By Brandy Centolanza
Since 1946, Abbitt has been a family company with a history of success in providing the community with a variety of real estate services. Now in its third generation of family leadership, Abbitt is charging forward with a new leadership team, an enthusiastic focus on growth and an emphasis on providing five-star client experiences that the team proudly refers to as the “Abbitt Gold Standard.”
Abbitt Management offers a full suite of management services, including rental homes, association management, apartment management and commercial management, as well as development services. Leanne Vaughan, senior property manager with more than 25 years of experience in property management, proudly leads the rental home department and has been working diligently to raise the bar for her team. “It’s been a busy year!” says Vaughan. “We’ve made a lot of positive changes to our department and added more than 250 properties to our portfolio.” Vaughan’s enthusiasm for her work and her team shines through when talking with her.
Tricia Wells, community association department manager with almost 20 years at Abbitt, has also been seeing a lot of new opportunities in the last year. “I like to tease Stephen Abbitt that I’ve already hit my 2024 growth goals!” says Wells, who also reported double digit growth in 2023 for the department. Wells credits Abbitt’s reputation as a locally focused company as helping to create new opportunities as some local management shops have sold to large national companies that don’t offer a personal touch like Abbitt. She says that even though her department has grown more than ever, Abbitt has supported her in growing her team to help maintain the Abbitt Gold Standard experience for her current clients and new clients.
“Our strength is definitely in our team,” says Matt Abbitt, senior property manager. “Yes, we’re fortunate to have a strong history of success, but more importantly, we’re all working together to grow our business for an even brighter future.” Matt has been with the company for almost 30 years and specializes in apartment and land management. The apartment team has added new properties on the Peninsula and Southside, as well as overseen renovations at select communities. He attributes Abbitt’s recent growth to the strength of the team who he notes as long-term, experienced property managers such as Shirley C. Smith, executive vice president and principal broker. Smith, who has been with the company for an impressive 45 years, leads the team with integrity, enthusiasm and top-tier professionalism. “With role models like Shirley at the top, our team is all-in on our core values and our mission, and you can see the positive impact it has on our operations,” Matt says.
At its core, Abbitt is about relationships, knowledge, service, results and family. As a whole, Abbitt has about 200 professionals, including property managers and Realtors®, providing real estate services from New Kent County to Southeast Hampton Roads, the Middle Peninsula and Northern Neck and markets in North Carolina.
“I agree with Matt. Whether it’s one of our property managers on the Peninsula or one of our Realtors® in Gloucester, we have strong systems in place so I’m confident our clients will get the Abbitt Gold Standard.” says Stephen Abbitt, Abbitt’s president. “We’re grateful for every opportunity and will work hard to earn the client’s trust and get them the best results possible.”
Looking ahead to the future, Stephen and Matt are more determined than ever to continue to expand Abbitt’s impact. Being a part of the family business has “been a huge gift,” they say, but both agree that creates a tremendous charge for them and they want to put their stamp on the company. “We love what we do, and we believe in the value of the work we do.” says Matt. Stephen lights up and shares, “You know, I always say that we have a high-level goal of driving Abbitt to 100 years in a way that we can be really proud of, and that we hope will honor the great team that worked so hard and loyally to get us to this point. It motivates me every day.”
TO THE POINT:
Abbitt Management
Address: 11835 Fishing Point Dr., Ste. 101, Newport News, VA 23606
Contact: Stephen Abbitt, president
Phone: 757-599-3335
Website: www.abbittrentals.com
E-mail: sabbitt@abbitt.com
