Offerin' Real Estate Insights

The Ninja Networker: How Kayla Carosella Built a Referral Empire in Cleveland Real Estate

• OfferIn.io • Episode 9

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Tired of spinning your wheels with cold leads and dead-end deals? If you’ve ever wondered how some agents seem to magnetize referrals, host packed events, and build a loyal client base, this episode is your blueprint. 

In this episode, Cleveland real estate powerhouse and Local Real Estate brokerage owner Kayla Carosella shares how she turned her passion for people into a thriving, referral-based business. From her early days in mortgage lending and title work to launching a brokerage deeply rooted in investor clients and community building, Kayla breaks down what it really takes to succeed in long-game real estate.

You’ll hear how her monthly meetups, including the Networking & Investor Luncheon and Ladies Luncheon, have become must-attend events for buyer’s agents, seller leads, and women in real estate looking for connection, value, and inspiration. Kayla reveals her system for attracting top talent, becoming a trusted mentor, and using guest speakers to drive real engagement, not just attendance.

We also dive into how offer management software like Offerin has revolutionized her team’s ability to handle multiple offers, streamline communication, and impress both clients and agents. Whether you’re exploring event planning for agents, building a follow-up system, or trying to grow through referral marketing, this episode is packed with tactical insight.



👉 Discover how Offerin helps agents win more deals, save time, and look like heroes to their clients. Visit Offerin.io to learn more or schedule a demo today.

