Former College Basketball Star Pamela Massey-Carter Says Real Estate Feeds the Athlete Inside

By Rick Mauch
Contributing Writer

Once a winner on the basketball court, Pamela Massey-Carter is now winning in the world of real estate.

The former Weatherford College standout, who led the Lady Coyotes to the NJCAA Region V semifinals in 2003, is now a Realtor with Halo Group Realty. 

Following her success at WC, Massey-Carter transferred to Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. It was there she earned her bachelor’s degree in communications.

Prior to getting her real estate license for a few years, Massey-Carter spent had spent her entire professional life in a sales/management role.

“I grew tired of the rigorous schedule that corporate America required and the compensation ceiling that is put on you no matter what your work ethic was or how many goals you hit,” she said. 

She grew up with her grandparents and parents owning rental property and has several family members who are Realtors. She said it was always in the back of her mind as a “what if” she got into real estate.  

“To be honest, it was both motivating and intimidating that I would be 100 percent commission. This was the main reason it took me so long to make take the leap,” she said. “However the appeal was I would actually be in charge of my compensation and my work schedule, all while helping people achieve goals.” 

In 2016 she, her wife Bethany Carter, and her father started a taco and daquiri bar in Granbury. She quit her corporate job to chase this idea, which she said was wild. They sold the bar in 2018, but not before she got some inspiration from it.

“I believe this was the entrepreneurial venture I needed to push me to get my real estate license,” she said.

So, she completed her courses and became a licensed Realtor in 2018, finding immediate success. Her accolades in the business include being 2018 Top Producer Rookie Agent, 2019 Rookie of the Year, and 2022 Top Producer in Commercial Sales to name just a few.

Massey-Carter grew up with a very tight-knit family, which she believes helped mold her into the person she is today. With the support of her family and after 10 years of dating, she married Bethany in 2018. Since then they have undergone IVF (in vitro fertilization) where they were blessed with a beautiful baby boy, Maverick Ace. 

However, while in utero they discovered Maverick had a heart defect called Transposition of the Great Arteries (TGA). He underwent open heart surgery at 48 hours old and was discharged from the hospital at three weeks old. 

“I will say this was the hardest and scariest experience I’ve had to date. Luckily Maverick’s heart responded perfectly to the repair, and at 10 months old he has no restrictions and you would never know he has a repaired heart,” she said. “He has truly taught us so much about life, being parents and mostly being resilient.” 

Massey-Carter said her being a former basketball player has made an immense impact on her real estate career. 

“In both basketball and real estate you have to deal with different personalities and still win. To be successful in real estate you also have to know how to adjust under pressure to accomplish what you are going for similar to playing in a basketball game,” she said. “With all that being said, I truly believe the level of confidence and competitiveness I embody being a former athlete allows me to stand out as a Realtor.” 

After graduating college, she took a position at Palm Beach Tan and worked her way up to district manager. After an eight-year run at Palm Beach Tan, she worked in sales for Stryker, and in marketing for Touchstone Imaging.

Massey-Carter said her biggest reward is helping people achieve their dream of home ownership or selling their property for top dollar. The biggest challenge in real estate, she said, is the inconsistencies that come with being self-employed and working in a field that capitalizes when the economy is thriving. 

When she’s not working, her hobbies include reading, including anything written by Colleen Hoover. Her favorite movie is “A League of Their Own,” she loves country music and her favorite song is “Young Love” by The Judds.

In addition, she loves Crossfit, sitting on a patio eating good Mexican food, drinking a strong margarita, and listening to live music. She also loves the outdoors and fitness. 

Massey-Carter said if she could travel back in time and visit with anyone, it would be legendary Tennessee Lady Vols basketball coach Pat Summit.

“I heard her speak once at the opening ceremony for AAU nationals, but I never got to meet her. I looked up to her as a woman and a coach. She had a very impressive way of not just creating incredible athletes but incredible people once their career ended,” Massey-Carter said. 

“I would love to just sit and talk to her about life, what she sees as relevant in getting to a space where you are content and know you’ve done your part for women’s sports, your community, and family.”

Massey-Carter always tries to stay positive about the future, no matter what’s going on around her. 

“I try to stay focused on what I can control about the future. My No. 1 goal is to raise my son to be a positive influence on those around him and to give back to the community,” she said. “I think if we all focus on what we can do and what we can control we can make change for the better.

“It took me 13 years of working to figure out I could use my passion for helping people to create a career and life I could be proud of and I could have a good work/life balance. I finally realized I didn’t have to marry my career to feed the competitive athlete still inside me.”