Through Catalist Realty, David Crawford has turned real estate closings into more than $350,000 in donations to local nonprofits—and helped newcomers find a deeper connection to Sarasota.

When he opened Catalist Realty in the spring of 2018, Crawford didn’t want philanthropy to be something the company considered after a good year. He wanted it in the budget from the beginning.

Every agent who joins the brokerage agrees to the same model: 15 percent of each commission goes to a nonprofit chosen by the client. When a closing happens, part of the transaction moves directly into the community.

“As we grow and scale, our giving and support for the community automatically grows and scales with it,” Crawford says.

Today, Catalist has directed funds to more than 65 nonprofits, supporting groups working in housing, food insecurity, domestic violence, early childhood, health care and conservation. The list includes Habitat for Humanity, SPARCC, All Faiths Food Bank, Children First and Easterseals.

Crawford arrived at the idea after an early career in nonprofit-adjacent civic work. After graduating from the University of Florida, he worked in economic development for historic downtown districts through the Main Street program in nearby High Springs. He loved helping small businesses and thinking about how public places could be brought back to life. What wore him down was the machinery around it: grants, approvals, public meetings and the slow pace of government.

Years later, after earning an MBA from the University of Florida and moving to Sarasota with his wife, Stacey, Crawford asked friends who owned companies how they approached community giving. He heard that many businesses backed into philanthropy over time, giving when they could or choosing causes at the end of the year. Crawford wanted something more consistent. By making charitable giving part of Catalist’s formula from the start, the company’s donations would grow alongside the business.

The client choice part mattered, too. Local clients often have causes they support, and newcomers may arrive without civic roots but with a personal experience—a former teacher, a veteran, someone whose family has been shaped by disability, illness or hunger. Catalist helps connect those clients to local groups with similar missions.

“One thing we didn’t expect that’s been really cool is that a lot of people who have moved here said they’ve found a sense of community,” Crawford says. Some found their first real Sarasota connections through nonprofit committees, volunteering and boards.

That, for Crawford, is where unity becomes practical: people from very different lifestyles improving schools, beaches and parks and tackling problems in the community.

“Everybody, no matter what their income level, age or family status, has hardships and issues and problems that come up in life,” he says. “At some point, there are going to be some challenges, and you’re going to need somebody to be there to support you.”

Crawford is also vice chair of Big Waters Land Trust and has been involved in conservation efforts, including the Bobby Jones Golf Course conservation easement and rewilding work at the Quad Parcels near the Celery Fields. To him, land conservation is also about access: free places to walk, gather, picnic and not be expected to spend money.

That role sometimes surprises people, given that Crawford is also a real estate broker and serves as the president of the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee. He doesn’t see a contradiction.

“Development in itself is neutral,” he says. “Development can be amazing when done right; it can be detrimental when done wrong. Same with conservation.”

The tension is familiar in a region where real estate can represent both opportunity and exclusion. Crawford talks about teachers, firefighters, police officers and city and county workers being priced out of the communities they serve. He says the answer can’t be endless criticism.

“You can sit back and complain about it, and that’s not going to get much done,” he says. “Or you can get involved.”

Community work, Crawford says, doesn’t require a grand slam. “You can continually hit singles,” he says, “and it all truly does add up.”