Tom Thornton – Broker Associate
Designations: MBA, ABR, GRI, EcoBroker, CRS
Specialties: Buyer Representation, Southwest Austin, Central Austin, Downtown Austin, East Austin
Complete form to receive Tom's contact info:
Bio
To counsel, educate, and serve my clients with the highest level of training, education and experience before, during, and after their real estate transaction.
Experience
Tom Thornton joined Realty Austin's team of professional real estate counselors in early 2008. He began his real estate career at Coldwell Banker United prior to joining Realty Austin. He became a broker associate (signifying 900+ hours of real estate education) in 2009. Over his real estate career, Tom has worked with listings and buyers from $100,000 to over $2 million. He is one of only 254 agents in Austin holding a broker's license, an ABR, and a GRI.
Before entering real estate, Tom worked extensively in marketing and advertising, most recently as Vice President at Young and Rubicam's Knowledge Group in New York, which provided brand management and marketing strategy to clients like Yahoo!, Dannon, and Pfizer. Tom's marketing experience also includes time at J. Walter Thompson and Burson-Marsteller in New York working with clients like Sony, Lipton Tea, and Merrill Lynch. He worked for famed UK newspaper The Guardian and for Texas Monthly magazine early in his career.
Education
BBA, Baylor University - Waco, TX (1995)
MBA, London Business School - London, UK (2000)
Awards
Top 150 Buyers Agents in Austin - Austin Board Of Realtors - 2009
Top 4% Of Realtors by Sales Volume - Austin Board Of Realtors - 2009
Designations
Broker Associate, ABR (Accredited Buyer's Representative), GRI (Graduate, Realtor Institute), EcoBroker, CRS (Council of Residential Specialists)
Tom is one of only 40 Austin Realtors to hold all four major Realtor designations: a broker's license, an ABR, a CRS, and a GRI. Tom has been awarded the Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR®) designation (the benchmark of excellence in buyer representation) by the Real Estate Buyer's Agent Council (REBAC) and is a Graduate of the REALTOR® Institute (GRI). He is also certified as an EcoBroker by EcoBroker International. EcoBroker Certified® professionals help clients market properties with green features, save money, and live comfortably, through energy efficiency and environmentally-sensitive choices. He has also earned the Certified Residential Specialist (CRS), the highest Designation awarded to sales associates in the residential sales field. The CRS Designation recognizes professional accomplishments in both experience and education. CRS Designees represent the Top 4% of Realtors in the United States.
Specialties
Tom Thornton is a Realtor specializing in Central, Southwest, and East Austin residential properties. His neighborhoods of focus include Tarrytown, Rollingwood, Westlake, West Campus, Hyde Park, Downtown, Mueller, Travis Country, Circle C, Legend Oaks, Village at Western Oaks, Lantana, Loma Vista, Travis Heights, Bouldin Creek, Sherwood Oaks, and Barton Hills. Tom has experience and/or specialty designations for buyer agency, green properties, and investment properties.
Community
Tom's favorite Austin charities include Wonders and Worries, Foundation Communities, and the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas.
Personal
A native Texan, Tom relocated to Austin from New York City. He understands the trials and changes involved in moving to Austin from another area, and is happy to help clients learn more about our city. Tom lives in the Southwest Austin area with his wife and two daughters, and is also a contributing music and food writer for Austinist, which has won multiple awards as Austin's best entertainment website. He has interviewed musicians such as Snow Patrol, Spoon, Santana, and Crowded House along with celebrities like Will Ferrell. Tom has been interviewed as a featured expert on KLBJ's "Real Estate Radio" and as an "Austin culture expert" by BBC Radio 2, The Wall Street Journal, MTV.com, KUT, 101X FM, and News 8 Austin. He has also contributed to Gothamist, Go2.com, and American Songwriter magazine. Tom's interests include travel, wine collecting, NBA basketball, and music. He is always happy to share his knowledge of what Austin has to offer!
Community Involvement
Tom's favorite Austin charities include Wonders and Worries, Capital Area Food Bank of Texas, Foundation Communities, Mother's Milk Bank of Austin, and the Austin Bat Cave. He also recommends the site ilivehereigivehere.org for those interested in local charitable donations or volunteer opportunities.Testimonials
Tom managed us through a tough situation with an over-eager buyer (me) and a seller in a emotionally difficult situation (elderly mother who was moving to an assisted living facility). I made a few mistakes that upset the sellers. Tom was able to smooth over the ruffled feathers and get the deal done. When the sellers mistakenly removed some permanent items, Tom took time from his family vacation to sort out the situation with very little drama. I thought his style compared with the sellers' agent truly demonstrated his high level of professionalism and commitment to our interests.
