Donna Harris - (512) 277-5039
Donna Harris - (512) 277-5039
About Donna Harris
Donna Harris - Broker/REALTOR®, Mediator, Property Tax Arbitrator, Ombudsman
I have been an accomplished real estate Broker for nearly 23 years and have received several local, statewide, and national recognition for my work performance and volume production. I've helped hundreds of Buyers and Sellers with their real estate needs. Inevitably, no matter how hard I tried to make sure everything went smoothly, there are always going to be transactions that have issues. When things went awry, I would tell my clients that they now have an entertaining story to tell all their friends and family.
I sat on the Professional Standards and Grievance Committees for Texas Realtors® (TXR) from 2005-2022. I was an Ombudsman for TXR from 2014-2022. These processes have allowed me to listen to many stories from consumers who have been wronged during their real estate transactions. When our contracts made Mediation become a mandatory, alternative dispute resolution process before being able to file in a courtroom, I decided I wanted to become a Mediator to help fill this void of helplessness that many consumers feel when something goes wrong. I hope that with my Mediation services, Buyers, Sellers, Tenants, and Landlords can feel they have another option, one that is quicker and less expensive than court, to help resolve their issues. The same with Agent/Broker to Agent/Broker issues.
Another hat I wear is being a Property Tax Arbitrator for the Texas Comptroller's Office. I've been doing this since 2005. Arbitration is the process you file for when you are not happy with the final decision on your home's value through your county's Appraisal Review Board. Arbitration is different from Mediation, which many people don't realize. An Arbitrator has the final word on the outcome based on the evidence each party presents. A Mediator is a neutral third party who listens to each side and helps them come to a mutually agreeable outcome. This is where my Psychology degree comes in handy to help people figure out what the actual festering issue is and how to move forward.
When I'm not wearing any of my real estate hats, I'm married and a mom of two young children who keep me very active, as we are always exploring Austin: from hiking at Hamilton Pool, to sitting at the beach at Pace Bend Park, to playing in the currents of Bull Creek. You also can find me and the family wakeboarding on Lake Travis and Lake Austin, or at various Baseball Tournaments, Beach Volleyball Tournaments, or High School Track Meets.
I grew up in Richardson, Texas, moving there from the Seattle/Tacoma area in 1984, where I lived for 25 years before making Austin (Bee Cave) my home in 2009. I graduated cum laude from the University of Texas at Arlington with a BA in Psychology and a Sociology Minor. This helps me understand individual people along with groups of people.
I belong to the following: Texas Association of Mediators, Austin Association of Mediators, National Association of REALTORS®, Texas REALTORS®,
Austin Board of REALTORS®, CTXMLS, Comptroller's Registry for Arbitrators, TXR Risk Deduction Committee