100 Most Influential Real Estate Leaders

  • BROKERAGE

    Graham Badun

    Graham Badun

    Managing partner and CEO
    Brookfield Residential Property Services

    Graham Badun began his career in the real estate industry as a loan officer in 1988. He joined Toronto-based Brookfield in 1998 and held several executive positions before becoming a managing partner and CEO. Under Badun's direction, Brookfield Residential Property Services acquired GMAC Home Services in September 2008 and rebranded that company as RealLiving in late 2009. Brookfield also operates Canadian real estate franchisor Royal LePage.

  • BROKERAGE

    Stephen W. Baird

    Stephen W. Baird

    President, CEO
    Baird & Warner

    Stephen W. Baird, as president and CEO of Chicago-based Baird & Warner, represents the fifth generation of family ownership for the 155-year-old independent brokerage. Baird is a board member of The Realty Alliance, a network that has membership from some of the largest North American real estate companies. Baird & Warner has 26 branch offices and last year reported that it had about 1,800 agents. In an annual report by Real Trends released this year,... Baird & Warner ranked 13th in transaction sides and 15th in closed sales volume among real estate brokerages tracked. The company traces its roots to a Chicago real estate loan awarded in 1855 by Luis Duncan Olmsted, who in 1860 established a formal partnership with Lyman Baird.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Charles C. 'Lanny' Baker

    Charles C. 'Lanny' Baker

    President and CEO
    ZipRealty Inc.

    Succeeding longtime ZipRealty executive J. Patrick Lashinsky as president and CEO in October, Charles C. "Lanny" Baker is responsible for the brokerage's vision, planning and strategy. Baker came to ZipRealty in 2008 and has also served as the company's executive vice president and chief financial officer. Before joining ZipRealty, Baker was chief financial officer for online recruiter Monster Worldwide Inc., and held management positions in the equity... research department at Smith Barney, where he covered the Internet, e-commerce, radio and television broadcasting industries. A native of San Francisco and graduate of Yale College, Baker also sits on the board of directors of The Knot Inc., a media company devoted to weddings.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Mary Frances Burleson

    Mary Frances Burleson

    President and CEO
    Ebby Halliday Realtors

    Mary Frances Burleson started her real estate career in 1958 as a secretary at Dallas, Texas-based Ebby Halliday Realtors. She eventually became a regional manager and then executive vice president. She has been the company's president and CEO since 1989. The firm is the 12th-largest brokerage in the country by closed transaction sides, according to Real Trends. Burleson has been on the board of directors of the National Association of Realtors® since... 1991.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Sherry A. Chris

    Sherry A. Chris

    President and CEO
    Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC

    Sherry Chris was appointed president and CEO of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC in October 2007. Her appointment followed Realogy's announcement that it had entered into a 50-year agreement with Meredith Corp. to license the Better Homes and Gardens name to launch a new and dynamic global residential real estate brand. Chris has more than 27 years of real estate experience, including a succession of senior positions during her 16 years with Royal... LePage of Canada, followed by executive roles with Real Living (Ohio) and Prudential California-Nevada-Texas Realty. She joined Realogy in 2006 as chief operating officer for Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. In the past 12 months, Chris has more than doubled the size of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate. Her deal to sign Pleasanton, Calif.-based Mason-McDuffie Real Estate added 1,900 agents and $2.8 billion in annual sales to the company.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Harold E. Crye

    Harold E. Crye

    Co-founder and president
    Crye-Leike Realtors

    Harold Crye co-founded Memphis, Tenn.-based Crye-Leike Realtors in 1977 at the age of 31. The company began its franchising operations in 2000 and now has a network of more than 3,600 sales associates and more than 130 offices. The brokerage was the sixth largest in the country by closed transaction sides last year, according to Real Trends. Crye is chairman of the board of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World and has previously served as chairman... of the Realty Alliance.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Richard W. Davidson

    Richard W. Davidson

    President and CEO
    Century 21 Real Estate LLC

    Richard W. "Rick" Davidson is a 20-year real estate industry veteran. He was appointed president and CEO of Century 21 Real Estate in February 2010. The Century 21 network includes more than 7,700 offices and 121,000 sales associates globally. Davidson came to Century 21 from two fellow Realogy subsidiaries, Coldwell Banker Real Estate, where he was chief operating officer, and Coldwell Banker Commercial Affiliates, where he was president and COO.

