Today we’d like to introduce you to Shelly and Clay Davis. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Shelly and Clay are both shrimp-loving Southerners from Mobile, AL. They were friends in high school but didn’t start dating until they were Freshmen at colleges three hours apart. While Clay was pursuing a degree from the University of Southern Mississippi, Shelly was pursuing hers from Mississippi University for Women. After three long years of long-distance dating, the two married on April Fool’s Day of 2000. Directly after college, they both went to work in careers outside of the real estate. In 2005 Shelly and Clay came to Georgia.
After a corporate job at a Fortune 500 company, Shelly took a little time off to be a mom to the two coolest kids in the universe, while Clay slogged away in a corporate HR career. During that period, Shelly determined she did not want to return to a corporate job and should put her skills to work in a field where she could genuinely help people. Because she always paid attention to real estate and market trends, she took the advice from a good friend in the industry and got her license.
After a few short years, some quirky videos, and a lot of happy clients, the business had grown enough that Clay abandoned his corporate HR career to join Shelly in real estate full-time. Together, they have now built a business they’re proud of. In the last five years, they’ve helped hundreds of families buy homes, sell homes, and navigate tricky real estate scenarios in more than 23 cities spread over 10 counties in metro Atlanta.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
In the grand scheme of things, yes it has been a smooth road, but Real Estate by nature is a stressful job and a cyclical business. You have to work hard during the up markets and plan for the down ones. There is no steady income and you often get calls, emails, texts, and messages at all hours.
You absolutely have to have tough skin. Tough skin when your clients are crying because they didn’t win the house they wanted so badly and when or when past clients have hit hardship and are getting foreclosed on. When you care about people, it’s hard not to let your clients’ stresses become your own.
As for the struggles we have personally faced, it was definitely a challenge to figure out how we as a husband/wife team should divide the workload, work from home – sharing the same damn desk, and have patience for each other. And to add a big ol’ cherry up top, we somehow survived our first year of working together with both of us working from home and during a pandemic! But alas, the marriage survived and the business grew.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Davis + Davis REALTORS ®?
At Davis + Davis REALTORS ®, we specialize in Residential Real Estate. We are most known for our strong real estate skills and our unique and quirky social media presence. We have always taken great pride in our work ethic, quality, and reputation. We feel strongly that it is our job to educate and empower our clients so they have the courage to make decisions and take charge while optimizing opportunity.
Throughout our partnership (both business and personal), we have laughed through the best and worst of times. Humor has always been the bedrock of our relationship and we strongly feel that laughter truly is the best medicine serving as a twisted silver lining of sorts. when the world seems grim.
So it is our goal to put good out into the world. We are very involved in our community, sponsoring events, building little, free libraries, etc. But it doesn’t stop there. As a creative outlet, we love making videos. Videos full of both silly and serious stuff. Sometimes real estate, but mostly just to make you grin. There are no gimmicks and none of that image-obsessed hustle/grind BS that we all see so many real estate agents do. Just two genuine folks who do this full-time to feed their kids while loving what they do.
Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
Shelly – In Elementary and Middle School, I would purchase floor plan magazines and just look through them. My dream home was a Spanish-style house with a Terra Cotta tile roof and a beautiful courtyard. At the time, I thought it all aligned with my interest in engineering and architecture, but in hindsight, it seems it was a hint at my future!
Clay – Adventuring through the woods, riding bikes, and making stuff out of junk. Not a lot has changed.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.davisanddavisrealtors.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shellyandclaydavisrealtors/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DavisAndDavisRealtors
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8mzkUaqg2JbxFMwp6v6UtQ
Image Credits
Paige Brigman at One Love Photography
