In a real estate market crowded with cold calls and aggressive sales tactics, Amber Spivey has spent over 20 years building something different in Williamsburg, Virginia. Her business runs on referrals, repeat clients, and a reputation for treating people the way she wants to be treated. For Spivey, that’s not just a strategy. It’s how she was raised.

Amber grew up surrounded by real estate. Her father and aunt built careers in luxury community development, land sales, new construction, and property management. After attending Virginia Tech, she returned to Williamsburg, married her high school sweetheart, and became a licensed Realtor. She worked alongside her aunt and with developers planning New Town, a mixed-use community that would eventually become one of the most sought-after neighborhoods in the area.

A Relationship First Approach

Amber’s career took shape through word of mouth, not door-knocking or cold calling. Clients told their friends. Those friends became clients. It built slowly, steadily, and on her own terms. That approach was tested early on when she briefly worked at a well-known worldwide real estate franchise, where the culture revolved around what she calls the numbers game. Cold calling. Door knocking. Chasing down leads. It didn’t fit. She left and returned to a model centered on building relationships rather than filling a pipeline.

“I don’t chase leads down. I build relationships. I build rapport,” Amber said. “If we don’t like each other, we probably shouldn’t work together. I want you to want to work with me either because you connect with me as a person or someone you trust has referred you to me.”

Amber doesn’t track her sales figures or pursue industry certifications. To her, those things are expenses that may not improve the experience for her clients. What matters more are the reviews she receives and the clients who come back or send their family her way. Raised in a Christian home, Amber carries principles of love, respect, patience, and integrity into her work. It’s not a sales pitch. It’s her default setting.

Getting Creative When It Counts

Amber’s reputation isn’t built on holding back. She’s willing to adapt as the market shifts. A few years ago, when demand was sky high, escalation addenda became essential. Spivey would ask buyers what a home was worth to them, not just the asking price, but the ceiling of their comfort zone. At what price point could they walk away and still feel at peace? Those conversations proved to be helpful and made a difference.

The market has shifted again in the past 15 months. Questions about buyer agent commissions have changed how deals get structured. Amber talks through it with her clients up front. Buyers are dealing with higher interest rates, down payments, closing costs, and sometimes the cost of their own agent. It’s made homeownership harder for many.

“We are all in this together,” Amber said. She’s been known to occasionally offer up part of her own commission to get a deal to the closing table. It’s her job to recognize the burden on both sides and come up with solutions that can help everyone reach their goals.

Life in a Multi-Generational Home

In 2019, Amber lost her mother unexpectedly. Her heart turned toward her father, and she wanted to be available to him. What started as a plan to build a home for their family grew into something bigger. By the time construction finished during the pandemic, the house was home to nine people: Amber, her husband, their three children, her widowed father, her widowed mother-in-law, her aunt, and eventually her nephew while he pursued his MBA from William and Mary.

With help from her father, Amber designed what she describes as three houses made to look like one modern farmhouse. The design was critical. Everyone needed space, privacy, and function. The experience gave her a deep understanding of what it takes to design a home for real life.

New Town and What Comes Next

Amber has been involved with New Town since the beginning. The community was a cornfield when she was in high school. Over the last two decades, she’s watched it take shape. To her, that’s one of her greatest achievements.

Now, after more than 20 years, the residential phase of New Town is almost complete. The team has been planning a new community less than a mile from New Town, William & Mary, and Colonial Williamsburg. Amber is also learning to navigate social media. Her college-age daughter manages her Instagram account, advising her mother on what to post to maintain an authentic, professional presence. In a career built on trust and relationships, every decision comes back to how she wants to be seen and who she wants to serve.

More information about Amber Spivey can be found at Amber Spivey — Twiddy Realty.