The 1911 Group produces a thoughtful SMU Stories series that captures the experiences of alumni who have helped shape Dallas. In this episode, Mitchell Brown speaks with Douglas Newby about how an interdisciplinary education at SMU influenced his civic engagement, preservation work, and professional point of view — from revitalizing older neighborhoods to representing architecturally significant homes in Highland Park and the finest neighborhoods in Dallas.
SMU Origin Story
What originally drew me to SMU and Dallas is the same spirit that continues to resonate with me today. As high school seniors in Hinsdale, Ken Malcolmson and I were invited by his brother, Larry Malcolmson, to visit SMU during Homecoming weekend. I was greeted by blue skies, warm smiles, and a campus—and a city—filled with optimism. Dallas felt like a minor-league city on the verge of becoming a major-league one, an impression shaped in part by its sports teams. I wanted to be part of that transformation. It was a remarkable introduction: Larry was a big man on campus and is still great friends with classmates like legendary SMU quarterback Chuck Hixson and David Miller, now Chair of the SMU Board of Trustees. Choosing SMU was the easiest and best decision of my life—and yes, Dallas did become that major-league city.
Interdisciplinary Degrees Supports Interdisciplinary Approach to Real Estate
Douglas Newby was attracted to all aspects of SMU, from the Meadows School of the Arts to the Business School. That initial impression deepened as a student, as he took courses across five different schools and became involved in a range of SMU organizations and committees. This exposure to multiple disciplines reinforced an integrated way of thinking that continues to shape how Douglas Newby approaches his work today. Rather than viewing homes as isolated transactions, Douglas Newby evaluates architecture, sites, history, and neighborhood context as interconnected forces that determine long-term value. This perspective grew out of early efforts to revitalize older neighborhoods and now informs Douglas Newby’s advisory role with families for whom judgment, stewardship, durability, and lasting value matter as much as design.
Friendships With Faculty, Students, Deans, Coaches, and Provosts Continue
SMU, for me, has been more than making friends in college and returning for an occasional reunion. My relationship with SMU continued on a daily basis until the pandemic. There was hardly a day when I was not on campus for one purpose or another—swimming at the outdoor pool, playing tennis on the clay courts, writing at the Bridwell Reference Library, or attending lectures, talks, literary or film festivals, TEDxSMU events, or services at Perkins Chapel, and at times even teaching an occasional class. SMU never stopped being part of my life.
The faculty, deans, and provosts also never stopped being part of my life. Nationally recognized artist James Surls, who taught at SMU, introduced me to Munger Place, where he had a home and studio, and encouraged me to buy a house on his street on Tremont. Lee McAllister, dean of Dedman College, Virginia Talkington McAllister, and I formed the Revolving Fund for the Historic Preservation League to place options on absentee-owned, divided-up rent houses that could be returned to single-family homes. The structure was in place, but there was not a real estate agent who knew the neighborhood. Lee suggested that I obtain my real estate license, which I did, to negotiate 21 option contracts spread over two years. He also provided subtle advice and encouragement along the way.
Throughout my career, I have represented distinguished faculty members and deans in the purchase or sale of their homes, but more importantly, I have benefited from their knowledge, insights, and friendships. SMU fostered access to professors that often continued well after graduation. While the population of SMU and Dallas is relatively small compared to large universities, its connected influence and impact on Dallas are tremendous.
Munger Place Origin of Douglas Newby Career
Munger Place was the best place to begin my real estate career. It was originally designed and built as the finest development in Dallas, with architect-designed homes, uniform setbacks, boulevards, and parkways. Over the next 70 years, it became the worst neighborhood in Dallas. But if I squinted at dusk, I could look past a home’s four front doors and the deterioration and see a glimpse of Hinsdale.
The key was to provide a vision of these homes and the neighborhood to buyers. Having grown up around beautiful architectural detail, I recognized the architectural detail and proportions of these homes even when they were dilapidated. To help provide that vision to buyers, I was the first realtor in the city to create floor plans of each home showing how it would look if returned to single-family use. Now, almost every agent provides floor plans of homes offered for sale.
I also had line drawings created that showed how the homes would look once restored to single-family residences. If I could sell a home inhabited by 30 slum tenants, in a neighborhood no one wanted to live in, one can imagine how much easier it would be to sell a beautiful home in the most desirable neighborhoods.
