Shay Hata, Team Leader
Lauren Calderone, Realtor
As the daughters of single working moms, Shay Hata, leader of the Buy Sell Love Chicago Team at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago, and Lauren Calderone, Realtor, learned to work hard at a young age. At 4, Hata went to her mother’s cookie store at 5 a.m. to help bake the day’s treats. She learned math standing on a stool behind the cash register, ringing up customers’ cookie and soda orders, and quickly learned that good customer service is more important than anything else. Calderone had a similar upbringing. Her mother was a Realtor, and Calderone accompanied her to showings and open houses, learning the ins and outs of construction, negotiation and the housing market before she could read. Seeing their mothers struggle to support their families, Hata and Calderone learned the value of hard work and treating every customer like family.
Their mothers also instilled in them a love of education, which led Hata to graduate from an Ivy League college and Calderone to graduate from DePaul. Eventually, both got into real estate and founded their business on the belief that they would educate clients every step of the way, whether they were first-time buyers, downsizers or experienced investors. They now have more than 20 years of combined experience in real estate and are one of the top teams in the area, servicing clients in the city and suburbs.
Hata and Calderone take pride in going above and beyond what other Realtors provide. “We like to wow and surprise our clients at every opportunity, whether it’s bringing their favorite Starbucks beverage to a showing or sending them Jeni’s ice cream after a bad inspection.”
With the help of their Client Concierge, the team takes care of every need. “We regularly arrange for moving quotes and have even overseen our clients’ full-service packing and moving while they’ve gone on vacation. We’ve also managed full rehabs for both buyers and sellers and have a fantastic Rolodex of service providers. No request is too small; we’ve even walked our clients’ dogs before showings,” they say. “Our goal is a happy client, and we will take care of anything needed to make the process as stress-free as possible.”