  • BROKERAGE

    P. Wesley 'Wes' Foster Jr.

    P. Wesley 'Wes' Foster Jr.

    Founder, Chairman and CEO
    The Long & Foster Cos.

    P. Wesley Foster Jr. founded Long & Foster Real Estate Inc. in 1968 with partner Henry A. Long. Foster focused on the residential side of the business and Long specialized in the commercial real estate sector. In July 1979, Foster became sole owner of the business, which now offers mortgage, title insurance and other insurance services. Foster is a founding member of two major brokerage networks: The Leading Real Estate Companies of the World and Realty... Alliance. Based in Chantilly, Va., The Long & Foster Cos. has about 200 sales offices and 13,700 sales associates in eight states in the Greater Washington, D.C., area.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Jim Gillespie

    Jim Gillespie

    CEO
    Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC

    Jim Gillespie is a 36-year veteran of the real estate industry. He joined the Coldwell Banker brand in 1976 and since then has served in several executive positions, including three years as the company's chief operating officer. He has been CEO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate since 2004. The global franchise network has about 3,200 offices and 97,000 agents.

  • BROKERAGE

    Michael R. Good

    Michael R. Good

    CEO
    Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates LLC

    Michael R. Good, a 33-year real estate industry veteran, has led Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates as CEO since February 2004. From 1997-2004 Good served as executive vice president and chief operating officer for NRT Inc., which oversees Realogy Corp's company-owned brokerage operations and the largest U.S. brokerage company. Before launching his real estate career, Good served as a teacher and was a high school and collegiate wrestling coach... in Minnesota. He was twice named an All-American in wrestling. Realogy's former parent company, Cendant, in 2004 entered into an agreement with Sotheby's Holdings Inc. to create the Sotheby's franchise real estate network. The network has about 11,000 sales associates and 500 offices in 42 nations and territories spanning the globe.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Howard W. 'Hoddy' Hanna, III

    Howard W. 'Hoddy' Hanna, III

    Chairman and CEO
    Howard Hanna Real Estate Services

    Hoddy Hanna is the chairman and CEO of Howard Hanna, the fourth-largest brokerage in the country, according to the latest rankings from Real Trends. The company has 131 offices and more than 4,700 sales associates and staff in four states. Under Hanna's leadership, the company entered the mortgage banking, title and home insurance businesses in 1981, offering consumers "one stop shopping" for home purchases. Hanna is also the founder and former president... of the West Penn Multiple Listing Service.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Dorothy 'Dottie' Herman

    Dorothy 'Dottie' Herman

    President and CEO
    Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate

    Dottie Herman started her career as a financial planner and part-time sales broker. In 1989, she bought Prudential Long Island Realty and, 14 years later, bought Douglas Elliman, Manhattan's largest real estate brokerage. She merged the two companies and became president and CEO of Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate, now the 16th-largest brokerage in the country by closed transaction sides, according to Real Trends. The company includes more than 3,500... sales associates and 60 offices.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Paul Hulme

    Paul Hulme

    President, Founder and CEO
    Alain Pinel Realtors

    Paul Hulme founded luxury real estate brokerage Alain Pinel Realtors in 1990. The brokerage has about 1,400 agents and 31 offices in Northern California and made $5.7 billion in sales in 2009, and ranked sixth in sales volume among U.S. brokers tracked by Real Trends. A life-long entrepreneur, Hulme owns several other non-real-estate-related businesses and employs about 1,700 people in 30 states.

  • BROKERAGE

    Gary Keller

    Gary Keller

    Co-founder and chairman
    Keller Williams Realty

    Gary Keller co-founded Austin, Texas-based Keller Williams in 1983. The company began franchising in 1990 and now has more than 78,000 real estate agents and nearly 700 offices in the United States and Canada. Keller is in charge of the company's strategic direction and was a driving force behind the company's innovative profit-sharing model. Keller has co-authored three nationally best-selling books: "The Millionaire Real Estate Agent," "The... Millionaire Real Estate Investor," and "SHIFT: How Top Real Estate Agents Tackle Tough Times."

