Real Talk: Lee Koons
Lee Koons and his wife, Shelby, live in his childhood home in University Park, making their boys the fifth generation to live on Purdue Street and attend Highland Park Presbyterian Church.
“Each morning, we drive past their ancestors’ houses on the way to school,” said the founder and CEO of KoonsCo. “And then I drive to my office, which happens to be on the same floor of the NDBT tower where my grandfather, former UP City Judge John P Koons, officed.”
Lee Koons describes KoonsCo as a small, full-service, commercial real estate company run by Park Cities residents and Highland Park High School graduates. Team members include Max Roberts, Payton Phillips, Charlie Bernet, and Lee’s dad, Tom Koons.
“Each of us has a rich heritage in the community,” Lee Koons said.
How did you get into real estate?
Being from here, you grow up with the real estate business all around you. Some of my earliest memories are from the late ‘80s, riding with my dad to check his land brokerage signs on the outskirts of Dallas, and then in the mid-2000s, it was Frank Bullock, Bob Myers, and my aunt Kathy Koons who recruited me to the profession full time. In 2014, my uncle Brian Ficke introduced me to Robert Dozier and Lincoln Property, where I spent eight years learning from the best in the industry.
If you could go back in time and give yourself any advice, what would it be?
You’ll be tempted to regret some of the “mistakes” you make, but in time, you will learn that those mistakes will become a key source of wisdom. And, when you get to the point where you believe so much in a deal that you’re willing to do it yourself, then just do it. The journey will teach you that you are more capable than you thought, and, most importantly, God has already prepared the way.
What is the best thing about working in real estate?
I love the deep relationships formed with folks I otherwise would have never met and the depth of knowledge I’ve gained of places I never would have gone to.
What is your outlook on the Dallas market?
Everyone I’m talking to in Dallas is super busy, many having their best years in 2024. I attribute that to Dallas’ culture being founded on a pro-business, can-do attitude that embraces growth, which is why there is a high volume of deals during good markets and fewer but more significant opportunities in challenging markets.
What’s a fun fact about yourself?
I am named after family ancestors who were among the first U.S. settlers in Texas. They operated a general store near College Station in the 1820s and ‘30s before enlisting to fight alongside James Bowie at the Battle of Concepcion.
