Samantha Hillery

UNLOCKING A SUPERPOWER FROM WITHIN

By Chris Menezes

Photos by Stylish Detroit

Photos taken at Cranbrook Custom Homes at The Heights in Rochester

Samantha Hillery is not afraid to go after the things she wants in life. As a co-founder of Motus Real Estate with eXp Realty, she knows that life is too short to settle for anything less — no matter how it may look, the work involved or what it might take. With this mindset, Samantha is determined to help others create the life they want as well.

Although Samantha approaches life fearlessly, it wasn’t without trauma and hardship while she was growing up. When she was 12 years old, her mother died from lung cancer. Her father fell ill a few years later and also died. With both of Samantha’s parents gone, she and her brother moved into their aunt and uncle’s house — relocating from Midland to Kalkaska — when Samantha was 15 years old.

“Losing my parents created a whole slew of emotional issues that I lugged around for a long time. It wasn’t until I was in my late 20s that I realized they also unlocked my kind of superpower,” Samantha explained. “Most people go through life terrified of the ‘worst,’ and I had been through the worst and survived it. Death is an unfortunate part of life, but the loss of my parents taught me that life is so short and that you really do need to chase the things you want.”

One of the first times Samantha used her superpower was when she flew out to Italy to tell her now-husband, Eddie, that she thought she was in love with him. They had been friends in college and continued to talk afterward. He went to Europe to play football, and they continued to communicate over the phone.

“He came home before heading back to Europe, and I fell hard,” she admitted. “He went back to Italy, and I freaked out. I flew to Italy, ordered wine in Florence and told him that I thought we should give it a go. When the season ended, he came home, we bought a house, got married and started a family. I have a pretty good track record of getting the things I go after.”

Samantha always had a propensity and love for sales. Before entering real estate, she was a yearbook sales representative for eight years. With a territory that included all of Southeast Michigan and a few schools in the thumb as well as in Grand Rapids, Samantha helped students, teachers, and parents create and print yearbooks.

“I never thought of myself as a pushy salesperson; I just always tried to help people make educated decisions,” Samantha explained. “Sales at its core is really problem-solving, and I am good at problem-solving. When I realized that I could help people make really great financial decisions when buying or selling a home and that I would be good at it … It seemed like a no-brainer for me.”

While Samantha officially started her real estate career in 2015 as an inside sales agent (ISA) for a top-producing team, she has had a connection to houses her entire life. From the time she was born, Samantha has received a Christmas ornament in the shape of a house every single year from her family. Her Christmas trees are always full of houses.

Samantha worked as an ISA for two years before getting fired and then stepped out on her own to start a team. “Getting pregnant with my second child pushed me to pursue becoming an agent and starting our team,” she said. “I knew I wanted a career that would allow me to provide for my family and allow for flexibility.”

Samantha co-founded Motus Real Estate - eXp Realty in 2019 with Mark Schmansky, Tony Tran and Casey Matteson, and it has been growing ever since. A team of 15 agents today — including four top-producing “rainmakers” — the goal of Motus Real Estate is to help people build well-rounded businesses within real estate, which includes transactions, coaching, flipping, investing, long- and short-term rentals, and agent recruitment. Samantha leads trainings and works with new agents to help jumpstart their businesses.

“I love helping people who are unaware of the possibilities. Whether it’s a renter who can now buy or an agent who gets their first listing, it’s all about helping people turn their impossibilities into possibilities,” she said.

With two young daughters — Vivian and Celine — Samantha is especially passionate about helping women create the lives they want through real estate. “I know that women create businesses differently than men, and I want other women to know that they can build a business that serves their families and purpose, and it can feel natural,” she said.

Samantha is grateful that she has the flexibility to create the life she wants, which allows her to spend quality time with her family. Together, they love to travel, watch Eddie coach the Rochester Falcons high school football team, attend concerts, and binge-watch movies and TV shows.

With her superpowers, Samantha is committed to instilling confidence in others so they can live their lives by design, too. “You can successfully balance being a top producer, team leader, mom and wife — it will just look differently from what other people are doing,” she said. “Going about business differently than others is OK: Your path doesn’t have to match everyone else’s in order for you to be successful. Stay true to what is most important to you and be willing to fight for it.”

Sales at its core is really problemsolving, and I am good at problem-solving.

CELEBRATING LEADERS Samantha Hillery from eXp Realty