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  • BROKERAGE

    Margaret Kelly

    Margaret Kelly

    CEO
    Re/Max LLC

    Margaret Kelly was named Re/Max LLC's CEO in October 2005, after holding a series of leadership positions since joining the organization as a Financial Analyst in 1987. In January 2010, Kelly was appointed to the board of directors of the Denver Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank. Kelly speaks before industry groups around the United States and is frequently interviewed by the media. She has served as CEO guest anchor on CNBC's "The Call," and her industry... observations have been quoted by major media organizations. She grew up in the Detroit area and received a Bachelor of Business Administration in finance and accounting from Walsh College in Troy, Mich. As a breast cancer survivor, Kelly is an advocate of the Re/Max national sponsorship of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure series.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Glenn Kelman

    Glenn Kelman

    President and CEO
    Redfin

    Glenn Kelman has been the president and CEO of discount brokerage Redfin since September 2005. Kelman is known for speaking his mind about brokerage issues, real estate commission structures and industry rules that stifle innovation. Before joining Redfin, Kelman co-founded Plumtree Software, a publicly traded portal software company. Redfin expanded to six new markets in 2010, for a total of 16 markets.

  • BROKERAGE

    Earl Lee

    Earl Lee

    President
    Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services Inc.

    Earl Lee, who served as president of Prudential Relocation from January 2007 to December 2008 and president of Prudential Real Estate Affiliates Inc. from 2000-06, was appointed president of Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services Inc. in December 2008. Lee landed his first job as a sales professional in 1973, and later in his career he served as senior vice president, principal broker and partner of Prudential Locations LLC in Hawaii. Prudential... Real Estate had about 1,700 franchise offices and 60,000 sales professionals in its franchise network as of March 31, 2010, the company announced. Prudential Real Estate ranked highest among home sellers in J.D. Power and Associates' customer satisfaction survey results released in August 2010, and was the only brokerage company rated in the survey that improved its score in 2010 compared to 2009.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Dave Liniger

    Dave Liniger

    Co-founder and chairman of the board
    RE/MAX LLC

    Dave Liniger is the co-founder and board chairman of real estate franchise giant RE/MAX. Liniger spent six years in the U.S. Air Force and supplemented his income by buying and selling homes in the Phoenix area. He co-founded RE/MAX in 1973 under a 100 percent commission model and has grown the company to include more than 90,000 sales associates in more than 80 countries.

  • BROKERAGE

    Pam O'Connor

    Pam O'Connor

    President and CEO
    Leading Real Estate Companies of the World

    For more than 25 years, Pam O'Conner has managed the companies that ultimately consolidated into Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. LeadingRE is based in Chicago and represents 5,000 offices and 150,000 sales associates worldwide. O'Connor is also a Senior Certified Relocation Professional (SCRP) and serves on the board of directors and executive committee of Worldwide ERC, a trade association for the relocation industry.

  • BROKERAGE

    Ronald J. Peltier

    Ronald J. Peltier

    Chairman and CEO
    HomeServices of America Inc.

    Ron Peltier joined Edina Realty as a sales associate in 1977 and rose up the ranks to become the company's president and CEO in 1992. Under his leadership, HomeServices of America Inc. was formed in 1998 and grew to become the second-largest brokerage in the country, according to Real Trends. Peltier was appointed the brokerage's chairman in 2008. Peltier is also a co-founder and director of The Realty Alliance and a director of the National Leading Real... Estate Companies of the World.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Alex Perriello

    Alex Perriello

    President and CEO
    Realogy Franchise Group

    Alexander E. Perriello III has served as president and CEO of the Realogy Franchise Group since April 2004. Perriello oversees the Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, CENTURY 21, Coldwell Banker, Coldwell Banker Commercial, ERA and Sotheby's International Realty real estate brands, which combined have approximately 14,700 franchised and company-owned offices and 267,000 brokers and sales associates doing business in 100 countries around the world. He... served as chairperson of the 2010 National Association of Realtors Strategic Planning Committee, and was the NAR 2008 Special Liaison for Large Firm Relations. He began career as a sales associate, and served as president and CEO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corp. from 1997 to 2004. He played an integral role in the restructuring and development of Coldwell Banker following its 1996 acquisition by Cendant (then HFS) and its relocation to Parsippany, N.J.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Harley E. Rouda Jr.

