Dallas Start-Up Aims to Revolutionize Real Estate and Turn the Industry On Its Head – And It's Doing Just That

Homeowners have nearly 40 times the net worth of renters. Why is this? Because the most valuable asset most people own is their home.

So, why do so many people choose the first agent they speak with or a distant family member or friend of a friend whom they know little about to help them with the transaction of their most important asset? Well, because that’s how it has always been done. Up until now.

One small, but fast-growing real estate company out of the suburbs of Rockwall, Texas is working to turn the real estate industry on its head and challenge the age-old model of the way it’s always been done.

M&D Real Estate was founded in 2012, and the company started off as a means of flipping investment properties initially. But then, the founder decided after experiencing a definitive void of service among the agents he was using that he himself would get licensed and become an agent and do things differently.

And M&D as we know it was born.

Danny Perez got his license and became a successful agent with Keller Williams, under the umbrella of which he started to build M&D Real Estate Group. But his dreams were bigger than residential real estate alone.

On a flight one day, he drew out a vision of what his company would look like someday, and that’s the company he has now created 11 years later.

Aspiring M&D Real Estate Agents are interviewed, and not all are accepted. That’s difference number one. New agents are required to go through a rigorous 128-hour course plus 12 transactions with a coach before they are deemed an M&D 5-Star Agent and can manage clients alone..

But the real difference maker in this brand-new, unheard of real estate model? All the agents are supported by listing specialists, a full-in-house marketing team, a residential director and transaction coordinators.

M&D Real Estate aims to be known for and branded by their consistency to list homes professionally, with high caliber marketing, using expert listing specialists and then experienced transactions coordinators along with its 5-Star Agents – all aimed at a high level of quality control in an industry where generally, each man is for himself.

But, what’s left for the agent to do with all those team members backing them? Well, M&D has weekly training where agents are coached at a high level on the finer points of contracts, especially on their negotiation skills.

All of this so clients will receive an expert team of people at their beck and call (not just one agent), and will be getting world-class marketing of their property, contracts that are double checked and agents whose primary focus is to get them the best deal possible and keep the most money in their pocket.

In an industry moving towards discount brokers and “hang your license here” to do your business kind of models, M&D stands out from the rest as entirely different.

At M&D, the slogan is #workhardforyou. The agents regularly complete forms upon closing to capture just how many negotiation points they scored for buyers or sellers, how much they got over or under-asking and the like. They are challenged to be excellent agents, with a full, professional team backing them and this, the company touts, is how they earn their 3% commission fees.

It’s well known that hiring an agent makes a difference in the transaction – most recently, NAR found it makes a $100,000+ difference in the ultimate outcome when a seller secures an agent versus chooses to go the “for sale by owner” route.

M&D takes this one step further, espousing that by choosing to work with them, clients will get an even better return or better deal on their purchase because of this unique model and their high-caliber agents.

This company has had a hot start. M&D Real Estate has grown 100% year over year, every year, since going off on its own in early 2021. And M&D Commercial Group already doubled its production by July of 2023 compared to all of 2022 – and this in a commercial market that’s down 70%.

The company offers full service to its clients, meaning those in need of real estate services have access to residential agents, commercial agents, property management services and general contracting services all under one roof.

Additionally, M&D Real Estate has opened two new offices in the past year – one in fast-growing Forney, Texas and another in hotspot Royse City, Texas with its flagship office and headquarters out of Rockwall. The company has been adding jobs and expanding at a time real estate transactions are down, and as the market as a whole is down by a whopping 30% year over year, which is impressive in itself.

Founder Danny Perez said, “We plan to open 75 offices in the next seven years and grow even faster after that… We believe in our model, in our business and the vision for the future – because everyone’s most valuable asset should be in safe, consistent hands and we aim to be that safe space for people looking to buy, sell, lease, or have their property managed.”