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Welcome to another exciting episode of the Off Road podcast. We're back in the studio with a super awesome guest. I'm super excited to introduce, her to you. This is Kayla Carousell. Kayla is, truly a powerhouse in Northeast Ohio real estate. She's the owner of local real estate, which is a Cleveland, Ohio brokerage. She's a real estate, professional. Truly, of all of all levels, including an investor. She's a leader of people, a motivator and a super ninja networker. And now that's what we're going to talk about. So, Kayla, welcome. Thanks so much for being here on the show. I'm so excited to be here. Thank you so much. Yeah. So, I know a little bit about you, a little bit about your story. But for those that might not know, you, can you share a little bit about your journey that, into real estate and what has you here? Yeah. So my journey actually started in real estate officially in 2014. But I really started when I was younger. I've always just had such a passion for this field and this industry and everything around homes and what I found was what that passion was that I thought were homes were actually the people and the lives that you get to change along the way. So I learned that because I started in real estate, doing something I'm not doing right now, which is I was at a title company and I was there for about four years, made the transition over to CrossCountry mortgage and, got the lending side. So I was in title and then I transferred over to doing loans and I was there for 4 or 5 years. And then in 2019 is when I realized, okay, I'm while I'm working at the title company and, the mortgage company, I was also working at a bar, full time. So I was just working multiple jobs and trying to make all the money and trying to, you know, find my footing in the industry. And I knew title wasn't it, and I knew lending, wasn't it, but that I was getting closer. Okay. And so that's when I told myself, you're going to go get your real estate license, and you're just going to put 100% of your efforts into this. So let me pause you right there. What was the thing that got you just like you were doing title. You're in it, but you knew you're missing something. What was the thing you were missing? So title was like, you're behind the desk and you can't move from 9 to 5. And that's not me now that you know me. But, then lending was kind of that hybrid role where you are behind the desk, but then you're on the phone also, and then you can kind of get out there and network and that was the turning point for me is when I was able to get out there. That's what everybody in the office didn't want to do. And so it just gave this like, negative. Maybe this negative side to it. And I wanted to get out there. So once I got out there and I saw so the, the turning point would be I got in that room and I realized how I can own the room. And then the other part was I was making, one basis point to 3% of the commission that the agents were making. So that was a turn in itself to opportunity. The opportunity. It's interesting. You mentioned you were, you know, working at a bar as well. Yeah, that was probably more so selling than actually all the other professional work you're doing, because that. Was a struggle. People I heard heard you say that. And that was actually, you know, get to talk with thousands of real estate agents across the US and like, the ones that are focused on the people. Yeah. When? Yeah. Not necessarily the ones that are all about the money, even though it's the driver. Sure. But there has to be such a delicate balance of both. And that's the only time that I like the word balance, because when you're, you're trying to find it. I like the word rhythm. I like, you know, balance seems so one way or the other. And that's not realistic. Not in today's day and age where people can work from all over the world. Somebody can literally run a business from their home, from their home, from their phone, wherever they're at. And so I think that like once that started coming around that opened the door to, okay, how much can I really network now getting back into that part of it? So you oh, you're the owner of local? Local with a K. Yeah, that was cool. But, you know, like, local is a distinctive brand name. What is it? In that, what is special about local? It's just, you know, there's we're in the middle of rebranding right now because, I just became sole owner. Okay. Officially August 22nd. Okay. So, all the time leading up to that local is the only brokerage I have ever wanted to work for. Okay. So this. I want to take this back a little bit, because the struggle while I was getting into that was I had been in the title industry. I had been in the mortgage industry. Now I have to go figure out who I want to work with and who I want to be under, and all of the big name companies that everybody knows about Howard Hanna, Keller, Williams, Remax, all of these bigger companies. When I would go into them and I would talk to them, it was very much about, how are you going to be able to help me based on my experience and where I want to take this. And they said, well, we're going to give you the tools that you need to sell. So I've kind of already got those tools in my belts a little bit. I was hoping maybe you can help me. Like on the investor side of things, I, I, I feel like I can easily, not easily maybe underestimating it at the time, but I feel like I could get my footing in selling. But, there was this other part of it that I didn't understand everywhere I went and talked to, I would kind of look at the other side and say, okay, so where's the retirement home? And all I could get was sell, sell, sell. And I thought that was a red flag. So I needed to create a retirement plan for myself. And that's where I realized, no, you need to go out and you need to get educated on this market because nobody's going to educate you on how to spend your money as good as you can. You can go to different places and financial advisors and things like that. But what I had as a superpower was I already was working with all the people in the industry that were doing the business, so I knew who they were. You know, I knew what they looked like. I knew exactly where to go. So I see you as a very powerful businesswoman, and super networker as well as I observed you over the last, what, year? Year and a half or so. And you running your business. What do you think shaped that side of you? Oh, again, just getting back to the people because there's this thing happened, you know, your first year where as an agent, you know, you're kind of you're going out and you're just trying to get anything you can in the door because you want the experience. And that's going to happen for a year, maybe even two years. You're going to take everything you can get, because it takes a lot in this industry to really feel like you're getting the swing of things. Six deals is a lot to a new agent. Six closings is a lot and it's a lot to manage. So I lost my train of thought because I get so excited talking about that. Go back to the question. Yeah. You're such a powerful businesswoman. What is the name. Yeah. The networking part of it. And so yeah, getting back to the people, which is everybody goes through this in selling or that's all. That's all we do. Right. And so sometimes people can get complacent and that and that day to day kind of starts to go away. And when you have clients your normal client is going to buy a home. What every ten years, five years. So it's all the things that you do in between that, that make sure that those closings keep coming to you. And that is how I learned you build a very effective referral base business because that's what this is. Anybody in this industry, the first thing you need to do is you need to work hard. You have to have some numbers behind you. And sometimes that's the hardest part, because it could take you 3 to 5 years to get some of the people you're working to impress, to get to know this, you. And that's what I was going, and that's what I was going through all of here till like year five, I was putting myself in those rooms. I was hosting the event and still. Still nothing. Still nothing as far as the respect factor goes. And so you just put your head down and you just keep helping people. Okay. I was going to say what clicked. What changed the it was about the people and what I was doing and not the other side of this business that is so noisy. That is so noisy. That's super. That's a great nugget. