6 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY November 2-8, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com 831 The call came hours before guests were to arrive for an outdoor dinner party. It was an otherwise calm evening, suited to a patio gathering. But a skunk had chosen that particular moment to take up residence in the yard. Welcome to the world of a home concierge, where the routine of decorating or arranging services can be punctuated by the unexpected—in this case, coaxing an uninvited guest back to the wild. “You just manage it,” says Kristy Farmer. “There’s never a week that’s the same.” Farmer owns Central Coast Home Concierge, a company dedicated to resolving the details—large and small, routine or unique—that come with a second home or vacation rental. The service is part of a necessary and rather diverse niche. The necessity stems from the number of second homes and vacation rentals available in Monterey County. While the 2020 U.S. Census identified just over 40 percent of Carmel’s housing units as vacant, with smaller percentages—yet still in double-digits—vacant in Pacific Grove and Monterey, Farmer can point to observational data. “Is there business out there? Oh, yeah,” she says. “You can tell by the [private] jets that come in and out.” The diversity of the home concierge role is what separates it from the more traditional concierge. While placing reservations or directing people to sights and activities are part of it, there’s a responsibility companies like Farmer’s take on. If a family is traveling to their Pebble Beach retreat for Car Week, her crew can stock the refrigerator in advance. Should the owners be away for a while, Farmer can arrange for mail pickup and garbage cans to be trotted to the curb and back. “Who is going to meet the repair guy? Who is going to empty the refrigerator?” she says. “My approach is helping people.” Home concierge services—and there are several available in Monterey County, including those offered by local real estate agencies—exist to ease the stay of visitors to the area and secure the home when vacant. And for the most part the pattern is routine, from arranging private chefs to decorating for an occasion or maintaining the landscaping. Of course, the routine can be punctuated by moments of drama, when storm-battered trees collapse, taking down power lines and kicking on generators. More likely, there is a scramble to fill a surprise request or come up with a unique family activity. That’s part of what attracted Farmer to the idea of a home concierge startup. “I’ve always been service-minded,” she explains. “I like being creative.” A native of the San Joaquin Valley and agricultural finance student at Fresno State University, Farmer came to Monterey County immediately after graduation, lured by the challenges of produce marketing and sales. She grew up on a farm and participated in 4-H and FFA. Farmer continues to help with youth programs. She is currently a mentor with First Tee’s Pay it Forward, which aids first generation university students at CSU Monterey Bay (who, in turn, mentor First Tee children). “Hands down, it’s the coolest program I’ve ever been involved in,” Farmer says. “It teaches them a lot, it teaches me a lot.” Five years ago in November, Central Coast Home Concierge launched with a modest proposal. Farmer sent out a mailer offering holiday decorating services for vacation homeowners, so the festive array would be ready and waiting for the owners’ arrival. The scope of the home concierge market is difficult to pin down. Concierge offerings include medical, business, hospitality and even online travel services. Statista places the value of business concierge services at $3.5 billion. What can be known is Farmer’s schedule. Her calendar is filled daily. Just occasionally, she sends a team member out to discourage a wild animal from joining the party. “Do I juggle a lot? Yeah,” she admits. “But it’s all part of me.” Central Coast Home Concierge, 225 Crossroads Blvd., Suite 244, Carmel. 233-6460, coastconciergeservices.com. House Call Kristy Farmer says “there is no typical day” in the home concierge business. By Dave Faries Kristy Farmer pauses for a moment while taking inventory at a client’s storage facility, one of the many routine duties of a home concierge—a role which may also require scrambling for solutions during an unexpected situation. “My approach is helping people.” TALeS From THe AreA CoDe NIK BLASKOVICH
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