Kathy Ross – influential real estate broker, personal concierge and perhaps The Valley Isle’s most passionate ambassador – has made this swirl of pristine beaches, lush green valleys and volcanic landscapes her joyful personal playground. She wants everyone she meets to feel at home on Maui, to experience the fun and Aloha spirit that continues to inspire and define her life.

Driven by her deep love for the island’s landscape, diverse culture and often obscured charms, Kathy’s the go-to girl for those who want to live the life of their dreams the way she has. For hundreds of full time transplants and part-timers alike, becoming her client has opened the door to a beautiful, multi-faceted years-long friendship. Most “realtors” finish their transactions and let their clients loose. For Kathy, the moment the I’s are dotted and T’s crossed is just the beginning. She becomes their personal concierge, consulting and advising them – down to every last detail – as they create a niche and weave their own presence into the fabric of Maui’s community.

As she helps them navigate their heretofore seemingly out of reach possibilities, they fall in love with the island of her home and make it their own. Her world opens their world.

Now like that gentle island sunrise, Kathy is opening her doors to you. When you first meet her, she may ask, “Can you imagine yourself living where you can breathe clean air, actually see the stars in the dark night sky, play in clean warm waters, eat the freshest organic foods grown all year long, where neighborhoods and schools are safe?” With her graceful guidance, as the superlatives merge into real life and your senses are recharged, you’ll quickly see that the answer to all of the above is “YES.” And as you enjoy another breathtaking purple-yellow-orange sunset over the calm Pacific, you’ll know why the natives often say “Maui No Ka Oi”; in localese, it means “Maui is the Best, the most, the top of the heap.”

“Even after all these years,” she says, “I pinch myself to make sure it’s for real. Maui is still laid back. Raising my son here from his birth to his now young adult years, has been a true blessing. There’s a place for everyone who wants a more meaningful lifestyle. And for those who seek adventure, there are more exciting options to choose from than we’ve ever had before.”

People who want the best help while looking to buy or sell Maui luxury property in all categories, will be delighted to discover how Kathy is celebrating over 30 years of living on the island and serving clients in the Maui real estate market. The talented entrepreneur and influential “one percenter” announces an exciting new venture whose name – Maui Home and Life/ Luxury Real Estate and Lifestyles – speaks to the deep friendships she develops with clients and the wealth of personal services she provides. She’s forging ahead with the same revolutionary blend of dynamic client relations, market expertise and ambassadorial passion for her adopted home that has made her so intuitively responsible for taking care of her customers’ needs.

When you first start working with Kathy, you’ll realize that a few decades ago, she was just like you – enamored of the island’s charms but not sure of how to transition into the island with all its intricacies. But she followed her heart. She embraced the unique opportunities that came her way. She took risks. She found she loved helping people. Drawing on her multi-cultural education, powerful work ethic and emerging entrepreneurial skills, she created a fresh life for herself. She’s built & sold several of her own luxury houses – but that’s just the beginning of “living well” when it comes to making oneself at home on Maui. Now being a seasoned “Kamaaina” Kathy will help you through your exciting lifestyle changes in ways that will save you time, add health and energy to your life, make it easy and a whole lot of fun for you and your family.

Kathy’s hundreds of satisfied clients can thank the harsh winters in her native Canada for the whimsical, winding path that led her to find her life’s calling on Maui. After finishing her university years, she took a year off and, craving sun and warmth, headed for the British Virgin Islands (BVI) – where she wound up living for 5 years on the ocean instead of on land. She immersed herself in learning “the sailor’s life” and started a successful boardsailing school. She used a small inheritance from her grandfather as a down payment on a 33-foot Freedom yacht, which became home.

The boat she called Harmonee didn’t have an engine, so she learned how to sail, single handed, and began racing in the local regattas around the Caribbean. Every summer during hurricane season, she stored her boat and headed back up North to race in the “North American Boardsailing Circuit.” Within three years she had won the title of Women’s Canadian National Champion and by 1983 she was chosen to represent the BVI in the Pan American Games. In 1984, she won the World Cup (women’s division) and earned a spot on the Canadian Olympic team for windsurfing, a demonstration event in the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.

“Being so close to Maui, which was then the Mecca of the radical wave jumping/boardsailing and where the major R&D of the sport was happening, I decided to fly there for a week, with only $400 in my pocket!” Kathy says. “Within that week, I knew Maui was my permanent home.” Unlike the Caribbean, where one had to visit different islands to find ‘variety’ of any sort…weather, activities, tourism, culture, cuisine, business and safety…Maui offered everything on one island. It has the balmy temperatures at sea level blessed by the consistent cooling trade winds; gorgeous distinct white, red & black sandy beaches; the warm, calm waters, mesmerizing crashing surf, waterfalls, rain forests, hiking, biking and even a colder climate found at the higher altitudes of Haleakala, which includes the summit of our 10,000 foot mountain – sometimes snowy for a few hours in the winter.

