‘Right place, right time’: How Libby Sosinski turned rocky start into $26M real estate career

Twenty-one years ago, Libby Sosinski was on the brink of leaving real estate for good.

Today, the Pittsburgh-based Keller Williams agent consistently closes more than 200 deals a year and recently posted $26 million-plus in 2024 in sales volume, earning a spot on RealTrends Verified’s rankings.

But back in 2004 — just a few months into her career — she was ready to walk away.

“I did not like the broker and agents at the company I was with. They were rude, so I didn’t even want to go in to write up an offer,” Sosinski recalled. “I was going to help my brother and sister-in-law find a house, and then I was going to pull my license. I wasn’t going to do it anymore.”

That plan changed the moment she delivered an offer to another agent on behalf of her family. He hired her on the spot as an assistant and brought her to Keller Williams.

That encounter — which Sosinski still refers to as “right place, right time” — became a true turning point.

“It was a different vibe at Keller Williams,” she said. “That one company I was with was very competitive, and I was a nobody, and nobody wanted to help me. But my brother and sister-in-law said, ‘We don’t quit until we find a house.'”

Finding her place in Pittsburgh

Though Sosinski is now firmly established in the Pittsburgh market, she didn’t grow up there.

“I grew up in a town called Girard, Pennsylvania, right outside of Erie,” she said. “I moved to Washington, D.C., when I was 18. Lived there five years, had kids, and realized I didn’t want to raise my kids in D.C. So we made it to Pittsburgh, and I’ve been here ever since.”

Even her arrival in Pittsburgh followed the same serendipitous theme.

“We were driving through Bridgeville because I wanted to live there. I saw two women walking down the street, and I stopped and said, ‘Excuse me, do you know of any apartments around here?'” Sosinski said. “She points to the building right behind her, and there was an apartment. No sign or anything. If I hadn’t stopped those women, I wouldn’t have got the apartment that I ended up living in four or five years.”

Steady volume, wild market

According to RealTrends data, Sosinski closed approximately $26.2 million in volume last year across 249 transactions — what she considers an average year.

Her best year? 318 transactions.

“I work more by numbers, the [number] of deals,” she said. “My best year ever was 318. But the price point would have been lower, because I do specialize in foreclosures.”

That price point is changing, even in historically flat Pittsburgh.

“This last time, boom, it went crazy, absolutely crazy,” Sosinski said of the local market spike. “For years, we didn’t see a huge increase or decrease in values. They just slowly climbed over the years. But we needed something to pull our values up.”

Rolling with the punches

When asked about the key to her longevity and success in the industry, Sosinski didn’t hesitate.

“I roll with the punches. I let my life tell me what I’m supposed to do. And then I just go with it,” she said. “It tells me to do stupid things, I do them and it works out. I’m very, very grateful for my career, very grateful. And I think that my attitude helps, as well.”

That adaptability extends beyond her mindset to her market area.

“I serve western Pennsylvania,” she said, noting that her business stretches far beyond Pittsburgh itself. “We have West Penn Multi-List [MLS] — and I feel like that separates us from the rest of the state.”

While agents in other parts of Pennsylvania use different platforms, Sosinski believes West Penn gives the region its own rhythm.

“We have our own little market here,” she said. “It’s big, and it’s the main one. I feel like that guides our market a little differently.”

Finding a specialty

For new agents — or those facing the kind of disillusionment Sosinski once did — she offers simple, direct advice.

“Find a specialty of some sort. It can be anything,” she said. “It can be, ‘I specialize in this street. I specialize in this area. I specialize in foreclosures. I specialize in investment properties. I specialize in commercial.’ Get a specialty. Focus on it. Be the best at it.”

Her own specialty — foreclosures and investment properties — helped carve out her niche during years when most Pittsburgh agents worked traditional residential.

“You just have to find that one thing that sets you apart,” she said.

Despite the volume, the numbers and the market fluctuations, Sosinski comes back to something deeper.

“I’m very, very blessed. I don’t question it. I’m always grateful and I’m blessed,” she said. “I live my life on right time, right place. That’s how I live my life. I kind of just let it guide me to what I’m supposed to be doing and where I’m supposed to go.”