know, my cousins, half of my family, still live in Chicago and they're crying over the snow today. My family still live in Chicago and they're crying over the snow today. I'm sorry. I keep telling them move down here. You know, it's living the life.

Jeremy: 5:11

I don't know if we'll be bragging about the weather in three or four months from now, in the heat of the summer.

Lee Aloni: 5:16

Listen. Every place has their drawbacks All I know and every place has their pluses. I get to wear my t-shirt and my leggings and my flip flops when I'm not selling real estate. Thates, I get to wear my t-shirt and my leggings and my flip-flops when I'm not selling real estate. That's my uniform. That's my official Florida uniform. It is. I don't have to think about putting on a coat or layers or anything like that. So that's a bonus big time.

Jeremy: 5:39

So let's go back in time. You said your background is in education time. You said your background is in education, teaching. How did you get into education and talk a little bit about what you did in that space, who you taught, what level, what grade?

Lee Aloni: 5:53

Yeah, it's a sweet story. When I was a little girl, on my patio in Pembroke Pines I would play teacher. I had my blackboard. I did, I really did. I had my blackboard and my chalk and that eraser and I had a bunch of books and I would teach my students who were my friends or the stuffed animals or what have you. You know, yeah, so I always I was rehearsing to be a teacher and I grew up and you know I did it. I actually became a teacher. So I was a pre-K teacher at the David Posnack JCC right at the end of our student.

Jeremy: 6:26

I didn't know that, so you actually taught at JCC.

Lee Aloni: 6:27

Yeah, I taught at JCC.

Jeremy: 6:29

I actually had Scott Ehrlich on the Good Neighbor podcast.

Lee Aloni: 6:32

I know.

Jeremy: 6:34

Three, four months ago, I guess. There it is.

Lee Aloni: 6:35

It's all about JCC a wonderful organization, obviously it is, and I've seen that place, you know, since when it started and it was small and I would go and exercise in the gym. You know I remember I was here when it opened, anyway, so it was. It was really full circle for me to come to go to the school there to teach, and I taught pre-K. My students were such a joy. I have to tell you it was the most grueling job ever in my life.

Jeremy: 7:07

I bet I have. I have two kids myself and I can't even imagine having a whole class of kids.

Lee Aloni: 7:09

Oh my goodness, yeah, yeah, 20 kids. It was loud and it was the most rewarding career.

Jeremy: 7:15

Often the most grueling, challenging things do yield the most reward right.

Lee Aloni: 7:21

Yeah, they're in my heart still. I still see some of my students and the parents, the families, and I've sold properties to some of them. So it's, it's really, um, you know it, it was meant to be and um, yeah, so what was the question?

Jeremy: 7:37

No, no question, I just I I'm interested how obviously I know that, how it evolved how everything, how it evolved from teaching and I know it's kind of a family business. You have G&E Realty. Yeah, what was that transition like? How did you transition from education into real estate?

Lee Aloni: 7:54

I transitioned when my sons, the twins we have three sons, one is 30, and he's the oldest one, and then the twins will be 26 next month. So when they went to college almost eight years ago, they graduated high school and I graduated from teaching pre-K and I said I need to do something for myself. And my husband had been, you know, saying to me for so many years are you going to join the business? Come on. And I wouldn't do it because I didn't want to do anything halfheartedly. You know, my heart was raising our children and teaching those students, and that's quite enough. And also my husband is a realtor, you know, for over 20 years, and one realtor in the family, you know. Every people have to do whatever works for them.

Lee Aloni: 8:38

This is what I felt. I wanted to raise my kids, I wanted to volunteer, be involved with them. I was their den leader, I was the room mom, I was PTA mom, I was band mom. I did all these things. I was really blessed to do that. And um, and then I, you know, I started teaching when they were in fourth grade and then it was time for me and I really jumped in full force into the deep end over there with real estate and it was the best thing I could have ever done. It was such a great transition. You know, there's nothing better than feeling like you're all in and you can give your whole self to it. So here I am and I get to give my whole self. You know, listen, I take care of me too. There are boundaries, but I take care of my clients and nothing makes me feel better than to know that they are resting easy, you know, at night, on their pillow, under the roof of the house that I sold to them. So you know, that's a great feeling.

Jeremy: 9:44

It really is yeah for sure. So sitting here today. Now, I know you are very, very active in the community. You're active within the Chamber of Commerce. Obviously you're busy and you've mentioned that you've been wanting to do this for a while have your own podcast and kind of talk about life here in South Florida. What is the ultimate motivation behind doing this show? Why real life with Lee?

Lee Aloni: 10:10

Okay, first of all, I love communicating. My husband tells me that I like to talk, no-transcript. Tell me, you know, I went to that place. You told me that restaurant, that museum, we did the water cruise, you know it's great. And, by the way, I used to be a travel agent in my twenties. So for 10 years, yeah, I was a travel agent. So, um, this is my, this is my, my. I love traveling, you know, um, and I, I love being out and about in, in, uh, the communities and cities and towns. Um, so that's my. And then to bring it, of course, I am a am a realtor. Yes, I would love to sell you a house. Would you like to buy a house? Would you like to sell a house?

