
By Kirk Ross
Staff Writer
For a guy who’s now residing in Raleigh, John Ensslin sure has kept up his Carrboro bona fides.
He’s got an art show up at Acme Food & Beverage, makes his living in the local real estate market and would have taken the stage at last Sunday’s Carrboro Music Festival with his Chatham-based band The Breaks had not the outdoor events been called due to impending rain.
Ensslin, whose father went to UNC and mother went to Duke, is among the many who came for an education and stayed to make a home hereabouts. He said he appreciates that places where being able to make a living and create art and music are rare.
“The town acts like a magnet for those who want that lifestyle,†Ensslin said.
His path since college – he chose his dad’s school – was a traditional tandem of restaurants and rock bands.
He met Acme owner Kevin Callaghan when the two worked at Crook’s Corner and made the move to downtown Carrboro when Callaghan decided to open his own place.
His extensive musical experiences include the ’90s power-pop scene via What Peggy Wants, where he began a longtime collaboration with Tom Maxwell. A few years back, the two produced a humorous take-off about low-key local lifestyles titled “This Carrboro Life.†The bit features Ensslin as a guy who goes to the driver license office only to find it, you know, crowded.
Despite his rebellious rock roots, Ensslin would not cringe to hear himself described as a “people person.†It’s what’s got him into his new business, Nest Realty, which is aimed at helping buyers, especially first-timers, negotiate the local real estate market.
Ensslin, who worked at Weaver Street Realty for several years before the two parted company during the real estate downturn, said his experiences working with buyers proved the most enjoyable.
Rather than a traditional real estate company, which can represent buyers and sellers, Ensslin said he’s more comfortable with being an advocate and counselor to people trying to find a home in a time of flux. It’s not about making the sale, he said. “I’m helping people make decisions and navigate the real estate market.â€
Nest is keeping him busy, as is his recent move to Raleigh, which was accompanied by an increase in family. He and his wife Kelly, an attorney with a Raleigh-based law firm, adopted their second child this spring from Vietnam. It was an arduous process that rose and fell with the interactions of nations.
Recently, when he found a brief window of downtime, he plunged into a painting project, figuring that with a full house he might not have many such opportunities for a while.
The resulting series, “Famous Monsters,†hangs on the walls at Acme through the month.
A native of Tampa and, like many of his generation from that area, a former follower of kitsch monster-movie host Dr. Paul Bearer, Ensslin’s show is mainly a set of portraits – mug shots – of 17 monster greats of the past.
“I really love monsters and so I sat down and thought how many I could do portraits of just off the top of my head,†Ensslin said. “Seventeen sounded just about right.â€
I love this creative approach to real estate — purchasing a home for the first time can be daunting. Great idea… Love the paintings too! Thanks Carrboro Citizen for bringing such interesting and well-written articles to the community. Can you post excerpts of “This Carrboro Life” on the Citizen site?