Powers,” Clark said. “We did site selection for Lowes
all around the state. Then Janet retired so I hung out my
shingle.”
When Clark founded his own real estate company in
2009 with his first office in Cresson (it’s still there and
business is booming), one of the first things he did was
take a road trip.
“[I] wanted to break that mold a little bit and do it
different … so I drove all over Fort Worth and Dallas
looking at signs,” he said. “I looked for a color that
nobody else used. One was orange and the other was
green.”
He picked green, as orange would make his complexion look sallow. Clark’s methodical quest in choosing
a color scheme is indicative of his approach to life and
business in general and real estate in particular.
“The people that I put on think the same way,” Clark
said. He opened Clark Real Estate Company with one
agent. Today he has 22 agents including a team of the
three guys that focus on commercial as well as farm and
ranch properties. Clark is visibly thrilled (as thrilled as a
real estate broker can visibly be) with his team.
Big fish swims to rapidly-expanding pond
“After Greg (Trout) sold his interest in (Dallas-based)
Henry S. Miller, he wanted
to live full-time on his ranch
[located in Palo Pinto County]
and work closer to home,”
Clark said. Trout joined the
firm last spring.
Trout has a big personality and a commanding presence so it takes a while before
you realize that he’s really a
modest man who hates to talk
about himself and speaks in
understatements.
“I got into the business
because when I got out of high
school I started another business, a retail type-business,
and I figured out fast that retail wasn’t me, as a proprietor,” Trout said. “So, I figured out who my wealthiest
customers were.” It was customers who were in either
real estate or oil who had the lifestyle that Trout admired.
“Real estate seemed like an easier path with the situation
that I was in. So, I went to a college and got a degree in
real estate and finance, and when I graduated I went to
work for the company that I worked with for 31 years.”
Trout didn’t go to just any college and he didn’t just
join any real estate firm.
When Trout joined the illustrious Henry S. Miller
Company in 1983, he was a fresh-faced kid right out
of Southern Methodist University (SMU) with a BBA in
real estate. He claimed the ladder of success rapidly and
became a partner in the firm.
While at the top of his substantial career as president
of Henry S. Miller’s office and industrial division, Trout
acquired a ranch in Palo Pinto County, a place where he
likes to chill out.
After 31 years in the commercial real estate business
and after the death of Vance Miller, son of commercial
real estate legend Henry S. Miller, Trout sold his interest
in the firm and became a full-time country boy, living on
his ranch in Palo Pinto County.
But, his love of real estate wouldn’t allow him to walk
away from his career.
Trout decided to bring his love of ranching and his
expertise in commercial real estate to Clark’s firm.
“My passion in life is ranching, with a sub-category in
real estate. I love both and I’m good at both. So that was
one of the reasons I joined Clark. They gave me plenty of
leeway and they help me to pursue both the commercial
end of it and farm ranch sales so I’m real blessed to be
able to find this situation. They are such good people so
here I am.”
Of Trout,Clark said,“He’s a good asset for Parker
County.”
A Strong Link
Jake Link, a native of Southeast Missouri, comes from a
hard-working agriculture family and quickly discovered his
passion for team roping and hunting.
Link attended Tarleton State University on a rodeo
scholarship and obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Wildlife
Management. After college,
Link established his own lawn
and landscape company, first
in Stephenville before relocating to Weatherford.
Capitalizing on his experience as a business owner and
his fascination with the equine
industry, Link obtained his real
estate license in 2009.
“I originally planned to
move back to Missouri after
college and become a conservationist,” Link said. “I met
my wife in junior college in
Oklahoma. We went to Stephenville with her dad one
day and thought we were in paradise. I love to team rope
and everybody here team ropes. That’s all we did for a
long time. Then we got married and had kids and jobs.
We don’t get to do that as much as we did.”
He’s been in real estate for six years.
Even though he’s not a Parker County native, he’s
managed to make friends fast among the long-time Parker
Co unty families. One of those friendships led to his favorite deal so far.
“I loved selling the Riddle complex on Fort Worth
Highway, two years ago,” Link said, adding that he was
already with Clark by that time.
“Bill Riddle was the first friend I met when I moved to
Parker County in 2007,” Link said. “Selling the property
that had been the headquarters for Bill’s family business
for half a century was a bitter-sweet experience.”
Susser Petroleum, based in Houston, purchased the
property for a convenience store from H&T Riddle, Inc.
“Jake worked his tail off,” Riddle said. “He did things
SEPTEMBER 2015
PA R K E R C O U N T Y T O D AY
“I do recommend
Jake every day. He’s a
guy that gets out and
hustles and he helps
you get the most for
your property.”
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