Today we’d like to introduce you to AJ Stafford.
Hi AJ, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
There were lots of factors to get me where I am. I grew up with a dysfunctional childhood. Kicked out of High School my senior year and my freshman girlfriend who is now my wife of 21 years and 25 together told me her future kids father would not be a highschool dropout. That got me motivated and I was able to go to a new high school for one semester and graduate with the help of my guidance counselor. In that one semester 9/11 happened and that motivated me to join the Army. Ended up color blind and couldn’t be a truck driver so I had to choose Human Resource. While in the Army at Ft. Drum New York I deployed to Afghanistan in August of 2003. I returned home in March of 2004 to watch my first of 3 children be born. We purchased 6 acres while still serving and when I moved back to Lebanon TN after the Army built my first home at the age of 23. I got a job at Old Dominion Freight Line and started in the trucking industry in 2006. I thought everything for my life was set and then the downturn of 2008 came. I got laid off in 2009 and used my GI BIll from my military service and started HVAC school. Almost completed that and I was able to get my job back at Old Dominion which paid more so I went back into trucking. Going back to Old Dominion really made me feel like they could pull my job out from under me whenever they wanted so my wife and I sat down and said we are gonna achieve whatever we want. No more waiting on others and when she was a freshman in High School and I was a senior she had a plan to be a baby nurse. We had 3 kids back to back so we never thought college would be in her future. Getting laid off made me fear nothing so in 2010 she started Nursing school. Now it was my turn to figure out what I really wanted to do for the rest of my life. In 2012 -2013 I was listening to a ton of cd books driving down the interstate and then one night waiting on my loads to get ready I heard Warren Buffett say during the 2012 election his secretary pays more income tax than him. I had just got my first I-Phone and downloaded the audible app and the book Rich Dad Poor Dad Tax Advisor book by Tom Wheelwright. That book opened up my eyes to taxes and loopholes. Next I started listening to all the billionaire biographies and after 10 to 15 of them I came to realize it did not matter the billionaires race, religion, country of birth, or how they made their money they all discussed saving their money with real estate. Then I listened to real estate and business podcasts/books over the next few years while my wife finished up her nursing degree in 2015. She graduated from Middle Tennessee State University at the age of 29 with 3 kids and a husband who worked nights the whole time. After her graduation we returned home from a Disney Cruise to celebrate and the neighbor had removed my fence and cut my trees down on the back of my property and a manhole cover was installed. Had no idea what that meant but instead of getting mad I started asking questions and learning. The developer I called ended up being a Truck driver for UPS and he developed land. I started calling him at night picking his brain and he made me realize I could get into real estate and drive a truck. So in 2017 I started my real estate courses at Volunteer State Community College from 6-9pm at night Monday thru Thursday then driving an 18 wheeler all night to Morristown TN. I got licensed on July 31, 2017. My first 18 months in real estate I drove 5 nights a week from Nashville to Memphis and Back while selling 21 Properties. In January of 2019 I quit the job I thought I would be at forever after 12.5 years and over 1 million miles safe driving. At this point I had already got my brother in law in real estate and then my step mom. Getting others into the industry and helping change their lives became my main passion while continuing to be a top producer in sales for the 3 years I was at my first brokerage Blackwell Realty and Auction. In June of 2020 I was recruited to Keller Williams Realty and we opened a new office on the square in my hometown of Lebanon. While there I was able to be the Team Leader for the office, grow that office from 0-32 agents in my downline out of the 34 that were in that office, and I was number 3 that year in sales for over 200 agents. In 2022 I partnered with Danielle Imbaratto to open Cedar City Title, LLC on the square in Lebanon, then early 2024 we opened our second location in Cookeville, TN. Also in May of 2024 I opened A-Squared Realty and Auction in Lebanon, TN. We are currently at 25 agents and 4 auctioneers after being open about 15 months now. This year I am having my best year of sales as well. My motto has been Achieve Your Dream because I grew up white trash poor and now I own 5 companies, my wife has achieved her dream of being a baby (Stork) nurse at Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville. My daughter is 21 now and a senior at UT Chattanooga with a degree in marketing, while my oldest son is 19 at UT Chattanooga going for a degree in Finance with a minor in Real Estate Finance, and my youngest just turned 16 and a junior in High School. My family has been forever changed by bad decisions that I have made at a young age that turned out to give me the skill set to make others realize that no one special I just have a ton of work ethic and with a little work ethic they can achieve their dreams as well. There is so much more to this story and crazy how it all keeps coming full circle.
#millionmilerealtor
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Definitely was not easy, we got married and had kids young then tried to achieve all of our dreams.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I have built my real estate business by relationships and word of mouth. I have never bought a lead from anyone. What I do differently is unselfishly help others in my industry and the good just keeps coming. My work ethic is what sets me apart. I am best known now for getting others started in our industry locally. I am most proud of having ideas and working until others can visibly see them. I have people tell me all the time I remember when you said you would do that. My friends from high school are stunned at the life I am living now just as I am.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
My whole career started from cd books, then audible app, along with YouTube and Podcast. Being in a truck all night I had to use facebook to promote. Rich Dad Poor Dad Tax Advisor by Tom Wheelwright, Bigger Pockets, and biographies.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.asquaredrealtyandauction.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ajstaffordmillionmilerealtor/
