Real estate firm plans to donate to local charities

A new real estate firm in Blaine plans to donate a percentage of its commissions to local charities.

Peace Arch Real Estate, founded by Steve and Julia Mullenix about one year ago, plans to donate five percent of its commissions to local charities including the Blaine Food Bank, the Healthy Youth Coalition, the Community Assistance Program and Grace House.

The real estate firm will make the donations in their clients’ names, and will let their clients choose which charities will receive the donations.

“We want to keep the list of charities local and small,” said Steve Mullenix, who relocated to Blaine with his wife and business partner Julia about one year ago, in order to start the new firm.

The couple, who have three young kids, were looking for an affordable town where they could live within walking distance from the school and other community institutions. “We were looking for a smaller town and a slower pace of life,” said Mullenix, adding that he really admires the “sense of community” in Blaine.

He previously worked with other real estate companies in Bellingham. Earlier in his career, he worked as a high school teacher in Lummi Nation for about seven years. “It’s a tough place to work,” he said. “There’s a lot of social issues there, such as high poverty, high drug and alcohol dependence and high teenage pregnancy rates, but it’s probably the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done professionally.”

Mullenix, who studied history at Western Washington University, was also in the Navy from 1995 to 2000. He worked on the U.S.S. Enterprise aircraft carrier and traveled to the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean on sea duty.

In Bellingham, Mullenix worked for other real estate firms, so starting his own business, Peace Arch Real Estate, was a hectic experience at first. The company has been licensed since January 2018, but it took them about three months to get off the ground and finally open their doors. “It was all brand new to us,” he said. “There’s a lot of red tape and hurdles to get through, and you wonder, ‘Are we going to make enough sales to cover our cost?’”

Fortunately, the company had a better-than-expected year, with 21 sales between March and December 2018. The company expects to more than double this in 2019, assisted by their growing team of real estate professionals.

Peace Arch Real Estate is currently adding new agents, including two from Buy the Bay Realty, which is closing this week, bringing their total to eight agents.

Real estate agent Denice Velasquez confirmed Buy the Bay’s closure, but said she looks forward to being part of a new team and continuing her real estate practice. “I like doing real estate, and I’m excited to work with Steve and Julia,” said Velasquez.

From its headquarters in Blaine, Peace Arch Real Estate serves all of Whatcom County. “We’re getting calls almost every day now, as people start to recognize our brand,” said Mullenix.

Mullenix attributes his company’s success to the personal relationships he and his wife Julia, who is on the board of the Blaine Chamber of Commerce, have formed in the community.

“At least our business so far has been very personal and very connected to people we know,” he said. “This business is all about trust, and people refer people to agents who they trust.”