Ellie Ginsburg knows all about her customers finding that diamond in the rough. This Fort Lauderdale realtor is a former gemologist with years of experience to prove it, but these days she's intent on helping find people that house with the perfect sparkle and shine.

Ginsburg spoke with BlockShopper.com about her career in the diamond industry and how a woman from Brazil found herself working real estate in Florida.

BS: Is real estate your first career?

EG: I'm originally from Brazil. Over there, I was a gemologist dealing with diamonds. I called it selling dreams because of the whole emotional experience of people buying their first jewelery. When I graduated, I had the choice between being a gemologist in the United State or Europe. I chose the Europe certificate but wanted the U.S. one as well. I came here for that and stayed. I ended up getting married and have lived in South Florida ever since.

BS: What brought you to real estate?

EG: I've been involved in real estate for seven years. I first got involved as an investor so I know the investment side very well. I realized I was giving too much money to realtors when I bought and sold properties and decided to get my license. One thing just lead to another.

BS: How did your past real estate investment experience help when you went full time?

EG: I've always been part of the business that works with banks so I know how to get a deal through. I'm on the side of negotiating, which is my strength. Selling houses is easy, but putting the papers together to make a transaction go through is the stumbling block for a lot of people. The difference between me and other realtors is that they just knew how to flip papers and didn't know how to go from beginning to end to make the client happy.

BS: Do you remember your first sale?

EG: My first sale involved a 23 year-old girl who was desperate for help when she came to me. She was in foreclosure, only made $1,200 a month and owed a lot of money on her house. She had a roommate who didn't have a social security number or credit and had asked to buy the house under her name, splitting the equity when they sold the house. Long story short, the roommate disappeared and the girl was stuck with a house she didn't buy and couldn't afford. We negotiated a short sale for $145,000 when the house was worth only $150,000. We also got the deficiency judgment waived so she had no debt at all.