By Jenelle Etzel, September 8, 2025
Welcome to Open House: Everyday Excellence—the podcast where we talk with agents who do real estate with heart, skill, and honesty.
Each episode looks at the lessons, challenges, and moments that shape how we serve clients and support each other. We focus on the everyday choices that make a real difference.
🎧 Episode 4: Building Community, Not Just Sales
For many agents, the word “sales” feels uncomfortable. The pressure to “always be closing” does not match why they started this work.
In this episode, I talk with Lydia Hallay about another way forward. With her background as a union organizer, Lydia shows how real estate can be about helping people, building community, and finding joy—rather than just making deals.
She shares:
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How her organizing work shapes the way she helps clients
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Why buying or selling a home should feel more like leadership than pressure
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How care, authenticity, and advocacy can build stronger client relationships
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Why choosing collaboration over competition helps everyone succeed
Who This Episode Of The Open House Podcast Is For
This episode is for agents who love real estate but dislike the “salesperson” label. If scripts feel fake or forced, and you want to build a business based on relationships, this episode will inspire you.
You’ll get simple, practical ways to bring more advocacy, confidence, and heart into your work.
Why It Matters
Clients want more than someone who can sell. They want an advocate. They want an agent they can trust.
As Lydia reminds us, we don’t have to follow one standard path. By being authentic, kind, and helpful, we can create a business that fits our values—and serve better in the process.
Listen Now
Episode 4 of the Open House Podcast is live! Find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube Channel.
Jenelle Etzel
President & Owner, Licensed Broker OR
She/Her
What does being lead singer and guitar player in a female punk band have in common with starting a real estate company in the middle of a recession? Not many people can answer that question. But when you ask Jenelle Isaacson Etzel founder and CEO of Living Room Realty, there’s no hesitation; where most would see a chasm, she sees a bridge.
For Jenelle, it’s all been about finding a voice—the singular and irrepressible expression of self. Once a quiet, studious, high-school girl growing up in Portland, Jenelle started a punk band after college. She played guitar, wrote cathartic songs, performed, and traveled across country while living out of a van. All that seems light years from the present moment--owning a successful, growing company; serving on boards of civic and philanthropic organizations; enjoying family life with her two young daughters and long-time partner. Still, she uses the same voice now that began to emerge on stage years ago.
Whether it’s business or music, “It’s important to know what your voice is. If it’s true, it will resonate.” Jenelle’s voice, her truth, is about being brave enough to take action without apology, being heard without being exploited, to be energized, constantly problem-solving and refining her skills in the pursuit of building a purpose-driven company. All this requires risk-taking. She’s learned the hard way that she can’t fix everything and that not everyone will share her vision. But even as she explains the difficult choices she’s faced, Jenelle radiates joy.
“It’s never okay to play small,” she says with conviction. And this, more than anything, is what she strives to impart to other women, empowering them to pursue their passion whole-heartedly and to be leaders who speak with their own unique, unapologetic voice.
Living Room Realty, founded in 2009, offers residential, commercial, and property management services. Living Room ranks in the top 15 real estate companies in Oregon, with more than 110 affiliated broker-agents. For more information, visit www.livingroomre.com.
Noted Achievements: First west coast real estate office to receive B Corp status • Top Workplaces, 2014-2016 • 100 Best Workplaces in Oregon 2017 • 100 Best Green Companies 2017 • Oregon Business in Ethics Awards in 2014 • Jenelle has been featured in The Portland Monthly, Oregon Business, and REALTOR® Magazine • Portland Business Journal 40 under 40 Business Leaders • Board of Directors, Rock n Roll Camp for Girls, receiving 2015 award for creative philanthropy • Board Member, Entrepreneurs’ Organization Global Network, Portland chapter • Orchid Award recipient for Business and Civic Contributions • Guest speaker: OPB’s Think Out Loud, Investor Beat, Cascadia Green Building Council • Advocate speaking on behalf of Benefit Corporation legislation with Oregon Secretary of State, Kate Brown
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