Steve Hicks Purchases First Choice Real Estate From Trudi Niedert

Steve Hicks has purchased First Choice Real Estate in Milbank from Trudi Niedert. The sale was completed on Friday, August 2. Steve, a 2009 graduate of MHS, is happy to call Milbank home again after living and working in Fargo for 15 years. “We’ve got a lot going on,” Steve remarks, “but it feels so good,” He and his wife, Katie, will celebrate their first wedding anniversary next month, and they just welcomed a baby son named Iver. The couple moved to property they purchased four miles from Milbank and two miles from where Steve’s father, John, still lives. Other family members are dotted across the area. It’s a list that combines joyful beginnings with the solidness and warmth of returning home. And home is an important word to Steve in both his personal and professional life. He realizes home can mean 1000 different things to 1000 people, but he sees real estate as an opportunity for him to help others find their own dream of home.

Steve started his real estate career early. He hit the ground running by earning his real estate license at age 18. He began selling real estate two weeks after he graduated from Milbank High. “It’s literally all I’ve been doing,” he says. “I’ve been selling real estate in Fargo the whole time  I shingled roofs for a couple years before I really got going, but I have never looked back. Time has helped me see the bigger picture, but real estate is all I know.” 

Lately, though, he says he has felt a pull to reunite with the community he grew up in. “Now that we have Iver, it’s like we want him to grow up like we grew up.”

“This area is different from Fargo,” he says. “It has a more homey feeling. (There’s that word home again.) It’s more personable; it’s more connected. I think South Dakota is more fun, too. It’s good. We wanted to get away from the rat race. Milbank has that more community-oriented vibe.” 

When his brother Paul (Mitchy) died in a motorcycle accident four years ago, local people rallied around his family to offer support, and he says it made a huge impression on him. Steve says he also wanted to relocate to Milbank to be able to spend more time with his nephews – Paul’s sons. 

“In some ways, though, Fargo is always going to be home to me, too, because I was there forever,” Steve says, “but I see the differences. Things are closer-knit here.  And rural property like we bought doesn’t come up for sale here very often. We did not want to let it slip away. My wife is an interior designer, so we are lucky she is able to work remotely.”

Steve is licensed to sell real estate in three states – South Dakota, North Dakota, and Minnesota. “My goal for First Choice is to grow. I definitely have a lot more to learn about the area. so I’m excited to figure it out. We’re also looking forward to being more involved in the community.”

.Regarding the staff at First Choice, Steve says, “Everybody’s staying. I don’t plan to change anything. I’ll just be the broker-owner. Trudi will stay on in sales. Trudi helped us buy our home, and she was just awesome to work with!” 

He describes himself as a networker. ”That’s kind of how I grew to what I was in Fargo. 

I like networking. I like being out in the community. I see huge value in that. I also strive for honesty and transparency, and I take a lot of pride in what I do.” He adds, “ It’s true it’s a business, and we’ve got to do what’s right for our clients, but my focus is doing what’s right. I think a lot of people here prefer to do business that way. Honesty is key. I mean, if you’re not honest, it’ll all come back on you.”

Steve says the real estate market in the Milbank area stays pretty consistent. He also notes, typically, in the past, election years bring “slower slash more volatile markets,” but that also depends on a ton of different factors. He sees interest rates slowly dropping. If they keep dropping, he believes the market will pick up and prices will continue to rise, too. “We might see a lot more activity and things could get crazy again!”

Stop by First Choice Real Estate to meet Steve or get reacquainted.