Humans of Rockaway: Nicole Switzer

By Shaun Smith

“I grew up in a small town in Minnesota on a farm.”

I met Nicole Switzer in her office on Beach 116th. She is the kind of person who really makes you feel seen and heard—valued when you talk to her.

“My mom was in the military. When she got out of the military, she moved us back to where she grew up, which was a small town in Minnesota with one stop sign, no stop lights, no nothing,” Switzer said. She grew up in Barnum, Minnesota (population of 613, according to a 2020 census).

“When I graduated college, I sold everything around me, got in my car and did this six-month tour,” she added. “I spent some time in Colorado, some time in California.”

A job fair in Texas eventually connected her to Finish Line shoe stores in Arizona, where she worked for over a decade, managing stores. “I guess it was interesting. I got manager of the year,” Switzer said. “I had a huge shoe obsession.”

Was she still shoe-obsessed? “No!” she laughed, “When I quit Finish Line, I had a two-bedroom apartment, I sold all of my shoes, and then didn’t work for a few years. I had all the retro Jordans. Everything from the 2000s. Like real deadstock. That money I made from them just gave me an opportunity to get my real estate license and not work for a couple of years.”

Today, Switzer is a real estate agent with Rockaway Properties.

“People don’t always remember who you are, but they remember how you make them feel. I always want people to feel like I’m an advocate for them rather than like I’m just taking my commission,” she said.

Switzer’s genuine care for her clients is clear. “People deserve someone who has their back.

“People work hard; I want that to mean something. I acknowledge that, being a realtor, I’m helping someone with the largest financial decision they will ever make,” she said. “People sacrifice a lot to be able to afford a house, especially in New York.”

As of 2025, the average age of first-time homebuyers in the U.S. was 40. In major cities, the average is 50. We discussed the anxiety young people are facing in this housing market. She was disappointed, but not surprised, that many of my peers and I are pessimistic about our chances of owning property in New York. “That’s the reality,” she agreed solemnly.

Despite my two cents of cynicism, Switzer says this job is her passion, and it’s clear. As a person, she is dedicated to those around her. As a realtor, clients are privy to this dedication. “There’s nothing else I would want to do. I love the freedom of being able to go have lunch with my wife in the summer,” Switzer said. “And sometimes, yes, I’m on my computer, it’s 10 o’clock at night, and I’m still working. However, I’m working for me, working for my family, and for someone I’ve probably grown fond of because in real estate, being able to talk to [a client] all the time, you just become friends, and then I feel like I have a connection and I want to work hard.”

When living in Arizona, Switzer flipped houses and was also involved with a personal development program, which led to a stint as a life coach. It’s also where she met her wife. “It’s where I met Jackie. When she moved back to New York, we stayed in touch, and I ended up moving to Rockaway.

“I guess I’m not scared to start over,” Switzer said. “I’m not scared to start from zero and just figure it out.” An admirable bravery few possess.

Switzer has been living here for about 10 years. “This is a very interesting place to live. It’s like some place I’ve never experienced before. It really does have this small-town feel where kids run around with no shoes on, but on the other side, it’s New York City. But I see the same people at the grocery store.” Many have marveled at the unique position of Rockaway. A place never quite removed from our mother city, despite our relative isolation.

“My chemistry in my body changes as soon as I come over the Cross Bay Bridge or the Marine Park Bridge,” Switzer said. “It’s like I feel fresher air.” I argued that we do literally breathe fresher air here.

We discussed changes to the peninsula during the decade she’s lived here—jetties, dunes, a new boardwalk, and, as she mentioned, a “revitalization of downtown.” Switzer is fascinated by coastal resilience projects and amazed by the rising property values. “Just going down to the boardwalk and watching that, and now to see the part of Arverne by the Sea being built—penthouses are going for 3.7 million dollars,” she said. “I mean, who would’ve thought? That’s almost 4 million dollars—that’s Manhattan prices.”

She remarked on storm resilience in Arverne, “Arverne by the Sea didn’t flood during Sandy. That was very important, I’ve never lived around water like this, and Mother Nature is a beast.

“All the new developments: down by Mott Avenue and in the 40s and 50s. It’s all changing. There are new schools coming up. It’s fascinating, but it’s also like seeing gentrification at its finest. People are getting out-priced here. People who have been here and bought their houses for

X-amount in the ‘70s, and can’t afford property taxes now, so we’re seeing investors come in and buy things up. It’s crazy to see.”

I asked how she sees her role as a realtor in this context. “I think my role is to fight for the little guy,” she said decisively, characteristically. “I want to give people max value. I don’t want to give people the option of ‘you have to sell your house to an investor’ as if this is their only option. I want them to get back their blood, sweat, tears—everything they worked hard for for X-amount of years. I want to see them do the best.

“I’m not a ‘New Yorker.’ I’m not a step-over-the-person-lying-on-the-sidewalk person. I’m still into composting. I still like trees, and grass, and camping, and being out in the woods. That’s who I am, that’s my soul…It’s like David and Goliath, and Goliath is NYC. They say it’s a dog-eat-dog world. But I’m very much like, ‘Hey David, how can I help you? What do you need? Let’s sit down, talk about this.’ Really, how do I help the little person who might get passed over by ‘Goliath’?

“My goals are changing as I’m getting older,” she shares. “My goals as a younger person were all monetary things: How much money can I make? But now, my goal is longevity: How can I eat healthier? How can I be more mindful? How can I stretch more? My goals are more day-to-day. How can I be one percent better every day?”

Switzer’s energy throughout our conversation is calm and self-assured. “I think I underestimate what can happen in a decade with good habits and overestimate what I can do in a year. So I’m really focusing on routines: going to the gym every day at 6 a.m., even when I don’t feel like it…no matter what, sticking with my routines. And learning that my good decisions build. My main driving force, I would say, is making my habits every day better and focusing on my relationships. Especially with my wife and kids, making sure to carve out time. It is very easy not to carve out time,” she said. “To be in bed or on the computer doing work because it’s easy to work. It’s harder to make my time more intentional, but as I’m getting older, I’m being more intentional.”

We finished our conversation with plans to meet again; a half hour was not nearly enough time, we still had a lot we wanted to discuss.