Carol Hagen Is Lester Holt’s Wife and a Successful Real Estate Agent

Carol Hagen, Lester Holt’s wife, and the news anchor have celebrated over forty years of marriage after meeting in 1980. The pair have welcomed two children and have weathered the tough times that came with his job, and the news anchor revealed that laughter was the secret to their long marriage.

Lester, the first African-American to solo anchor a weekday network nightly newscast, relocated many times and always had his wife by his side. He was still a university student when his and Carol’s paths crossed, and it did not take long for them to fall in love and get married.

Carol has enjoyed years in the real estate industry as a licensed agent and managed to balance motherhood and a flourishing career. After welcoming two successful sons—one of whom studied engineering—and forty years later, the couple still makes each other laugh.

Lester Holt and Carol Hagen at the 2018 IRC Rescue Dinner on November 1, 2018, in New York City. | Source: Getty Images

Carol Hagen Is a Licensed & Successful Real Estate Agent

Born in Seattle, Washington, Carol’s experience in sales, training, and management in the cosmetic industry, and her years working in the travel hospitality business offered her a smooth transition to the world of real estate.

Her years working with the public in her previous jobs sharpened her skillset, and she became a seasoned real estate agent with deep knowledge about the ins and outs of her field. Her bio on Zillow, in part, reads:

“Carol’s friendly, engaging personality has been described as calming and reassuring. Carol has a sharp eye for details and is determined to make sure her clients are supported throughout the process and know what to expect.”

Carol Hagen and Lester Holt with company at the Mother Nature Network’s White House Correspondents’ Jam IV on April 27, 2018, in Washington, DC. | Source: Getty Images

With experience in buying and selling urban properties, Carol has overseen two major renovations of properties and has served on plenty of co-ops and boards.

From working in Francisco and Los Angeles to Chicago and Manhattan, Carol developed an eye for potential. She built a reputation for caring for her clients throughout the home buying and selling process, whether in the city—where she lived for seventeen years—or in the suburbs.

Carol acquired a taste for modern design and architecture through her work. And when it comes to winding down, she is a lover of jazz and skiing.

Holt Met Hagen While She Worked as a Flight Attendant

Carol Hagen and Lester Holt at The Hollywood Reporter’s 35 Most Powerful People In Media 2017 on April 13, 2017, in New York City. | Source: Getty Images

When Lester and Carol first met, he was a student at California State University, and she was a flight attendant. During the early stages of their relationship, Carol recalled tagging along when Lester received a call from work to report on a forest fire in Napa Valley.

“I thought, ‘Wow, I’ve never been invited to go on a breaking news story before. A forest fire—that could be considered a hot date!’ So I said, ‘I’m game.'” Carol recalled. The couple spent the night observing the burned-out areas from the back of a Highway Patrol car.

Carol revealed that their interrupted date gave her a taste of what life with Lester and his career would be like. And the news anchor also shared that Carol’s support of his career was one of the things he loved about her. Lester said:

“I love her to death. She has been so wonderful, she knows this job is going to bring a lot of late-night phone calls, but she’s there for me, and that means an awful lot.”

Carol Hagen and Lester Holt at Dateline’s 25th Anniversary Event on September 20, 2016. | Source: Getty Images

Carol Hagen and Lester Holt Have Two Sons and Are Now Grandparents

Carol and Lester’s eldest son, Stefan Holt, followed in his father’s footsteps and pursued a career as an anchor. The award-winning journalist was born and raised in Chicago and enrolled at Pepperdine University in California.

He graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in broadcast telecommunications and a B.A. in political science and met his future wife, Morgan.

Stefan returned to Chicago to anchor the NBC 5 News every weeknight after spending years working in New York and has been the recipient of multiple Emmy Awards for his work.

In 2017, Stefan and his wife welcomed their firstborn son, Henry, and shared the news of his birth on Instagram. By 2019, they were a family of four when their second son, Samuel Richard, was born.

Lester Holt was in Normandy, France, reporting on the 75th anniversary of D-Day for NBC when he revealed that his second grandchild came a little early. He said:

“I saw on the schedule that I was going to be in Normandy. I thought, ‘It’s OK. I’ll get back in time,’ but it didn’t work out that way.”

The news anchor added that he could not contain his excitement to hold his second grandchild. In 2021, Stefan’s family grew again when his wife gave birth to their third son, James.

Carol and Lester’s second child, Cameron Holt, was a student at Stanford University from 2008 until 2013, where he studied Mathematical and Computational Science and graduated with distinction.

Cameron also obtained his Honors in Optimization Theory and furthered his education when he studied Management Science and Engineering with a concentration in Machine Learning.

In 2009, Cameron kickstarted his career with an internship at CNBS for three months. In 2011, he was a Software intern in New York City before landing a job as a Teaching Assitant at Stanford. He has been an Executive Director at Stanley Morgan in New York for the past nine years.

They’ve Been Married for over 40 Years. What’s the Key to Their Marriage’s Longevity?

Carol Hagen and Lester Holt at the 2016 Time 100 Gala, Time’s Most Influential People In The World on April 26, 2016, in New York City. | Source: Getty Images

Carol and Lester have enjoyed over forty years of marriage, and in 2015, she and her sons surprised Lester on the set of the “Today Show.” That same year, he revealed that the secret to their successful marriage has been making each other laugh. He said:

“We laugh a lot, we really do. I can be silly— she can be sillier. We just laugh through things, and we know that everything, tough times, will be a story at some point, and boy, have I put her through some tough times with this job.”

Lester shared that whenever his phone rang and a big story was unfolding, he wanted to be the first on the scene, and Carol understood.

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