    Harley E. Rouda Jr.

    President
    Real Living

    Harley Rouda Jr. became president of Real Living last year when the franchise company merged with GMAC Home Services LLC. Rouda, whose father founded Real Living in 2002, had previously been the company's CEO and managing partner. As 2010 progressed, more than 50 former GMAC brokerages affiliated with Real Living growing the brand to 400 offices and nearly 10,000 agents.

  • BROKERAGE

    J. Lennox Scott

    J. Lennox Scott

    President and CEO
    John L. Scott Real Estate

    J. Lennox Scott is the third-generation leader of John L. Scott Real Estate, which his grandfather founded in Seattle in 1931. Scott became the company president in 1980 and became chairman and CEO in 2002. The brokerage has 130 offices and more than 3,200 sales associates in the states of Washington, Oregon and Idaho. Earlier this year, he wrote a white paper advocating a national down payment assistance program to stimulate the housing market.

  • BROKERAGE

    Richard Smith

    Richard Smith

    President and CEO
    Realogy Corp.

    Richard A. Smith, president and CEO of Realogy Corp., has been responsible for leading the company's business operations since 1996. Realogy is a global provider of real estate and relocation services, providing real estate franchising, brokerage, relocation and title services. Companies under the Realogy umbrella include Realogy Franchise Group, which consists of the Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, Century 21, Coldwell Banker, Coldwell Banker Commercial,... ERA and Sotheby's International Realty real estate brands. Combined, those brands have approximately 14,700 franchised and company-owned offices and 267,000 brokers and agents worldwide. Realogy's NRT LLC is the nation's largest residential real estate brokerage company with approximately 740 offices and 44,400 sales associates in more than 35 of the nation's largest metropolitan markets. Smith is a member of the Business Roundtable, an association of CEOs of leading U.S. companies.

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  • BROKERAGE

    Jim Weichert

    Jim Weichert

    Founder and President
    Weichert, Realtors

    Jim Weichert opened his first Weichert, Realtors office in 1969. Since then the company has grown to nearly 18,000 sales associates and over 500 company-owned and franchised offices nationwide. Weichert states that his company is a "true full-service real estate company" designed to guide consumers through the entire purchasing process, including providing mortgage and title insurance services.

  • BROKERAGE

    Charlie Young

    Charlie Young

    President and CEO
    ERA Franchise Systems LLC

    Charlie Young joined ERA Real Estate as chief operating officer in February 2009 and was appointed president and CEO two months later when his predecessor, Brenda Casserly, died after a battle with cancer. Young said this year that his goals for the company include recruitment, driving a higher sales rate, and lead management and conversion. He said there are open markets in some key cities, including some that could be characterized as "NFL cities" --... those large enough to host professional football teams. Before joining ERA, Young served for five years at Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC, first as senior vice president of marketing and later as chief operating officer. Young was previously vice president for Cendant Mortgage (now PHH Mortgage).

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  • BROKERAGE

    Bruce Zipf

    Bruce Zipf

    President and CEO
    NRT LLC

    Bruce Zipf has been guiding the strategic direction of NRT LLC, the nation's largest residential real estate brokerage company since he was named president and CEO in 2005. NRT owns and operates companies in more than 35 markets, with approximately 46,000 sales associates doing business under the Coldwell Banker, Coldwell Banker Commercial, ERA, Sotheby's International Realty and The Corcoran Group brand names. Zipf became a certified public accountant... in 1980, working as a senior audit manager for Ernst and Young before joining Schlott, Realtors as controller in 1986. He was promoted to senior vice president of Coldwell Banker Schlott Realtors in 1994. At NRT, Zipf has worn a number of hats, including chief operating officer, chief administrative officer, and president of NRT's New York City metro region.

