Tony Landaverde

I was born in El Paso, Texas but my mom moved to Los Angeles, California when I was 9 months old.  So technically even though I was born in Texas, I grew up in California, but I ended up coming back HOME to Texas many years later when I signed the contract to build my new dream home in 2006 here in San Antonio.  Let me share my story with you.

Let's go back to when I was only 22.  At that time, myself and my siblings sadly and tragically lost our mother unexpectedly due to a cerebral hemorrhage.  My sadness about our loss was huge, but a major aspect was that she was never able to witness all of us growing up or seeing all of our accomplishments in life.   She would have been so proud of us.

But anyway, when she passed, I instantly became the mother and father figure to my two younger brothers and my baby sister.  At the time of her passing, my brothers were 13 and 11 and my sister was only 6.

Given the loss of my mom, it was a blessing that I was able to raise my 3 siblings, all of whom are College graduates and successful adults.  Fortunately for me, after my mom and her husband had divorced, she had always taught my siblings to view me as the man of the house from then on and even though I was only 15.  Who would have known that this was going to be such a great blessing in disguise.

Anyway, at that time I had an amazing opportunity and I started working as a Human Resources assistant for an Organ Recovery Agency.  I was fascinated by the process and by what the Organ Recovery Coordinators did, so I always studied the medical charts and asked questions as to why this was done etc. 

After 2 years in said position and taking the initiative of learning from the medical charts and Registered Nurse Coordinators, my CEO noticed how disciplined I was and offered to promote me and train me on the job and I became a Kidney and Liver allocation specialist.  After 5 years of doing this, she then created another position of Assistant Organ Recovery Coordinator, so I could eventually become a full fledged Organ Recovery Coordinator. 

Funny story though was that when I first started with the Organ Recovery agency, I had just obtained my Real Estate License in California, but I never got into real estate because my medical career took off.

So after 15 years with the Organ Recovery agency, it was unfortunate for my CEO that one day when I got home from work I caught a show on HGTV called “Hot Zips” and they were featuring San Antonio, Texas.  After seeing the home prices and picking up my jaw up from the floor, I immediately planned a trip to come “look” and I got in touch with a REALTOR® to show me some homes here in San Antonio.  Long story short, on the 2nd day of looking, I found the floor plan of my dreams and signed on the dotted line to build my new home.

I then returned back to Los Angeles and got my family together for dinner, so I could share the news.  At first, they thought I was joking, so I had to pull the contract out to prove that I wasn’t joking and that it was true.  I was moving to San Antonio, Texas.

As they finally realized that I wasn’t joking, they asked me if I was crazy, to which I replied, “Uh, yes...  You all already know I am,” LOL.  They then asked if I knew anyone out here or if I had a job lined up.  The answer to both of these questions was no.

So I quit my medical profession and moved here.  That was over 17 years ago.  I initially rented a house while my home was being built.  I went to the construction site to look at the progress almost daily, and I took pictures to capture that moment as my dream home was coming together.  After renting for 6 months, my home was finally ready, so we closed on the purchase and I finally moved in.

After moving in, I finally started looking for a job.  I hadn't realized how lucky I had been in Los Angeles that my CEO had waived the RN, LVN or Biology Degree requirements for me to be able to move to the Medical Side of the Organ Recovery process.  Unfortunately, the Organ Recovery agency here in San Antonio wouldn’t waive these requirements, so I did end up working at Methodist Specialty Transplant Hospital in a different capacity.  Needless to say, after 5 years, the clinic was restructured and my position was eliminated.

It was then I realized that I was always meant to help people in one way or another, and what better way than to help folks buy their first dream home and help them achieve that incredible moment I had lived through.  

So I obtained my Real Estate License here in San Antonio and now after 17 years of living here, I couldn’t picture my life any other way.  I have my beautiful home and a career that I love.  I feel my mom continues to bless me from above.

So if you’re thinking of buying or selling a home, let me put my many years of experience to work for you.  I offer great knowledge and fantastic negotiating skills to get you the best price on the purchase or sale of your home.  Call me to schedule an interview today and let me be the first one to welcome you home!