“The best thing about real estate is selling in Santa Fe. That is cool!”
John Hancock’s love for New Mexico grows deeper each year. “New Mexico is just plain stunning!” John says passionately. “I mean…the sky! I love the clouds. I love the sunsets.” Born and raised in Santa Fe, his enthusiasm for New Mexico is only eclipsed by our charming town. “It continually impresses me that there is so much variety here, especially for its relatively small size compared to other cities offering the same level of cuisine, arts and culture. Not to mention the geography. You can go from desert to a mountain climate in 15 minutes! You look out the window and you have 12,000’ mountains — when the aspens are golden they are exquisite, when they are covered in snow they are exquisite.”
A passionate photographer, John shoots with a medium format camera and particularly enjoys black and white photography. He is also a history buff, and Santa Fe’s proximity to many intriguing places like Chaco Canyon, O’Keeffe country, the Plains of San Agustin and the Valles Caldera feeds both passions.
John comes from a real estate family. His father was a real estate developer in Santa Fe and developed DeVargas Mall among other commercial properties. John obtained his real estate license in 1979 then joined the family development business. “Real estate is an extremely satisfying career for me. Mostly because there is such variety in this business, and keeps the mind very active! There’s always something interesting happening.” John has extensive experience in many facets of real estate including residential, commercial sales and leasing, and development. “The problem solving and contractual side of the business are particularly appealing to me. Plus, I have many wonderful friends that I initially met through a real estate transaction.”
John continues, “But truly, the best thing about real estate is being able to list and sell real estate in Santa Fe. That is cool! The variety of architecture and construction. The history in the old adobes. The fun of educating buyers who are not from here about this unique place. It’s just very special and fulfilling.”
In 1994, John joined Barker Realty and in the last 23 years has continued to be impressed with the company and the guidance of David Barker. “David has been in real estate for such a long time and truly knows this business. I know this business, but not like David does! His involvement and guidance of the many brokers at Barker Realty, through intricate transactions and situations, has instilled in him a very deep knowledge base and ability to help the many parties involved achieve a successful closing.”
John’s history in Santa Fe runs very deep. He grew up in an adobe on Coronado Road that his parents built in 1957. He was a founding student at Santa Fe Prep School. He gives back to the community in many ways and, in fact, was the President of the Santa Fe Association of Realtors and signed the note to finance the very first computerized MLS system. We have definitely come a long way since then. He has also served on the Board of Santa Fe Prep and the Board of Directors for the New Mexico Cutting Horse Association. He competed in the cutting horse circuit for many years and still enjoys riding horses as often as possible.
