Growing up in Lake Forest, a small town on the North Shore of Chicago, Thomas’ mother had her career in international telecom and his father an old-world interior decorator. This gave him a balanced view of life: with a comfort level in both the pin-stripped, three piece suites of the corporate world and the broken-in, paint stained Carhartt overalls of hands-on work.
Texas A&M University brought Thomas south. In between semesters, large general contractor construction jobs allowed him an opportunity to learn site work, masonry, carpentry, electrical, and plumbing, from start to finish out. It also developed a passion for building. During his last year of university he spent abroad in Europe studying German corporate management and marketing structures. In 1995, he graduated with a dual degree in International Marketing and Corporate Communications.
SALES
Fresh out of college he was recruited by ADP Houston and climbed the corporate ladder to District Manager for Corporate Tax Consulting Services. He consulted for small businesses on simplifying their HR, Payroll, and Tax Liabilities. The years at ADP provided to be instrumental in learning the fundamentals of consultative selling and business management.
In 1996 Clear Channel Communications, based in Houston, Texas saw his sales potential. He immersed himself for the next ten years living and breathing the world of advertising sales. His innovative and creative side came into play as he built and sold multi-million dollar marketing campaigns for diverse national and regional clients. While at Clear Channel he took an opportunity to leave in 2000 and launch and new out-of-home media vehicle for Captivate Networks, and was hired as the Regional Sales Manager to build, train and manage the Houston and Dallas Sales teams. Once completed he returned to Clear Channel to continue on with Clear Channel in Palm Beach & Miami , and later back to Houston.
REAL ESTATE
Thomas’ escape from the corporate world started with projects that involved investing time and money into remodeling homes in the West University and Med Center areas of Houston. When it came time to sell the projects he noticed most of the buyer’s agents had a lack of business enterprise and construction knowledge. It sparked him to obtain his real estate license and sell his own properties. Real estate began to provide him a lucrative return and he made the decision to leave his corporate career and take on a career in real estate full time. He found his niche early on as a buyer’s broker and began helping others find investment property throughout Texas. Within his first six months in sales as an independent agent he achieved over 5 million in sales and has never looked back!
Thomas’ style is to approach every property for his clients as if he were purchasing or selling it for himself.
What makes Thomas a different broker is whether it is residential, farm and ranch, or a commercial property he provides his clients with a full break down of projected improvement costs, potential issues, market statistics, and additional information he feels is valuable in making their decision to purchase or sell. “As a buyers agent I pride myself in skilled negotiations and offer an analytical investment approach to every property. As a listing agent my goal is to achieve the highest sales price possible, be flexible in commissions, and sell the property in a reasonable time frame.” says Thomas confidently.
ECO/GREEN
In 2008, Thomas received his EcoBroker® certification (www.ecobroker.com), which recognizes him as a professional who understands green homes, energy efficiency, sustainable design, healthier environments, comfort, and value. With this additional knowledge he can relay accurate information to his clients searching for a sustainable investment.
Also, partnering with Rock Environmental, LLC (www.rockenvironmental.com) HC Estates is proud to offer its clients a new approach to “green”. Consulting on new construction and remodeling through LEED certification, green home audits, and sustainable design.
HOBBIES
Thomas volunteers a lot of his time to various organizations. He sits as Chairman of the Kerrville MLS Board of Realtors, as a Board Member of the Kerrville Main Street Advisory Board (focusing on community development), as a Member of the Marketing Committee for Safari Club International and Safari Club International Foundation (focusing on international wildlife conservation and hunter’s rights). He lives on a parcel of a 1,800 acre exotic game ranch in Hunt, Texas and enjoys the privacy and outdoor lifestyle it provides. His other loves are black and white photography, remodeling historical homes, wine, big game hunting, gourmet cooking, international travel, and spending time with his family and close friends.
