Paige Kahle has been named a SPAAR Hero

Paige Kahle knows the importance of home. She moved around a lot as a child and felt it was destabilizing. Prior to becoming a Realtor® 20 years ago, Paige worked in affordable housing finance. In fact, her initial feeling about moving from affordable housing to real estate -- encouraged by her mom who was a broker -- felt like going to the Dark Side, but that subsided when she started her own company and was able to incorporate awareness to the housing crisis, equity to transactions, and educate people about her work with YIMBY (Yes In My Backyard).

Paige was instrumental in the 2023 launch of the Twin Cities chapter of YIMBY, which is based in San Francisco. YIMBY engages the community through grassroots education, boots-on-the-ground advocacy and by showing up to local government meetings to promote building more homes in more areas at all price points with affordable housing a priority. For her, being part of this important focus is just one way to help the real estate industry move the needle forward in getting more housing for everyone.

Paige’s company is The Real Estate Collaborative and in addition to YIMBY it supports the Rondo Community Land Trust, Urban Homeworks and Women’s Advocates, the latter of which is a domestic violence shelter where Paige has volunteered for years and is currently the chair-elect of its Board of Directors.

“I believe I’m a more complete Realtor® when I’m volunteering,” said Paige, who started volunteering in college and today is part of SPAAR’s Government Affairs Committee and Housing Affordability Taskforce. “It feels good to help others and make a difference. It’s about showing up. Home matters and is where everything begins. It is important for everyone.”

Paige lives on the West Side of St. Paul and has a large family that includes two children, a dog and a cat, her ex-husband and 42 first cousins. Beyond real estate, Paige enjoys local politics, knitting and reading; among the recent books she’s read are Wolfpack by Abby Wombach and How the Light Gets In by Joyce Maynard.

Congratulations, Paige, on being named a SPAAR Hero!

SPAAR Hero is a program of SPAAR’s Community Engagement Committee, sponsored by SPAAR’s REALTORS® Charitable Foundation. Members of SPAAR’s Communications Committee interview and write the SPAAR Hero articles, including this interview by Ben Smith.