Mr. Jordan Scott
Tom was amazing from the very beginning. Before we even began to look at houses he met with us to go over everything we needed to do before we set foot inside a house. He connected us with a really great lender and answered every single question we had regarding the buying process. Once all of the paperwork was in order (which was rather quick thanks to Tom’s advice and guidance!) the house hunting process was fairly quick. We had already requested to look at abut ten houses and Tom went through every single on of them with us, talking about foundation and structural issues to look for and never imposing his own personal preferences in order to sway our decision regarding a home. Once we found the one we wanted Tom was exceedingly dedicated to helping us get the best deal we possibly could. His knowledge of the market was invaluable and he stayed with us to the very end! I will recommend him to ANYONE searching for a home because he is fierce advocate for his clients and we could not have had a better experience!
Nick Courtright
Tom was very helpful initially in helping us not to set the price of our condo too high. He showed us how we could still net the price we wanted without scaring people away. He was very detail oriented on the contracts and caught a mistake that I missed. We sold our condo in under one month for 98.3% of asking price.
John Rathmann
Tom was beyond patient,supportive and informative.We started our house buying journey with one idea and then changed that idea into about 20 Tom guided us the entire way without one display of intolerance.When we asked for information on any given subject Tom would research and then give us a very informed answer.We had a few obstacles in our home purchase but alas Tom responded as a professional and upon closing was there to see us through our purchase.Tom is definetly an asset to Realty Austin.
Mrs. Cathy Pepe
Tom was extremely thorough with everything for us. He made sure to explain things carefully and would take the time to answer any and ALL our questions. Being first time home buyers this could have been a scary process, but knowing Tom was helping us throughout the way eased my mind! Thanks, Tom and Realty Austin!
Allison Pepe
Tom was an outstanding resource to us when we moved to Austin. He consistently showed a deep knowledge of the market, local laws, and behavioral trends of buyers and sellers. He keenly grasped our needs and desires and was insightful in addressing our questions and concerns. He always made time for us and our schedule and made the entire shopping and buying process smooth, efficient, and effortless. I would highly recommend him to anyone moving to Austin.
Tony Weber
Tom Thornton made our lives so much easier when decided to buy our first house. He took us to lunch very early on and explained everything we needed to know, and I do mean everything, which was very beneficial for rookies like us. He is extremely professional, had a knowledgeable answer to all our pesky questions, and guided us expertly through the entire process. I can't even imagine how stressful the whole process might have been if we didn't have Tom as our guardian!
Adi Anand and Natasha Taylor
As a first time home buyer, Tom was everything I could have asked for and more in a realtor. From the beginning, he was extremely helpful in guiding me through a process I knew nothing about. Tom recognized my needs and provided his knowledge and expertise to find me the perfect place. He was available at anytime to answer all of my questions and truly cared that I found exactly what I was looking for. Most importantly, he was honest, gracious, and understanding. Tom was an absolute pleasure to work with, and I strongly recommend him.
Rachel Hays
We had a wonderful experience with Tom as our agent. He was patient and understanding over the weeks we worked together to find a home that met our needs. He never made us feel pressured or rushed, and since it was our first home buying experience, he took the time to answer all of our questions and provide us with valuable insights into home ownership. Tom was always prompt in returning phone calls and emails and ensured that we understood the steps we were taking in each stage of the process. I would highly recommend Tom to you if you are considering buying a home.
Elyse and Matt Nicolette
Tom is the best real estate agent with whom I have ever worked. He knows the market and how to access that market. He was very responsive to our needs and is an excellent communicator. I highly recommend him to anyone needing an agent.
Ed Rossman
Tom was everything that I could have asked for in a Realtor. He was able to find me the perfect neighborhood and made the entire process smooth from contract to closing and beyond. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Tom and Realty Austin to all of my friends!
Amy Bradley
I give Tom my highest recommendation as a Realtor. He is level-headed, straight-forward, personable and generous with his time and effort. He helped me buy a house, and I was so pleased with his work that I later asked him to help me sell. He has a genuine interest in his job and the housing market.
William Callahan
Tom was great, and was within easy reach. Whenever we called, we always reached him, and if not he called back ASAP. He knows the Austin area well, and was able to reduce our search time by leading us in the direction we needed to go. This was very helpful, since we are not residents of Austin and are unfamiliar with the city. We also had Hurricane Ike to deal with, and so this added to our stress level. Tom was so understanding, and is someone we can highly recommend to anyone looking for a Realtor in the Austin area.
