NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Real estate agent and Netflix reality star, Nicole Young discusses her upcoming Nashville relocation, standing up for herself on camera, and maintaining wellness amid toxic workplace dynamics
The star of Netflix’s hit reality series “Selling Sunset,” is trading the palm trees of Los Angeles for the rolling hills of Nashville, and she couldn’t be more excited about the change. In an exclusive interview, Young opened up about her decision to leave LA behind, the mental health challenges of reality TV, and her lifelong commitment to fitness and wellness.
Young’s connection to Nashville runs deep through family ties. “Half of my husband’s family lives in Nashville. His parents actually grew up there, so tons of extended family there as well,” she explained. The decision crystallized about a year ago when her husband was visiting the city. “When he came home I was like, ‘Hey, would you ever consider moving to Nashville?’ And he almost passed out because he thought I was going to have my body buried in Los Angeles.”
The move feels like destiny, with signs pointing toward Nashville from multiple directions. “It was so cool and also crazy because it was like everything sort of pointed in that direction. The universe is like, ‘yes, this is the right move,'” Nicole says. “Our families are so excited and all of our friends are so excited.” Even her best friend decided to make the move with them. Talk about perfect timing!
Nicole has fallen in love with Nashville’s real estate market, which initially caught her attention while browsing properties online. “I just love all the different areas,” Nicole shared.
In Los Angeles, Nicole and her husband currently live in Woodland Hills, which is a suburb a bit farther out away from the city. Nicole says it will be a nice change to live closer to all the action once they come to Nashville. The options are endless for them. “We have friends from Brentwood to Franklin to Hendersonville to Goodlettsville to Belle Meade.”
The architecture and natural beauty of Nashville have captured her heart: “I love the style of the homes. I love the properties and just the beauty of Nashville. “I used to feel that way about L.A.— whenever I traveled, the moment I got back, I’d think, ‘I’m home.’” Now she feels that same way about Nashville. “As soon as I arrive, the stress just melts off and I feel completely at home,” Nicole adds.
As they settle on a Nashville borough, Young and her husband are looking to settle in Oak Hill area. She loves the thought of living with much land, but still being able to get anywhere within minutes.
She also added there might be a hobby farm with animals, like donkeys, is in her future plans.
Season nine of “Selling Sunset” showcased a different side of Young, one willing to fight back against workplace toxicity. The experience has taught her valuable lessons about compartmentalization and standing up for herself. “This whole process definitely tests you in every possible way,” Young says. “If you go in thinking you’re a very strong person, which I did, it will test you every step of the way. If you are not made of steel, the situation will just make you crumble.”
Young learned to separate her real life from the show: “For me, it became very clear that I had to compartmentalize these two things in my life — real life and the show, because if my life becomes the show, if my identity becomes the show, it’s going to go down the drain real quick and it’s not going to be good for my mental health and for my family,” Young shares.
Having already decided to move to Nashville before filming, Young felt empowered to be more authentic. “We had already made the decision to move to Nashville. So I was already in kind of a different head space,” Young says. “I’m just going to be me. I am going to speak my mind. I’m not going to be pushed around. I don’t care if anyone has my back or not, but I need to stand up for myself because there’s just been too many times.”
The fan response this season has been markedly different from previous years. “Social media after this season is definitely the most support I’ve gotten online, which I was not expecting,” Young happily shares. Viewers began questioning their previous perceptions towards Nicole, the show and the rest of the cast.
“A lot of people were like, ‘Oh, wow, good, she finally stood up for herself.’ It gave audiences a moment to ask, ‘Are we looking at this the right way? The whole time we were just believing what was fed to us, and maybe we were misled.’”
Young’s approach to workplace confrontation has evolved through experience and she is here to bring awarness and advice to anyone else who might have found themselves in similar situations.
“I definitely think you need to have your boundaries for sure, especially at work,” Young says. While she advocates to keep the peace and not engage, there is always a line that should never get crossed.
