Today we’d like to introduce you to Meridith Hayes.
Hi Meridith, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
After graduating from The University of Texas at Austin in 2001, I attended UT law school graduating in 2004. During law school, I met my husband, Mark, who was living and working in Colorado for a while and then for a homebuilder in his native Arizona. Upon graduation, I moved to Dallas, took the bar exam and started my first job as a lawyer. Mark moved to Dallas later that year transferring with the Texas based homebuilder he was working for at the time. I continued to practice law for 11 years, starting with real estate acquisitions, development agreements and other transactional work and later pivoting during the real estate downturn in 2009 to employment law. My husband started Hayes Signature Homes full time in 2011 and in 2015, I made the decision to leave my law job to help him grow the company. I got my real estate license 6 years ago but sat on it for about a year while working behind the scenes on the building side of things. 5 years ago, I really decided to go for it. I committed to marketing, promoting my business, and learning as much as I could to best represent my clients. In those 5 years, I have seen my business grow year over year and I have had the opportunity to work with the best people including old friends, new friends and referrals.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
There have certainly been struggles along the way. Part of the desire to leave an office job of billing hours was to spend more time with my kids, who are now 9 and 12. But as both the homebuilding and my realtor business have grown, I have had to look at this balance once again. I am so grateful to have incredible colleagues at Compass who are a support system as well as a new realtor on my team who can help in those times when I really do not want to miss my sons’ baseball games or need to stay home due to someone being sick. Fortunately, my husband and I work incredibly well together but there was also a learning curve for both of us when we began working from home and together a lot of the time. But those adjustments and challenges have certainly made us stronger and have allowed a true partnership to form in business and beyond. Our businesses have also evolved to the point where we are now sounding boards for one another operating two separate businesses and all of the struggles have been worth it.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a Realtor at Compass and primarily work in the Preston Hollow, Park Cities and North Dallas areas but also have represented deals in the Oak Lawn area, East Dallas and Carrollton. My experience as a lawyer with complex transactions procuring school sites from developers and working with municipalities to develop the land set me up as a realtor to have knowledge beyond what is required to get a real estate license. Additionally, being married to a builder, working to help him grow the business and having built 3 houses for our family, has taught me not only about entrepreneurship but also what is behind the walls. While I represent the sale of new construction for our company, I also have represented clients this year in the sale of a condo built in the 70s, the purchase of a mid-century modern home, a purchase of a Preston Hollow estate and transitioning clients into and out of their first homes. My goal is to make the process as fun as possible and to reduce stress during what can be a stressful time. As someone who moves every 2 years or so, I am intimately familiar with the process and have a high level of empathy!
It has been so rewarding to come into a competitive real estate market as a second career act and build something I am incredibly proud of. I love showing my kids that I can be available to them as they get older but also do something I truly love.
What do you like and dislike about the city?
There is no way I could narrow down all of the things I love about Dallas. Truly, I believe the people are the heart of any city and Dallas has some of the most kind, entrepreneurial minded, and talented people around. I also love the unique aspects of each neighborhood, the skyline, the foodie scene and rooting on the all of the professional sports teams. We are big Joey Gallo fans and love rooting on the Rangers! The redevelopment of downtown and the arts district has been so thoughtful. You can literally find anything you want or need in Dallas. While the suburbs are thriving, I love that Dallas proper is a place where people want to live and work and each neighborhood feels like its own small town.
As someone who focused on school law in the past, I really wish that all students had equal access to the best education in Dallas. I have worked as a volunteer with Reading Partners of North Texas for several years to help bring kids up their reading grade level. It is so fulfilling to see the desire of students to learn, each student’s yearly gains. It is one area in Dallas I would like to see improve.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://www.compass.com/agents/meridith-hayes/
- Instagram: @meridith.compass
Image Credits
Costa Christ Media Shannon Skloss Danny Campbell
