One of the founders of Do Good Real Estate has left the firm and started a new one.

Ryan Crecelius, who started Do Good in 2010 with John Jackson, sold his portion for an undisclosed amount to Jackson in August and opened a Wilmington branch of Nest Realty, an agency with a hub in Charlottesville, Virginia, Crecelius said Tuesday.

Nest, which was one of the companies Crecelius studied as an example of innovation before creating Do Good, was the right fit because “it’s really like a marketing firm that specializes in super quality marketing for properties, but it’s also really, really focused in on customer service,” Crecelius said.

Other than Jackson, the brokers who previously worked with Crecelius at Do Good are now part of the local Nest office.

“I announced that I was leaving the company, and they chose to follow me,” Crecelius said. “It was quite the humbling experience to say the least. Everybody made the move over to Nest.”

Including Crecelius, Nest Realty has 12 brokers and seven staff members.

Jackson, who is now CEO of Do Good Real Estate, said he and Crecelius parted ways for “the same reason why anybody gets a divorce, which is that there’s a difference of philosophy…It always comes down to sharing a different vision of the future.”

Jackson said Do Good, which became one of the region's first Benefit Corporations in 2011, would continue its philanthropic work – donating a portion of its home sale profits to charities and sponsoring or hosting events that raise funds for non-profit organizations. Do Good currently has three agents including Jackson, who said he recently hired Melissa Snowden as broker-in-charge.

Snowden brings experience working with developers, investors and commercial properties to Do Good, which had previously focused on residential real estate, Jackson said. That experience will help Do Good with plans to expand into the commercial side of the industry as it continues to pursue residential projects, Jackson said.  

“It’s definitely moving in the direction that I want it to as a company,” he said.

Jackson said Wednesday that Do Good will move from Lumina Station to a new location soon.

Last month, Nest Realty moved into about 2,000 square feet of space at 1508 Military Cutoff Road, Suite 203. Crecelius expects additional hiring to be part of the Wilmington office’s future.

“Our goal is to get to that 30-agent mark” like Nest’s office in Charlottesville, Crecelius said. He said the local Nest Realty is also in the process of putting together an in-depth area guide and plans to produce quarterly and annual reports.

Right now, the firm is focused on residential sales. “Down the road, there’s a couple of options I’m looking at that might fit under the Nest umbrella,” Crecelius said, such as property management.