Douglas Newby Understood Revitalizing a Neighborhood Requires Creating a Marketplace
Programs and economic incentives don’t revitalize a neighborhood. To revitalize a neighborhood, one needs to create a marketplace where buyers and sellers can come together. My first transaction as a real estate agent was securing 21 option contracts simultaneously from multiple absentee owners for the Historic Preservation League Revolving Fund. This provided a steady supply of homes to offer to the urban pioneers that we attracted to the neighborhood.
Fannie Mae (FNMA) selected Munger Place for their first inner-city loans in the country because we had been able to change the zoning from multifamily zoning to single-family zoning. We now had a marketplace of buyers, sellers, and a lending source beyond seller financing.
For preservation to be successful in Highland Park and the most expensive neighborhoods, a marketplace also needs to be established. Sellers of historic homes need to be identified before they are torn down, and buyers of historic homes need to be identified so they can be brought together with the sellers of historic homes to create a marketplace.
Identifying Architecturally Significant Homes Across Dallas
Munger Place was the first neighborhood in the city to require homes to be designed by an architect. All of the early great Dallas architects designed homes on Swiss Avenue in Munger Place before they designed homes in Highland Park and Preston Hollow. Identifying the architect of the home helped create interest and value at a time when realtors were only identifying the contractor who built the home.
I realized that the same interest in architecture and homes I generated in Munger Place could be generated in Highland Park, Preston Hollow, and other fine neighborhoods across Dallas, from Greenway Parks to White Rock Lake. The 50 Significant Homes project that I initiated and chaired for the Dallas Chapter of the AIA was the first citywide residential architectural survey. It generated a new interest in architecture and architects, which became the foundation of my work. Today, most realtors identify prominent architects, and I continue to lead the way in identifying and promoting good architects and architecture across Dallas.
Douglas Newby Advice to New Real Estate Agents
As a new agent, your business will predominantly come from your friends, family, and neighbors. The value you bring them is your knowledge of specific neighborhoods, the nuances of individual homes, and the overall supply of buyers and sellers. Any client can easily obtain statistical information on a particular home or on the broader housing market. Your interpretation of that information is what creates value for your clients.
Just as important, know who you are working with. It is not enough to know that a buyer wants a transitional modern home with four bedrooms and a two-car garage. I find it helpful to know even arcane details—such as the name of their dog, where they grew up, what college they attended, and where else they have lived. If someone says they want a modern home and they are from Connecticut, that may mean something entirely different than it does for someone from La Jolla. It is not enough to love people or love homes to be a good real estate agent; it is this deeper understanding that provides meaningful value to your clients.
Over time, your reputation will be built not on how many transactions you complete, but on the quality of judgment and insights you bring to each one.
What Neighborhoods Should Buyers Look For?
One of the principles I often think about, which I learned at SMU, is that villages and cities tend to grow to the north and the west. Even Native American villages would cross a creek to pitch their next teepee to the north and west before expanding to the south and east. Dallas is no different. Years ago, I recommended Midway Hollow and Devonshire—neighborhoods to the north and west—and those areas have seen significant appreciation.
I am also drawn to niche neighborhoods. They often have wonderful attributes, but because they are small, few agents are familiar with them or feel comfortable recommending them. Yet once agents and buyers become more aware of these niche neighborhoods, their prices often outperform the broader market. I have seen this pattern repeat itself in Turtle Creek Park, Northern Hills, the estate cove of White Rock Lake, Overhill Street in Highland Park, Greenway Parks, Emerald Isle, and other niche neighborhoods across Dallas.
The most important criterion is not the current condition or popularity of a neighborhood, but its intrinsic value. I would rather be in a distressed neighborhood on the oceanfront than a pristine neighborhood inland. Intrinsic value will always appreciate more.
How Dallas Came to Have the Highest Profile in the Country for Architecturally Significant Homes
Thank you to Mitch Brown of The 1911 Group for bringing attention to my ongoing experience with SMU and how I have tried to contribute to Dallas by combining my passion for the city with my real estate business. The result has been a residential real estate firm with the highest visibility in the country for architecturally significant homes, and the knowledge I have gained is something I am able to share with the Dallas community and with buyers and sellers alike.
Whether it involves the most expensive homes in Highland Park and Dallas or less expensive homes with architectural or historical significance, my goal is to inform the public and provide judgment and insights to my clients, to benefit them.