Kenneth and Sheila Stevens
We engaged Tom to help us find an investment property. Tom explained the pros and cons of each of the neighborhoods we were looking in, gave us pricing info on comparable sales, and even expected rents. We told him the price range we were looking in, and he let us know immediately when a matching listing came on the market. We were able to act quickly and close with Tom’s real estate acumen. It was an easy and clean transaction, and we could not be more pleased.
Cindy and Bryan Finnegan
Tom is a consummate professional and is very knowledgeable about the realty market in Austin. He is very thorough in contract reviews and came to our home visits well prepared with neighborhood information and statistics. Tom did a fantastic job of keeping us informed and advised without making a decision for us or biasing us towards one house or another. When we had an issue after closing, Tom was able to resolve it quickly with a minimum of hassle to us. I would highly recommend him to anyone buying or selling property in the Austin area.
Brad Piggott
We were very happy with Tom Thornton and the Realty Austin team. We were coming from Minnesota and were unfamiliar with Austin and had a limited time to make a decision and wanted to close the sale long distance. Before we arrived in Austin, Tom Thornton provided helpful information on real estate trends and neighborhoods and available listings. Tom is personable and was patient with our questions and indecisions. Tom is intelligent, professional and very competent and complete. In addition to finding us a nice home at a reasonable price, he also was an excellent tour guide of Austin. Tom helped us with home insurance, home inspection and extended warranty information and worked with our builder to make sure that necessary repairs were completed. Our bank in Minnesota said that Realty Austin was exceptionally easy to work with for closing long distance. Thank you, Tom, for making the entire process of home buying as stress-free as possible.
Lori Bryant
My wife and I reside in Portland, Oregon. I am a commercial real estate lawyer and my wife is a residential real estate broker. So, we have knowledge and experience when it comes to real estate. However, when we decided to buy a condo in Austin, we thought we should find a local real estate professional to help us. My wife scoured the web and, after talking with a few representatives, selected Tom Thornton of Realty Austin. Tom turned out to be the perfect choice. He really knows the Austin market and was able to explain to us all of the things that are happening--or about to happen--in Austin. He was also instrumental in helping us determine how much we should offer and what concessions from the seller might be appropriate. As a result, we were able to select and purchase our condo over a three day visit. We could not have done this without Tom. We highly recommend him.
Joe Voboril
Tom is a stellar agent! He lead me through the process with ease, knowledge and genuine enthusiasm. He is highly qualified in the Austin market, provides valuable information on analysis and is incredibly patient explaining all the details and processes. He brings years of experience, intelligence, integrity and confidence to the table and is a pleasure to work with. I highly recommend Tom for any real estate needs and feel grateful he was my partner in my homebuying experience.
Soumya Ramakrishnan
Tom was great. He was very patient with me even when the process took over 6 months from start to finish. He was always punctual, professional, very helpful, and pleasant. He is very knowledgeable of the market and communicates that knowledge well. Overall a great experience, and I would recommend him to anyone.
Mason McLead
Tom Thornton's Listings
1 Search Results Found. Showing Results 1 - 1.
Austin, TX 78749
The information being provided is for consumers' personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing.
Based on information from the Austin Board of REALTORS®. Neither the Board nor ACTRIS guarantees or is in any way responsible for its accuracy. All data is provided "AS IS" and with all faults. Data maintained by the Board or ACTRIS may not reflect all real estate activity in the market.
IDX data last updated at 2010-09-03 04:50:16
Welcome to Realty Austin
To gain unlimited access to our advanced property search system, please Sign in or Create an Account
Quick Navigation
Company
Popular Pages
Austin Neighborhood & Community Guide
Search Austin Real Estate By Map
Find your next Austin home using our interactive Map Search!
Map SearchRealty Austin Blog
-
Austin Hosts 6th Annual Batfest 2010
– This Saturday, August 21st Austin hosts its 6th Annual Batfest on Congress Avenue bridge. The annual festival features arts & crafts, 20+ bands, food, kid’s activities, and of course… bat watching after sunset. Admission is open to all ages and FREE, so bring th… Read More
-
University of Texas Ranks 45th on National College Ranking System
– University of Texas at Austin ranks 45th—beating A&M!—in national college ranking. The U.S. News & World Report ranked 262 of the nation's universities in their guide to America's colleges. The University of Texas at Austin ranked 45th in the nation and 2n… Read More
-
Four Major Texas Cities Recognized for Best Job Markets in U.S.
– Austin and 3 other Texas cities—Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio—were recognized by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics as having the strongest job markets in the U.S. over the past 5 years. The study ranked cities by the total number of private-sector jobs created b… Read More
