Yureli Vivar Mello
Yureli Vivar Mello is a real estate and construction operations professional with a strong focus on guiding clients through complex real estate and construction processes. She currently works as a full-time real estate agent, specializing in helping first-time homebuyers and sellers, with a particular emphasis on new construction homes. She is known for her ability to coordinate people, systems, and timelines while ensuring clients feel informed, supported, and confident throughout every stage of their real estate journey.
Yureli’s professional journey has been anything but traditional. She originally began with plans to pursue a career in law, but after completing a senior-year internship, she realized that path was not the right fit. Her interests in photography and marketing led her into early roles in sales and financial services, where she helped clients navigate credit challenges and better understand financial decision-making. A pivotal experience came when she spent a summer in Oregon helping her aunt with a paint business, where she discovered a strong passion for construction and real estate. Upon returning home, she joined a general contractor as a marketing assistant, managing social media and website content, but quickly became drawn to the field itself—visiting job sites, asking questions, and eventually learning hands-on from construction crews. That on-the-ground experience became the foundation of her project management expertise.
Today, Yureli combines her background in real estate, construction operations, marketing, and customer service to support clients through both the emotional and technical aspects of homeownership. She works closely with lenders, contractors, inspectors, and clients to keep projects and transactions organized, transparent, and moving forward smoothly. Passionate about empowering first-time buyers, she believes they deserve homes they can understand and confidently manage. Looking ahead, her long-term goal is to transition into building and development, creating homes and communities that reflect both practicality and care while continuing to grow her impact in the real estate and construction industry.
• University of North Carolina at Greensboro - BA, Political Science, Sociology
• Top Customer Satisfaction
What do you attribute your success to?
Honestly, my faith in Jesus Christ is very important to me. I think that even if you don't believe in anything, just believe that you are taking the right steps, and just put one foot in front of the other. Something that I've learned is, you know, don't be afraid, and just having that mentality will take you places and rooms that you never thought you would be able to be in. It's about trusting the process and not letting fear hold you back from opportunities.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I would say try. Like, try something. If you're not sure what it is, talk to people about it first before you commit. One of my really good friends and mentors told me that if I wanted to be a lawyer, I should go talk to lots of lawyers early on in my college career, because a lot of people my age go to school and then don't use their degree or end up in a field they didn't study. So the advice was: hey, try something, and if you like it, stick with it. Don't just pursue a degree without understanding what the profession is really like.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
To do it, to just go for it. It's okay to pick up a hammer or a drill here and there. If you can build furniture from IKEA, come on and try project management and construction - it's fun. Don't be afraid to step into this field and learn practical skills. Women bring valuable perspectives to construction, design, and project planning, and there's so much opportunity for us in this industry.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
I think there's a real opportunity for women to come into the construction field and help with spacing, design, and making homes better suited to how people actually live. A lot of new construction homes are pre-cut and pre-designed, and it takes away from the consumer's ability to customize. Women can bring a different perspective to interior design and functionality that would benefit homeowners. As for challenges, I see that a lot of people in construction are taking shortcuts, and the material quality isn't what it should be. I'm very concerned that future homeowners are going to face serious problems in a short amount of time because the workmanship and quality just aren't there anymore. It's challenging for general contractors or anyone who really cares about their trade to maintain standards when shortcuts are becoming so common.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
For work, I would say communication is very important. It just helps all around people solve problems. And then honesty - you know, in construction, a lot of people think that they have to have things done correctly the first time, but if you are not honest with the contractor or vendor, it just holds the project back, so I really appreciate honesty in my professional career. As far as my personal life, I'm a woman of faith, so that's really important to me, and then, likewise, communication and honesty matter in my personal relationships as well.