She loves to sell, so the prospect of helping buyers and sellers of real estate was too good of a gig to pass up.

As if she didn’t have a hectic enough schedule, Jen Benninger recently became a Realtor.

On evenings and weekends, Benninger works as a Realtor for Gene Durigan Real Estate in Lehighton.

That’s in addition to her job as advertising director for the Times News, a position she has held since March 2018.

Benninger started as a salesperson in the Times News Advertising Department in December of 1999. She was only part-time since she was finishing up her final semester at Cedar Crest College, and received her bachelors in communications in May 2000.

She became full-time at the Times News in June 2000. Benninger is also the event coordinator for The Kids Closet Sale, a division of Times News Media Group.

Benninger said that her inspiration to become a Realtor goes back to when she and her husband, Bill, sold the first house they owned in the Lehighton Heights section of town.

“A family was coming for a showing and I was waiting for them and their Realtor to arrive to let them in to the house,” Benninger said. “The potential buyers had arrived, but their Realtor hadn’t yet.

“They asked me if they could come in and look around. Before I knew it I was showing them the house.”

Benninger, whose family now resides in Meadowcrest in Lehighton, said she started taking online classes at the end of May, which she said were at her own pace which worked to accommodate her busy schedule.

She said she had to pass the course within a certain time frame, which she did in October. Benninger then had to schedule her licensing exam, which she took in person in the Lehigh Valley and passed also in October.

“It was then time to choose a broker to be affiliated with, and I chose Gail Christman of Gene Durigan Real Estate whom I have known for years,” she said. “I then became a member of the Greater Lehigh Valley Realtors, National Association of Realtors and Pennsylvania Association of Realtors in November.”

To date, Benninger said she has shown a few homes, and is in search of new clients to work with on their real estate journey.

For Benninger, becoming a Realtor is a dream come true.

“I love to sell,” she said. “It doesn’t matter what it is. I enjoy working with people to find them the perfect ‘fit,’ whether it be a marketing campaign or a house.

“I ask a lot of questions, am a great listener and extremely organized. I am also a very persistent person, as well as someone who likes to get answers to questions right away. I won’t leave anyone waiting.”

Benninger, the mother of three children, described how she plans to balance both her careers simultaneously.

“Most people look at properties during the evenings and on weekends,” she said. “That was a big factor leading me to choose to become a Realtor. It also has the flexibility that I need, and I can work as little or as much as I want.