Lee Aloni: 11:23

list with lee, yeah, your real estate dreams, you know well, this is, this is what it's all about, right?

Jeremy: 11:31

we only. We only get to live life once, and if you don't put yourself out there and you don't share with everyone else, you know you're missing out. I mean, I guess it's not for everybody. Some people like being being to themselves, but one of the things that I've learned as I've toppled 40 is I need to, I need to get out of my comfort zone and I need to put myself out there and I need to share with you. I need to do so. I want to. I want to leave this earth knowing that I did everything I could to make it a better place and not have any kind of regrets, and I and I felt like I wasn't doing a good job at that prior to getting into what I do now, and now I'm out trying to make this place better. That's all we can do.

Lee Aloni: 12:13

Jeremy, that's what it's all about. You know, I'm a person of faith and I'm not preaching any religion to anyone. There's a higher source out there that you know we're here for. We got here somehow. You know, we didn't just land and we're here for a reason, and I know the reason for me is love, and that means being kind and helping and doing whatever we can to make this world a better place. So it's the environment, it's the local government, it is our businesses, it's our families, it's our friends, and I want us to share the word. I want to share what that means for me and I want to engage with other people. I really want to get other people's perspectives and and share that, because we all have something, a dialogue, going on in our heads and we do, and I'd love to connect with people and when we do something good, it helps others to do something good.

Jeremy: 13:26

Rising tide lifts all boats right.

Lee Aloni: 13:28

Yes, yes, I just heard that yesterday from one of my friends. Did you really? I did.

Jeremy: 13:38

Absolutely, it's very true, yeah, and one of the things I've come to realize is everybody, every human being, has something great within them, and I feel like I'm on a mission to try to bring that out of people right. Everybody has something great to offer to this world. So many people go through their lives and they never tap into that, and the only way you could truly tap into that is by truly expressing yourself one way or the other and letting your guard down, and I think this is a wonderful space to do that and, like you said, bring people in to talk about themselves and just really build our community up and try to do good in this world.

Jeremy: 14:14

And let me add to that.

Lee Aloni: 14:16

It's really hard to be vulnerable. Oh yeah, it's really hard to open up. I've been doing that. I've been pushing through my comfort zone. It's not comfortable at all. You know, I get out there and I speak. It may not be perfect, it doesn't matter. It's how you make people feel and that's what this podcast is all about. It is real life with me, with everyone around me, with all of my surroundings. That's it and that's not it. That's everything, everything.

Jeremy: 14:52

Well, I'm certainly excited to be on this journey with you and I'm looking forward to exploring everything South Florida on Real Life with Lee. Yes, I can't wait, I think we'll. It's a good spot to end it right there, I think.

Lee Aloni: 15:07

Okay, I actually wanted to let you know what REAL is all about. Oh, please do. I made up an acronym for it. You know being the teacher, you know.

Jeremy: 15:19

Being the teacher that you are. You got a little acronym for real let's go. Let's go, try me out here, test me out what is real.

Lee Aloni: 15:25

What does the word?

Jeremy: 15:26

mean what?

Lee Aloni: 15:27

is real. Okay, for real. It's not AI, you's a different story. I am real. This is not an image. I'm a realtor, so you would thank ours for real estate, right? You know real? Sure, that's fine, that's fine. I'd love to sell you home. Like I said before, that's great. It's also I'm a living human being first. So ours is for real life stories and real people in South Florida. And it's also about being authentic and transparent and professional. And so my best friend tells me all the time you better say this, because this is what you are. You are relatable. So R is relatable, that is me to a T. Okay, yes, yes, thank you.

Lee Aloni: 16:17

All right, and then E. E is all about energy and it's what energy do we bring to this world and and to others and our communities, and where's that energy coming from? And again, for me, it's coming from my heart. And A ask Ask me anything. Ask questions of your friends, your family, your peers, your mentors, your teachers, your spiritual leaders, local politicians, community advocates, local politicians, community advocates. How do we learn if we do not ask? How do you receive what you are looking for if you don't ask? Just ask. And L? L is live, love, learn and laugh, whatever order you want it to be in. Live your life, yes, live your life fully, so you open your heart for yourself and for your neighbor and learn as much as you can so you can help others, and laugh, because it's so good for our souls. So that's me. That's really really real Lee. Real life with Lee.

Jeremy: 17:33

I love it. Good stuff, lee. Thank you, yeah, all right. Well, always a pleasure seeing you and I'm sure we'll be seeing each other real soon. To everyone, thank you so much for tuning in and we will catch everyone next time. Everyone, take care, have a wonderful day We'll see you real soon, all right, Bye, bye.

Speaker 1: 18:01

Thanks for joining us on real life with Lee. If you love the show and it's helped you in any way, please subscribe and leave us your comments. We're all about helping each other in the community and we're so appreciative of you. You're all about helping each other in the community and we're so appreciative of you. You're invited to share this episode on social media and with someone you know. Tune in next time to learn more about life in South Florida and real life with Lee.