By Arkansas Black Vitality Staff — Shannon Smith, principal broker and owner of SSD Realty Group, recently shared with Arkansas Black Vitality why she entered real estate and what has led her to thrive in the industry.

Smith, wife of 17 years to Karoma Smith, is a licensed nurse and will celebrate 30 years in the profession in August. She is also the mother of two young adults, Brandon & Taylor, and “Gi-Gi” to three-year old Shiloh.

Smith states her mom, Carmen Rice, is her “all-time hero.” Rice recently retired after 28 years as a registered nurse with the Veterans Administration.  Rice, a single mom of three daughters, Shannon, Crystal and Jessica, worked two jobs to get through nursing school as a hairstylist and custodian.  She instilled in Smith a strong work ethic and belief that “you can do anything if you put your mind to it.”

Although Smith had a successful nursing career, she felt like something was missing. She wanted to know “what else does Shannon know how to do.”

The Real Estate Bug

In 2012, Smith and her husband, Karoma, decided to purchase their second residence. The purchase was a private sale through a realtor. What started out as a dream purchase shortly turned into a nightmare after the couple found out the realtor sold the home under false pretense. He wasn’t the legal representative of the property owner to sale the property” Smith said.

“We were devastated,” said Smith. Eventually, the Smiths filed a petition with the Arkansas Real Estate Commission (AREC), which ruled in their favor. Smith said the “scathing ruling” against the local real estate agent left such a lasting impression on her that it is now part of her company’s “service-focused” sales mantra.

“The ruling from the (AREC) was so profound. Here was a realtor, whose job was to represent the public and to protect the public,” said Smith. “As I remembered listening to their remarks and how they looked at him for how he treated us, throughout the years it never left my mind. I wanted to know more about this industry. I wanted to make sure I did my part to prevent this from happening to others”.

Shannon Seals Deals

Fast-forward to 2020 and the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Smith had an opportunity to enter real estate school and get her license. She said a conversation with her husband was all she needed to leap into the new profession.

“When he gave the green light and said if you don’t like it or if it’s not what you think, you can always go back to nursing,” Smith recalled. “I dove headfirst, full-time in real estate and haven’t looked back.”

The upbeat Arkansas saleswoman received her real estate license during the pandemic and immediately jumped into the hot housing market after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates to near-all-time lows. “At the time of entering real estate not only was the market experiencing significant growth, but it was also a time that because of the pandemic, people were thinking about home ownership, downsizing, and increasing in space due to the shift in the work environment of going from the office to working at home,” said Smith.

Today, with the continued support of her husband, Smith has built an enviable real estate brokerage that has not always been kind to Black realtors or homebuyers seeking to achieve the American Dream.  “I’m grateful I’m to be in a position to be able to educate my clients in the homebuying process,” she said.

SSD Realty Group was founded in August 2023. The Little Rock brokerage with the memorable catchphrase, “Shannon Seals Deals, “is driven by a passion for transforming spaces and creating lasting relationships,” said the outgoing businesswoman.

As the principal broker and owner of SSD Realty, Smith said “the business is thriving.” With two additional realtors, Loranzo Keys and Asher Gaddy, along with Administrative Assistant Valarie Sherrill, “we’re building a strong foundation not only in Central Little Rock but also Southeast Arkansas.”

Smith, who has received Realtor Distinction Awards each year and is a multi-million-dollar agent, says, “It’s hard for me to believe I’ve been in the industry four years; it’s gone by really fast”. When asked what’s something she lives by Smith states, “understanding that ‘my network is my net worth’.  I don’t just know a lot of people-I have relationships with a lot of people”. 

Asked why she thinks that matters, Smith said, “I think those relationships matter because people see I love what I do. People see and feel the passion I have for what I do, and people know that I’m very much a ‘boots on the ground’ realtor and that I’m community driven. My community matters to me.”

Smith recalls, “There was a time when your parents or grandparents either already owned a home or they were tenants. The homebuying process was rarely discussed with children.” The Little Rock real estate maven remembers being a young adult when her mother purchased her first home. “This motivates me to help minority families buy their first home and build generational wealth,” she said.

Today, SSD Realty not only sells homes but also uses its platform to educate prospective homeowners about the home-buying process—from improving credit scores, to arranging financing for a mortgage, to finding the right home, to making an offer, and “sealing the deal.”

Building Dreams and Community

SSD Realty has built a partnership with local homebuilder and developer, Robert Alexander, owner of Kustommade Properties LLC.  With this partnership, the “Stephensville Park Development Project” located in Little Rock, has sold more than $4.5 million in real estate with new development projects in downtown Little Rock, Wrightsville and Pine Bluff. 

“We’ve found that there are tons of people that would stay in their own neighborhoods if they had something nice. We’re building in our own communities.  Our idea is if we build something nice in our neighborhoods, we’re not looking at gentrification; we’re looking at revitalization,” said Smith

Speaking from her own personal experience, Smith said, “We made the decision to move our family back to my husband’s roots in McAlmont over 10 years ago. We’re the third generation to live in the family home that was built by his grandparents in 1932. The move was intentional and purposeful to be back in the community.”

Touting the future aspirations for SSD Realty, Smith believes the Little Rock brokerage will one day be a household name. 

“We will continue to make an impact in the community throughout the state. I want people to know what SSD Realty Group stands for,” Smith stated. “It stands for integrity, it stands for dedication, it stands for trustworthiness — it means you can trust that we’re going to protect you and your rights and we’re going to represent you to the best of our ability.”