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Do you think if you would have started focusing on the people from day one, you could have expedited that five year timeline? Or do you think it was something that you learned along the way that you're like, nope, I got there. It just takes time. I don't think combination of both. Yeah, I think it's a combination of both. And that's a great question because I don't think you could get there without the other. And I don't think that you can learn the lesson without falling. And so could I have gotten there faster? I don't I think with my timeline I think I move pretty fast. I know I don't think that it would have gotten me there faster. I think what I want to stop and say is I've always cared about how I get there. And so if it took a little bit longer because I did the right thing or I tried the thing that nobody wanted to do because I believed that it was going to work or I saw that potential in somebody else, then I was okay with it taking a little bit longer because the end goal is very much the same, which is with clients, customers and with my agents. My job here is to get you from the life you have to the life that you want. Awesome. So be really realistic on what that looks like with me so we can get there together. Yeah, and it's real. Estate's a very long game. It's a very long game. Yeah. So long for me. We met like, maybe a year and a half ago or so. Time flies. And and, you joined through our friend. You saw it? Yeah. You liked it. You said, hey, I think I need this. I think my agency needs it. What are what are the things that, about our friend that you enjoyed. Why? Why was that something you wanted to invest in? Why was it good for your clients? Yeah. I was so excited when you originally reached out to this because, like anything, this solved a problem that I didn't know that I really had. The first question I think Darrin asked me was, how are you handling your multiple offer situations? And I wanted to throw up. I was like, well, I'm I'm doing the best I can with multiple spreadsheets. That's all I know as far as an offer solution. And then when you brought this to me, it took out so much. And again, there's a lot of noise in a system. Takes the emotion out of it that we're already feeling with our clients tenfold. I mean, it's there's no way you can take it out of it. We just try to guide them through the best way that we can. And part of that issue, I have always felt, is I can't get to them fast enough because they're nervous before that house goes on, the market. So what I loved about offer in is it solved that problem of getting to my clients quicker, and then also having a solution that makes them feel comfortable because they can look at it and they're not just relying on me or what I'm saying. It's a service that I provide and my agents are able to provide. And what I find as agents on the other end love that we use it because they buy into it also. And so it's been it's been a complete game changer for myself in our in our office. So first of all, thank you so much for bringing that to us. I'm glad it's been helpful. Yeah, I actually, had a little story of, an agent that her first year, she was she transacted seven deals her first year, and, which is good. That's very good. Yeah. As for the buy side, four of her seven transactions were in offer in. Wow. So she, you know, more than 50% at a time. Nearly 60% of the time she had been using offering as a buyer's agent. So, you know, think about this brand new agent. You come in the world and, you know, four of your seven transactions, right? That's a standard. Yeah. So that's pretty cool. That's just fun stories like I have. Had that oh my gosh. Had I have had that back in 2019 when I was starting. And that's that's what I'm here to do is and you help me do that, you help me provide just exponential tools to my agents. Thank you. Yeah. I tell you on the opposite side, I've really admired you over the over the year that we've known. Just because the way you approach your business is different. So what would you say makes you unique compared to the other brokerages and other agents? Definitely that we have that anybody in my office that you talk to about an investment, I mean, you just get that investor language out of us. It's a totally different conversation that you're having. And that's what's always felt so odd to me and made me feel out of place, is because I didn't feel like if I was working at another brokerage, I can fully help the client the way that I wanted to, especially when you're leaving other opportunities on the table. And one thing that makes local so different is we are very much alive in that investor world all the time, not just in the beginning of the year when sales are down or the end of the year when when sales are down, because they're not for us. What what I found over the years is my investors really keep me afloat. When residential clients aren't buying or selling, or people aren't moving as much due to rates, investors are always buying. It's a part of their job, and they're always buying. In the last quarter of the year. Okay. Just for tax purposes. Yeah. Okay. So, you host monthly networking meetings. I've had the opportunity to attend some of these, so they're titled Networking and Investor luncheon. Yes. Okay, great. So, I've attended several you literally have hundreds of people in this room, like I've gone to networking events and it's like, okay, there's six of us. This feels awkward, but what is it? It's it's what are you doing different? What? It's the it's not stuffy. I feel, and it's, they they know they're going to come in there, and we always have a guest speaker. Darrin. Was. You were a guest speaker. You brought offer in? Yeah, I was last month. Guest speaker. But the person that gets the floor at that is such a huge opportunity for businesses because, yeah. It's an honor for me to speak and thank you. And when you're there, you know, I think yours, we had like 62 guests. And that's where the follow ups come around. And, you know, being able to bring you on as a partner and show people like that's what they need. It's a show and tell game. Right? Like people need to see you doing those things. And so offering just truly helped me with that. But I think to answer your question, what just makes it so different is we invite everybody. Why do you do that? Nobody else is doing that out there. Yeah. Why? Because there are people out there that need to hear what's going on in that room. And one little nugget can completely change their business. And I'm just one of those people that genuinely doesn't care where it came from and how you got it. I just want you to do good. So if you came to this meetup and you met Kane and thought he was the coolest kid in the world, I agree with you. He's more than ready to do deals with you and you can learn from him also. And it creates this synergy where you don't get companies saying like, hey, you work for this. There's no loyalty. Loyalty is built every day with us. And so business changes and rules change and we're always changing. Nah wants to throw something at agents that we have to all conform and sort of, you know, adapt and pivot with the market. And the reason that these events just get more people and more people at them is because the word of mouth is working and people are coming in there. Something's changing their business, and they're inviting somebody. And I just feel like people can't get enough of a good thing. And so that's why I, you know, for 2026, I'm happy to announce that we have The Aviator for 12 events next year, and we're rolling. That's awesome. Yeah. Well, with, the first time I came that I didn't know local very well, I didn't know this networking thing or what it was. I show up and and, I was really impressed. Like I said, 100 plus people in the room, and I was like, I don't know if I said it out loud or under my breath when I was registering, but I'm like, there is so much value here. You're bringing value first. Good, and then business will follow, reciprocate and that people will give business. People share business. They seems to be like you use the word synergy, I love that, but yeah, it was just it was really impressive. But do you have any big wins that you can? Do you recall any big wins that came out of those networking? Oh my gosh, I met my business partner in that meeting. There you go. Not perfect. But. It's kind of. Worth it, right? I met both my business partners in that meeting. I've there's been agents that I've been able to connect with and help them on their business. And, you know, they've came up like a lot of agents have come over to work with the brokerage. It's it's it's that that I love about it. And then in addition to the local networking event, I don't know if you know this, but what I was finding in those events when I really started attending them heavy in 2019 was that not a lot of women were coming to them. So in 2023, when I had taken over ownership, the first thing that I did was try to create like a safe space for women only. And so I do do a spinoff to that local, which is the local lady luncheon, and I do that once a quarter just for the ladies. And I host that in our office. So good. So that the ladies also get a chance to talk about investing and, and, and feel like it's a safe space that they can be a part of. And somebody not shedding like a negative light on it. So I'm always happy to be realistic about the challenges that come along with doing all facets of the business, but also show people that it can be done. It's just how bad do you want it? How bad you. How bad you want it? How bad do you want it? So I am, truly inspired by your story and by who you are, what you're doing in business and leading the way. You're. I'm mentoring people, probably directly and indirectly. So hold your head high. Yeah. You're proud of yourself and your work. So, we're going to take a break. Okay. And, you know, hopefully enjoy this conversation. Got some value out of it. We look forward to, continue our conversation. Thanks, Darrin.