Each member of the Miser Wealth Partners team brings something special to the table for the benefit of our clients. Some even bring a little extra. As an attorney and licensed real estate broker, Operations Manager, Jeanne Miser, possesses a unique skill set combination to help our clients meet a number of financial aspirations head on. Thanks to her hard-earned experience in both professional distinctions, Jeanne is essentially the whole package as far as impeccable attention to detail, stellar negotiation skills, conflict resolution, and then some.
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Jeanne became a Tennessee girl when she moved to Nashville with her mother and sister at the age of eight. A few years later, the family moved to Knoxville, where she’s proudly called home ever since. Jeanne spent much of her youth playing basketball in school, spending summers at camp, and even working as a candy striper at Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center in Knoxville for a time.
Her initial career journey began by studying psychology at University of Tennessee. After earning her degree, Jeanne decided to take quite the different route when she was given an opportunity to work in her stepfather Charlie Kite’s law practice. During that first year, her work in juvenile court and Knox County circuit court made a heavy impression that led to Jeanne setting her sights on law school.
With Charlie having a division of his practice at the time in New Orleans, Louisiana, Jeanne took the opportunity to drive down and tour different schools in the area. Baton Rouge is only about an hour away, so she decided to expand her radius and check out Louisiana State University as well.
“We drove over there, and I just felt it,” she said. “I walked in and felt like this is my place and I want this kind of culture. That was it.”
Jeanne started out studying civil law at LSU, but rather than focusing on being an expert in only one field, she made sure to have more of an all-inclusive learning experience. She then graduated in the top percentile of her class and returned to East Tennessee.
“There was no particular area that I was going to solely specialize in,” she said. “I knew I’d be working with Charlie, and he did a lot of business law. There was also a good bit of real estate, including titles, contracts, closings, and things of that nature.”
In college, Jeanne quickly realized she had quite the knack for negotiation and mediation. Those skills served her well not only at Charlie’s firm, but also when it came time to concentrate on a new business venture of starting up a coal company. Aside from playing a key role in the startup, she also served as in-house counsel for the company. But Jeanne’s most influential role soon presented itself – that of becoming a mother. First came a son, then twins some 20 months later. Jeanne then made the unregrettable decision to stay home and raise her children.
As the children grew and the thought of re-entering the workforce became more prevalent, a welcomed change would soon present itself, though not by happenstance according to Jeanne.
“I feel like everything in your life happens at a certain timing,” she said. “There’s a timing for things to fall into place the way they’re supposed to.”
Back track to Jeanne meeting Derek Miser some 30 years prior through her past work at Charlie’s firm. At one point, that work involved dealing with the legalities of property acquisition for a potential major music amphitheater project Derek was working on at the time. A connection had been made, and Jeanne and Derek ended up reconnecting after all those years. But this time, Derek’s focus was on his new business of Miser Wealth Partners, which he was more than enthusiastic in explaining to Jeanne.
“He stands in front of me like he’s pitching me all this stuff that he wanted to do,” she remembers. “At the time, he was trying to do it all by himself. I told him he needed serious help because there’s no way he could do it all by himself. So, I came on board and started working with him and just kind of got back into the rhythm of the workforce.”
Jeanne had no trouble hitting the ground running in her new role. From handling applications for annuities and life insurance, managing the opening/transferring of Charles Schwab accounts, to overseeing the coordination of client events, organizing the office, and much more, she’s always had the mindset of just doing what needs to be done.
“That’s just how I am. I’m a problem solver,” she said. “Just do it and move on.”
One particular client interaction, however, helped bring real estate dealings into the business picture. A relationship started to build with a client who owned a substantial amount of real estate. Jeanne found herself having multiple conversations with the man who needed a specialized plan for his retirement and property due to not having any heirs or general plans for his assets.
“He had recently lost his wife and was sort of letting things slide as far as his real estate assets,” Jeanne said. “He asked for help, and I stepped in and said, ‘Well, I’m good at real estate. I can do that in a heartbeat, and I have the background for it.’”
From there, Jeanne obtained her real estate license and hit the ground running yet again by performing a myriad of essential tasks, like correcting title defects, tracking down signatures for deeds, conducting title searches, diving into property transfer records, and a host of other things needed to get the job done. It all proved to be a very valuable addition to the firm.
“Initially, I thought it would be something fairly easy for me to do to complement the business,” Jeanne said. “But in Derek’s perspective, it’s a bit different. He has many clients who are older and have needs now. For instance, he has a client in her 80s who wants to downsize but doesn’t know where to begin. We make it a point to take care for those types of clients and provide them some valuable direction. Derek has such a network of people across the country available to help.”
Jeanne has quite the rolodex herself, especially on a more local scale in East Tennessee.
“I have such a network of people here in Knoxville, having lived here for so long,” she said. “I’m the kind of agent to come in and help fill a variety of needs. Whether you need to have a house painted or something built or repaired before selling, I have all these people ready to go whenever you want them. It’s like a full-service one-stop shop. Whatever your needs are, we’re most likely going to have it.”
At the end of the day, Jeanne says it’s about taking care of clients and ensuring they get the most out of their experience…which Miser Wealth Partners is nothing short of consistent in that regard.
“What gets me going is the level of satisfaction these clients have with Derek and our team,” she said. “Once they get in here and they get the experience, everybody consistently says things like, ‘I’ve never heard any of this before.’ It’s so outside the box from what they’re used to that they’re just blown away. Even personalized communication such as a simple text means a lot to them. They come in here and they hug us. It sounds cliché, but it more like a big family. You don’t get this level of service and this integration of everything that’s right there at your fingertips anywhere else.”
When Jeanne isn’t doing whatever needs to be done for the welfare of our clients, she can be found pursuing her passion for exercising, tending to her garden, devising her next home improvement project, or just spending time with husband Derek and their four children.
Get to know Jeanne more and learn about what she can do for you by calling us (865) 281-1616 or clicking here to set up a meeting.