“I also love the sense of community, fabulous residential neighborhoods, commercial endeavors, golf, extreme and not so extreme water activities, hills, valleys, equestrian cowboy ‘Paniolo’ ranching countryside, a business district, decent banking system and the delightfulness of tourism where everyone is loving life and enjoying themselves” she adds as if she’ll never run out of enthusiasm or favorite features. “For the first few years I remained in the sailing industry, working at a sail-loft in addition to running my own boat maintenance business. But I soon found myself gravitating back to the ways of ‘land-life’ and re-ignited my passions for being a real estate steward (ess).” If you’re interested in amassing wealth, then rare pieces of real estate are great to add to your portfolio”

Bringing her enterprising spirit to Hawaii, Kathy had the idea to create honeymoon packages for her Canadian friends – and came up with the idea of Hawaiian Health Holidays, a customized holiday experience catering to those who wanted different than the typical condo or hotel based type of vacation.

In the process of obtaining business permits, she had acquired her real estate license to satisfy the State’s requirement for fiduciary responsibilities. Discovering that the cost of liability insurance in the USA for the high adrenaline sports activities she wanted to introduce made the pricing of such honeymoon packages cost prohibitive. In 1988 she then used her real estate license to sell time-shares for a year, but soon realized that there was a huge market for people who wanted more than a home for just an annual two-week vacation. When she decided to enter the world of residential real estate, she began her practice in the Upcountry area on the slopes of Haleakala, offering luxury estates consisting of 2+ acres.

Kathy brings all those years of competitive experience and her seasoned connections, to Maui Home and Life, but her brilliance in negotiating transactions for wealthy clients, including celebrities, is just the start of what new clients can expect when they call.

Kathy’ desire to incorporate a concierge aspect of her service more formally into Maui Home and Life began organically about a decade ago when she was running her own company. Clients who became friends would ask her to help them with various details of their island lives. She derived so much joy from helping them that slowly it became an integral part of her business. Now, as she says, “it’s grown to making sure that when they arrive at night, after stores are closed, their fridge is stocked and dinner is waiting for them. Or if they’re selling their property, then staging and de-cluttering are included.”

With the launch of Maui Home and Life and its attentiveness to the Lifestyle aspect as the perfect complement to the real estate part, Kathy has developed the small details into a larger vision. Over the years, as a top broker and popular social presence on the island, she has made many connections with local businesses and now boasts a vast pool of resources to help her clients get almost anything accomplished. Kathy can get “normal things” set up for you like your home and yardscape routine maintenance but she also loves the unique requests such as arranging a private supper for two on the beach, having your beloved pets transported to their new island home, your shipped automobile picked up at the dock or finding additional accommodations for large family reunions. Moving with children and need the scoop on all of the schools?; want to build or remodel your home? – well….. no one better to ask for guidance than Kathy.

Kathy loves sharing heartfelt experiences with her clients be they beach barbecues, concerts, music, art festivals, and other forms of entertainment Maui has grown to offer. She’ll introduce you to where and with whom to take up or enhance your favorite passion – on land, water, or in the air; artistic endeavors of all sorts – local cultural in essence or mainstream; out of the way very cool, smaller restaurants. If you like, she’ll also show you off the beaten path hiking trails, opportunities to belong to prestigious or family based country clubs, wine clubs, book clubs, yoga retreats and endless other social, volunteer and possible business opportunities.

When she worked with Mick Fleetwood, who owns the hopping, music-oriented restaurant Fleetwood’s on Front Street, he wanted to find a special spot for his family, specifically surrounded by acreage in Upcountry Maui that would remind him of his “English Gardens” from childhood. Knowing Upcountry Maui as well as she does, Kathy introduced him to the area of Kula and a private and secluded 12-acre estate where he, to this day, enjoys being surrounded by privacy, tranquility and outstanding ocean views.

The Fleetwood Mac co-founder has said, “Kathy found this property, the dream that I had. We must have met 12 years ago, and from the time I asked her to look for me, she delivered so much energy and integrity about protecting me and my family, quite honestly, which led to a really fantastic friendship and to finding this very special property that is very dear to my heart.”

High praise from the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, but it’s all in a day’s work for Kathy, who treats legends and non-celebs with equal care and attention to detail. With today’s technology, she says, it’s completely possible for people to live, work and play on Maui like never before. She will help you investigate the “green” possibilities of living off the grid should this be a priority. She knows the locations where property can be found to build this kind of lifestyle for those who dream of it.

“I want to share this island that I am so crazy about with everyone I meet and work with,” she says. “For me, it’s all about enhancing people’s lifestyles. I have changed so much since I’ve been here and I love to share all of the fun activities with them. But I’m also dedicated to helping those who own or are thinking of buying property here connect with nature, via golf, walking, art, water sports, etc. I help alleviate the frenzied pace of life that most successful professionals have. I encourage them to spend time in nature, to realize that there’s another aspect of life that they’re not paying attention to in their day to day routine. When tensions build up, Maui becomes the ultimate stress releaser. I am all about helping people relax, reflect and concentrate on their personal goals.

“My purpose,” Kathy adds, “is not just supporting you in the buying and selling of amazing property or being a superior problem solver; but making sure you truly have every opportunity to connect in every way possible to this magical island. Whether you are an investor or full time resident – you don’t have to imagine being full of energy anymore. It’s waiting for you here in Maui.”