Not too long ago, two of our outstanding leaders, were each recognized for their tremendous accomplishments.

On December 9, Allen Tate President/COO Pat Riley was named Realtor of the Year by the Charlotte Regional Realtor Association. Can you believe that this is the third time in his career that he has received this honor? Pat is a truly remarkable man and I am honored to have him work beside me. Then, not one month later, on January 6, Allen Tate Senior Vice President Phyllis Brookshire was honored by the Raleigh Regional Association of Realtors with the same distinction.

What an honor this is for our company! And it is enhanced by the fact that the Realtor of the Year is selected by past winners.

I always felt that the purpose of this award was to recognize the Realtor who successfully navigated through every job that could be done in the business. But the award is really more than that.

The comments that I hear from the past winners are that both Pat and Phyllis represent a new level of leadership – not only in our industry, but in our communities as well. While they both hold active broker’s licenses, they are no longer involved in the day-to-day business of working with buyers and sellers. Their awards are not about sales units or volumes, but rather, in recognition of the outstanding contributions they have made to support their association, their community and the real estate industry at large.

I think that those are some pretty good reasons to celebrate!

By Allen Tate (Chairman and Chief Executive Officer)