Tracy Murrell at Access Real Estate

Written by Elizabeth McCabe | Photos by Shawna McDuffie, Peak RES

Career reinvention isn’t for the faint of heart.

It’s for the woman who’s willing to walk away from security, trust her faith, bet on herself, and then outwork the doubt.

After years in the nonprofit world as an executive assistant, she felt a shift stirring. The spreadsheets, the schedules, the steady paycheck? They were familiar. But something inside her was nudging her toward more.

“I felt like I was ready for a change.”

It wasn’t impulsive. Tracy prayed about it. In 2022, she stepped away from the nonprofit world and got into mortgage lending, earning her license and gaining invaluable insight into the financing side of real estate. While it wasn’t the right long-term fit, it gave her confidence and clarity.

She and her husband, J.T., had been real estate investors themselves, managing flips, long-term and short-term rentals. Getting her real estate license in 2023 felt both practical and purposeful. She enrolled in an online class and, within a month, was licensed. 

“I was doing it because I felt the Lord leading me, and because it would help us with our own investing. But once I started getting into it, why wouldn’t I go for it?”

And when Tracy goes for something, she doesn’t tiptoe.

She kicked off her career in real estate in 2024.

In her first year, she sold just under $4 million in volume, and earned more than she had ever earned annually in nonprofit work. In 2025, she set what felt like a stretch goal: $10 million.

She closed over $9 million.

Then came another moment she didn’t see coming, being named among the Top 500.

“I was shocked. I couldn’t believe it. Now it’s like, how do I keep this going?”

That question doesn’t intimidate her. It energizes her.

Tracy competes with one person: herself. She sets clear goals, breaks them down quarterly and monthly, and asks, “What do I need to do to get there?” Recently, she added a transaction coordinator to help streamline operations, another strategic step in building something lasting.

“It’s internal,” she says. “I want to be successful. I want to be an example to my girls and my son of what you can do when you set your mind to it. It’s fun hitting—or almost hitting—my goals.”

Most of her business is rooted in Norman, where she and J.T. invest and where their oldest daughter attends the University of Oklahoma. Devoted OU fans, they’ve woven their personal and professional lives together there, so much so that their puppy is named Boomer.

Through those connections, Tracy has built a strong client base of investors, parents of college students, and young buyers navigating their first purchases. She has become a trusted resource helping clients update and lease properties, evaluate short-term rentals, and think strategically about building wealth.

“I’ve been able to guide them with information on how to be successful.”

Referrals and repeat clients now follow naturally. And perhaps one of the greatest blessings of this career shift? Flexibility. Real estate has helped fund her daughter’s Law school education and allowed Tracy to be fully present with her daughter who is a junior in high school and for her son’s football and basketball seasons, where she’s active in the booster club.

“I wish I had started 20 years ago,” she says.

Still, the timing feels intentional.

She works out regularly, prioritizing health as a foundation for everything else. She loves shopping, attending sporting events, spending time with extended family, visiting her oldest daughter in Norman for sorority events, and thrifting with her younger daughter. Life is busy. She prefers it that way.

At Access Real Estate, Tracy is building something steady and strong. While Norman has been a powerful launchpad, she’s eager to expand more business closer to home in Edmond. One day, she may add a team, perhaps even turning it into a family venture with her children, nieces, and nephews.

Her best advice?

“Believe in yourself. Believe you can handle it. Operate from confidence. Every day is different, and something new will come up. Trust yourself and your resources to navigate what comes your way.”

Two years ago, Tracy Murrell stepped into the unknown with faith and grit.

Now she’s not just proving she belongs. She’s proving what’s possible.