A Conversation with Shontelle Jackson, Realtor, on first-time home buying and renting
Buying too soon or renting too long can both cost you, and most people never get told which one they are doing.
Home ownership gets sold as the finish line, and renting gets sold as money down the drain, but neither story holds up well on its own. The choice facing a first-time buyer or a long-term renter is more particular than either script allows, shaped by income, timeline and local market conditions. This week, Tony Mobley sits down with Realtor Shontelle Jackson to work through what that choice actually looks like. It is a conversation built for the decision in front of you, not the one in a headline.
Wednesday, September 2, 2026 8:00 – 9:00 PM ET Live at conversationswithtonymobley.com
Who Is Shontelle Jackson
Shontelle Jackson works as a Realtor, which puts her on the ground with people making one of the largest financial decisions of their lives. That vantage point matters because so much housing advice online is generic, while the real decisions people face are specific to their income, their timeline and their local market.
A Realtor’s daily work is less about the transaction itself and more about the questions that come before it. That is the ground this conversation starts from.
Why This Conversation, and Why Now
Housing costs, mortgage rates and rental markets have shifted enough in recent years that assumptions people held even five years ago no longer apply cleanly. Anyone weighing a first purchase, or wondering whether to keep renting, is doing so under conditions that reward current information over inherited wisdom.
That gap between old advice and current reality is exactly where a conversation like this earns its place. Tony Mobley built this show to put people in the room with someone who deals with these questions directly, rather than leaving listeners to guess.
What We Expect to Explore
Buying vs Renting
- How to weigh the true cost of buying against the true cost of renting, beyond the headline monthly figure
- What signals suggest someone is ready to buy, and what signals suggest they are not
- How local market conditions should change that calculation
The First-Time Buyer Journey
- What steps typically come before an offer is even possible
- Where first-time buyers most often get caught out
- How to build a realistic budget that survives contact with the market
Renting With Intention
- What questions a renter should be asking that most people skip
- How to tell the difference between renting by default and renting by choice
- What renters can do now to put themselves in a stronger position later
Working With a Realtor
- What a Realtor actually does for a buyer or renter, beyond finding listings
- How to know when it is the right time to bring one in
- What questions to ask before choosing who to work with
Who This Conversation Is For
This conversation is for anyone standing at the edge of a housing decision, whether that means a first purchase, a lease renewal, or simply working out which direction makes sense. It is also for anyone who has felt talked at by housing advice rather than talked to.
Tony Mobley hosts these conversations live, and the chat stays open for the duration of the show. Viewers are welcome to bring their own housing questions and put them directly to Shontelle Jackson as the conversation unfolds.
Join the Conversation
The show airs live on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, from 8:00 to 9:00 PM ET, here at conversationswithtonymobley.com. Conversations with Tony Mobley keeps bringing people together with guests who can speak plainly about decisions that matter. This is one worth clearing your evening for.