In March 10 2010, Vince Clancy’s business was exploding. DaVinci Real Estate deals with foreclosures and distressed real estate for Broward County, so 2010 was a particularly busy time for Clancy. Clancy told us, “In the real estate down turn, most saw a crash. I saw a chance for the little investor to take advantage of the big bad banks and make lots of money. Our model worked fabulously for our investors and our company.”
Due to the booming of the business, Clancy needed some help. When Denny Hughes walked into his Wilton Drive office and applied for an assistant job, Clancy thought that Hughes’ 12 years of experience would be of some use in the office. “Hughes stated he lost his business in the recent real estate down turn,” Clancy told us. “Many real estate companies had shut down or merged with another. Remax closed offices, Castelli closed their main Federal Highway office, and one of the Prudential franchises changed their name to Better Homes and Gardens. It was a difficult time in our business. It was not hard to imagine his small company failed.”
Hughes told Clancy that he had 12 years of experience, and wanted a salaried position as an assistant. When one of Clany’s employees ran a criminal check on him, only one charge was shown: A domestic violence charge in 2006. “Had she done a civil search at the time, I would have never hired Mr. Hughes. He certainly did not tell me about his legal and criminal issues at his former companies in the interview.” On March 30, 2010, Clancy received a call from a woman crying hysterically. She told Clancy she was Hughes’ mother and that he had been arrested.
Clancy fired Hughes after a follow-up interview between Hughes and former Federal Prosecutor, Chris Mancini. Mancini questioned Hughes about the cases, but “Mr. Hughes seemed argumentative, defensive and emotional during the interview,” according to Clancy. “Mr Mancini concluded that Hughes was not telling the truth (in his opinion). I fired Mr. Hughes immediately as I felt he was being disingenuous. Mr. Hughes was employed at my company for a few weeks. He was paid a weekly salary and NEVER was a realtor at my company. Furthermore, his real estate license had been revoked a year prior to walking through my door by the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC). None of Denny Hughes’ misdeeds or alleged crimes happened at DaVinci Realty Group Inc. No DaVinci clients were harmed by Hughes.”
DaVinci Realty opened an office on Wilton Drive in 2009 and has been thriving ever since. Clancy opened a second office, on Las Olas Boulevard, in 2011. He is now opening an office in Houston, where they have partnered with a local builder, and are on track to build 100 homes in the central Houston area within a year. In 2013, the group launched DaVinci Capital - a fund to finance projects and give returns for their investors grossing $2 million profit on two foreclosure transactions. Moving forward, Clancy intends to open more DaVinci offices.
If you wish to contact Vince Clancy, you may do so at www.davincirealtygroup.com
