Serene Lakes Realty

What Serene Lakes Realty does

Serene Lakes Realty is an independent, boutique residential real estate brokerage headquartered in Soda Springs, California (21501 Donner Pass Road, #19), founded circa 1970 and operating continuously for over 50 years as the only real estate firm dedicated exclusively to the Donner Summit region. The brokerage is owned and operated by principal broker Krista Voosen — branded as the "Summit Specialist" and recognized in Apple News as one of California's Top 10 Trusted Real Estate Agents for 2026 — supported by a small team that includes licensed associate Angelica Ramos (DRE# 02136977) and additional staff. The firm serves buyers and sellers of mountain cabins, vacation and second homes, ski-in/ski-out properties, lakefront cabins, and undeveloped land across Sierra Nevada communities including Serene Lakes, Soda Springs, Kingvale, Pla-Vada, Emigrant Gap, Cisco Grove, Sugar Bowl/Norden, Alta/Dutch Flat, and Truckee (including Tahoe Donner).

The operating model is a relationship-driven, full-service brokerage offering buyer representation, seller representation, free property valuations, neighborhood-specific market reports, staging coordination, contractor referrals, and end-to-end transaction management including support for out-of-area sellers managing remote properties. Its technology footprint is intentionally lean and largely commodity: a website with IDX-integrated property search, email new-listing and price-change alerts, a client "property organizer" portal for saved searches, and market reports for 10+ submarkets. The firm applies standard California real estate commission norms on a per-transaction basis and earns revenue almost entirely through buyer-side and seller-side commissions on closed sales — no SaaS, subscription, platform, or recurring revenue streams are evidenced. Distribution is regional and direct, relying on the personal brand of the principal broker, neighborhood-specific SEO, content marketing (blog, market reports, neighborhood guides), and word-of-mouth within the mountain-community ecosystem, with no disclosed paid-acquisition channels.

Customer acquisition is anchored to the principal broker's personal reputation and the firm's half-century community presence rather than to technology, scale, or paid marketing. In 2021 — described as a record year for Serene Lakes sales — the firm managed roughly two dozen listings totaling approximately $31 million in transaction volume, ranked #1 in Serene Lakes for sales volume, #12 of 510 active agents in the Tahoe region for number of transactions, and #37 for sales volume. In May 2024 the firm relocated from a historic post-office-adjacent office (held over 52 years) to a more prominent building at "the flashing light" intersection in Soda Springs. Geographic reach has gradually widened east and west (Grass Valley to Glenshire) but remains tightly concentrated around Donner Summit, the West Slope, and Truckee.

Name

Serene Lakes Realty

Legal name

Serene Lakes Realty

Website

https://serenelakes.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Serene Lakes Realty is an independent, boutique residential real estate brokerage in Soda Springs, California, serving buyers and sellers of mountain cabins, vacation homes, and lakefront properties across the Donner Summit, West Slope, and Truckee areas under principal broker Krista Voosen.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Residential Real Estate Brokerage

NAICS

Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (531210)

SIC

Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAJADAE

Rural Residential & Acreage Homesites Brokerage

Business & Public Services/Real Estate Services (Brokerage, Property Management)/Land & Rural Real Estate Brokerage

Keywords

• Residential real estate
• Real estate brokerage
• Buyer representation
• Seller representation
• Mountain property sales

Headquarters

HQ city

Soda Springs

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Buyer Representation Commissions: Commissions earned from representing buyers in purchasing residential properties, land, and vacation homes in the Donner Summit area
2. Seller Representation Commissions: Commissions earned from listing and selling properties, including marketing, staging coordination, and transaction management services
3. Property Valuation Services: Free home valuation analyses provided to potential sellers to generate listing leads

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Serene Lakes Realty is an independent residential real estate brokerage that represents buyers and sellers of mountain properties, vacation homes, cabins, and land in the Donner Summit, West Slope, and Truckee areas of the California Sierra Nevada. The firm provides full-service representation from property search and valuation through offer, negotiation, and closing, supported by neighborhood-specific market reports, an IDX-powered property search website, email alerts, and a client property organizer portal.

Product overview

Serene Lakes Realty operates as a single-service real estate brokerage offering residential property sales and purchases for the Donner Summit, West Slope, and Truckee area of California. The company does not operate a multi-module software platform; its sole offering is traditional real estate brokerage services, including property listings, buyer representation, seller representation, market reports, and neighborhood information. The company has been in operation for over 50 years and specializes in properties in communities such as Serene Lakes, Soda Springs, Kingvale, Pla-Vada, Emigrant Gap, Alta/Dutch Flat, Cisco Grove, Sugar Bowl/Norden, and Truckee. Services include featured property listings, market reports by neighborhood, new listing email alerts, property valuations, and a property organizer login for clients.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Buyer Representation

Quantifiable outcome

• #1 in Serene Lakes for sales (record performance in 2021)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Chase International (Tahoe/Sierra): Chase International is a regional luxury brokerage with deep roots in the Lake Tahoe and Sierra Nevada markets. Comparable as a similarly-positioned regional player competing for the same mountain property transactions.
• Sierra Sotheby's International Realty: Sierra Sotheby's is a regional luxury brokerage serving the Truckee, North Lake Tahoe, and Sierra Nevada markets. Directly competes for high-value mountain and lakefront properties in overlapping territories.
• Tahoe Mountain Realty: Tahoe Mountain Realty is a local boutique brokerage serving the North Lake Tahoe and Truckee region with a focus on mountain and vacation properties. Directly comparable as a similarly-sized, hyper-local competitor in the same Donner Summit area.
• Mountain Living Real Estate (Truckee): Small boutique brokerage in the Truckee/North Tahoe area focused on mountain homes and vacation properties. Direct competitor in the same niche of local-focused mountain property transactions.

Others

• Zillow (Premier Agent / Showcase): Zillow is a major real estate platform and lead-generation tool that competes indirectly by capturing buyer attention before they reach boutique brokerages. Comparable as it shapes how buyers search for properties in Serene Lakes and Truckee, even though it is not a brokerage competitor.

Broad incumbents

• Compass (Tahoe/Truckee): Compass is a national tech-forward brokerage with growing presence in luxury mountain and resort markets including Tahoe/Truckee. Brings technology, marketing, and capital advantages against which local boutique brokerages compete.
• Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Drysdale Properties: Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices operates in the Lake Tahoe region through Drysdale Properties, serving the same North Lake Tahoe and Truckee area. Larger franchise with national brand recognition competing for similar clients.
• Coldwell Banker (North Lake Tahoe): Coldwell Banker operates a significant North Lake Tahoe office with local agents serving Truckee, Tahoe City, and surrounding areas. Larger incumbent with national brand power, competing for the same buyers and sellers in mountain markets.
• RE/MAX (Truckee/Tahoe): RE/MAX operates franchise offices in Truckee and surrounding areas, providing national brand backing and agent networks. Competes for the same vacation and mountain property buyers and sellers in the region.

Emerging players

• Engel & Völkers (Lake Tahoe): Engel & Völkers has expanded into the Lake Tahoe market with a focus on luxury and international clients. Comparable through its focus on luxury mountain properties in the same region, though newer to the area.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/serenelakesrealty

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Serene Lakes Realty