“If someone just keeps coming at you, you need to speak up at a certain point,” Young adds.
She emphasizes the importance of standing ground, especially when facing false accusations: “If you just allow someone to repeatedly walk all over you or worse, throw accusations that are very defamatory and false, you have to do something. And it’s tough.”
For Nicole, learning when to assert yourself is a key part of navigating the workplace with confidence and integrity.
Young’s commitment to fitness stems from a lifelong athletic background. “I’ve been an athlete my entire life and come from a very big family of athletes, including my my parents who were both collegiate athletes,” Young says. Young’s main sports included gymnastics and springboard diving.
“I had a couple D1 scholarships for springboard diving at the time,” Young shares.
Though she chose not to pursue diving in college to have a “normal college student” experience, she recognizes the foundational role sports played in shaping her commitment to fitness. “Sports has just always been a huge, huge, huge part of my life and really laid the foundation for who I am as a person, how I do business, my mental fortitude and strength,” Young adds.
Today, Young prefers to stay active outside of traditional gym workouts. “I love to do anything that doesn’t feel like I’m going to the gym and just trying to plug away on the treadmill. I love playing beach volleyball. I love going hiking, gardening and just doing things outside that are active,” she says.
Her home fitness routine centers around Peloton cycling with a unique approach. “My trick is I put it in the living room and I do it at night. So when I’m watching TV instead of just sitting on the couch, I do it from the bike. Time goes by so much faster. I can get a super hardcore workout in from my living room,” she laughingly shares.
Pilates also holds special significance in her fitness regimen. “The thing about Pilates is it really strengthens all those connector muscles that I have not found any other workout regimen does for the body,” she says. Young even wishes she had discovered it earlier: “I wish I had been doing Pilates back when I was a diver, because God, it would’ve helped me and propelled me so much.”
Young is a passionate advocate for sauna therapy, crediting it with transforming both her physical and mental health. “I am a huge, huge, huge, huge, huge believer in saunas. The health benefits, even just the mental clarity it brings my skin, there is nothing like it,” Young exclaims.
Her sauna journey began about 15 years ago when she experienced mysterious skin issues. “I couldn’t figure out what was going on. I was getting hives and my skin was just freaking out and I didn’t know what to do. I started going to the sauna every day for 45 minutes going in and just sweating everything out. And it was the only thing that worked, and it was the only thing that made a difference with my skin.”
Young considers morning sauna sessions unmatched for mental clarity: “You’re just energized, but you’re calm. You’re present, you’re calm, and it’s like everything’s cleared aways and you’re just ready for the day.”
While she also incorporates cold plunges, they’re more challenging for her. “It’s tough for me. I struggle with them. I will usually do it at the end of as sauna, because if I don’t, it’s almost like a stop for me. Otherwise, I won’t stop sweating for three hours.”
Young is excited about Nashville’s growing fitness and wellness community. When asked about post-COVID wellness trends, she noted Nashville’s emphasis on health and fitness. “I noticed that this summer, as we were visiting, everyone’s working out, Young points out. “We were staying Soho House and the gym was just packed, and it was really cool just to see such an emphasis on that.”
Beyond real estate and fitness opportunities, Young is most excited about Nashville’s community spirit. “People in Nashville are just top tier,” she says. “Nashville has the most genuine and kind people who love to talk and engage with each other. Just very good soul, moral, good southern people vibe, and I love that.”
We cannot wait to add her to the mix of awesome and genuine people who are propelling this city to greater strengths everyday.
Nicole stills belongs to the Oppenheim Group as an agent and even mentions co-founder, Jason Oppenheim has interest to take on listings in Nashville. However, Nicole is ensuring she finds her home, people and footing before she hits the real estate market.
Nicole can be found on Instagram and TikTok where she continues to share her journey from LA to Nashville and her ongoing commitment to health, wellness, and authentic living.
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