Bad market. Good market. Buyer’s market. Seller’s market. Toni Rice has worked it all.

“They say it’s a buyer’s market but I say it’s a market full of messes,” says Rice, with her standard-issue mix of good humor and straight talk. “If you fix it up and price it right, it’ll sell in no time.”

With more than 35 years in the industry, Rice doesn’t give bellyaching much room to grow.

“It’s always different. It’s always going to be a buyer’s market or a seller’s market. You just have to learn to survive in it. If you keep working, it’ll work.

“People always need houses,” she adds. “Everyone wants to live here. They just don’t want to clean their houses. You wouldn’t believe the messes I see.”

Rice was recently elected to the JCAR Board of Directors for a three-year term. It’s a spot she’s been in before – 20 years ago.

“I figure I’ll do this every 18 to 20 years,” she says with a laugh. Over the years Rice has rolled up her sleeves to help with the annual spaghetti luncheon and the Christmas parties for senior citizens. As a director she hopes to get more members involved in the association.

“We’re such an isolated group because of the computer. I’d like to see more camaraderie. It used to be the Realtors really helped with everything. Now the affiliates just want to have someone else do it. And,” she says with a laughing punch, “I tell them. They know how I feel.”

Rice’s direct approach has endeared her to generations of clients and colleagues looking for someone who knows the area (she’s a Denver native) and has the spunk to endure – and even enjoy – the changing market. In fact, Rice’s own early experience created great appreciation for the industry, and propelled her into a real estate career.

“I tried to sell my own home over 30 years ago and I couldn’t do it,” she explains. “I got a Realtor and he sold it in a week!”

With that encounter, Rice wanted in the game. She segued from being what she calls a “domestic engineer” and Avon entrepreneur into a successful real estate agent. In the early years her clients were mostly first-time home buyers. As a result, today she’s working with their children and grandchildren. With an office at Re/Max Alliance, she mostly works in Jefferson County.

When not working, Rice remains active. She teaches roller-skating every Wednesday morning at U.S. on Wheels in Arvada. It’s a gig she has had for 30 years and a sport she’s enjoyed since she was two years old.

Rice’s father owned a skating rink and the young girl had professional-level aspirations. “I had wheels on my walking shoes,” she says. “I’m more comfortable on wheels than I am on land.”

Did You Know?

Till Death: Toni Rice has been married for 47 years. She and her husband have two grown children. “I’m Catholic, divorce was never an option,” she says, laughing. “You just keep going.”

I could have danced all night: Rice dances every Wednesday at College View Recreation Center, where a group of seniors enjoy ballroom dancing to live music.

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