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  • ECONOMISTS, ACADEMICS AND CONSULTANTS

    Steve Harney

    Steve Harney

    CEO
    Steve Harney Inc.

    Steve Harney is a residential real estate expert and trainer. A 26-year industry veteran, he is founder and CEO of Steve Harney Inc., a negotiation and leadership training firm for real estate professionals. He authors Keeping Current Matters, a subscription-based monthly report containing real estate advice and market information. Harney developed his own real estate firm in May 1995, growing it to more than 450 agents and 11 offices before its acquisition... by NRT in August 2003.

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  • ECONOMISTS, ACADEMICS AND CONSULTANTS

    Stan Humphries

    Stan Humphries

    Chief Economist
    Zillow.com

    As chief economist at Zillow.com, Stan Humphries helped create the algorithm for the company's automated property "Zestimates," and is also in charge of calculating housing market statistics including the Zillow Home Value Index. Before joining Zillow, Humphries spent five years at Expedia.com where he ran a team responsible for finding innovative ways to use data, building systems for personalization, pricing, forecasting, and fraud detection. His career... also includes stints at the University of Virginia, where he was a researcher and faculty member, and NASA, where he negotiated international science agreements. Humphries also taught physics and chemistry classes in West Africa with the Peace Corps.

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  • ECONOMISTS, ACADEMICS AND CONSULTANTS

    Brian Larson

    Brian Larson

    Managing Member
    Larson/Sobotka PLLC

    Brian N. Larson is managing member of the law firm of Larson/Sobotka PLLC and president of Larson/Sobotka Business Advisors LLC. The Minneapolis-based firms provide advice to MLSs, Realtor associations, real estate brokers and other businesses. Larson has advised numerous MLSs regarding strategic and legal implications of listing syndication and data licensing through partners such as RPR, CoreLogic and others. As a consultant, he provides strategy and... operations advice. During 2010, Larson has focused on two consulting initiatives: MLS Domains Association, an effort by MLSs to apply for and obtain their own top-level domain on the Internet (.MLS), and Effective MLS Market Solutions (EMMS), a program funded by the National Association of Realtors to help groups of MLSs find ways to work together to better serve their subscribers.

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  • ECONOMISTS, ACADEMICS AND CONSULTANTS

    Bill Lublin

    Bill Lublin

    CEO
    Century 21 Advantage Gold Institute

    Bill Lublin is the CEO of Century 21 Advantage Gold, one of the largest brokerages in the country, according to Real Trends. He is also the founder and CEO of the Social Media Marketing Institute, which offers training programs in social network marketing and worked with the National Association of Realtors to develop a new curriculum for the e-PRO certification program, which offers training to real estate professionals in the use of technology to better... serve and engage with consumers. He also has served as a member of NAR's Professional Standards Committee and Risk Management Committee. In 2011, he will serve as vice chairman for NAR's Risk Management and License Law Forum.

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  • ECONOMISTS, ACADEMICS AND CONSULTANTS

    Nicolas P. Retsinas

    Nicolas P. Retsinas

    Director Emeritus
    Joint Center for Housing Studies, Harvard University

    A former federal housing commissioner during the Clinton administration, Nicolas P. Retsinas is director emeritus of the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, which produces The State of the Nation's Housing, an annual report detailing national housing statistics, ranging from income levels and housing costs to demographic trends and construction activity. Retsinas also teaches housing finance and real estate in emerging markets at the... Harvard Business School. And he has served as director of the Office of Thrift Supervision and as a member of both the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Federal Housing Finance boards. He also serves on the board of directors of Community Development Trust Inc., Freddie Mac and the Center for Responsible Lending. He joined JCHS in 1998.

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  • ECONOMISTS, ACADEMICS AND CONSULTANTS

    Robert J. Shiller

    Robert J. Shiller

    Economist, Author
    Yale University

    Robert Shiller is a professor of economics at Yale University and co-founder and chief economist of MacroMarkets LLC. Shiller co-founded home-price research company Case-Shiller Weiss Inc. in 1991, later bought by Fiserv Inc. in 2002. The firm developed the U.S. Home Price Indices, now managed by Standard & Poor's and followed across the real estate industry. Shiller is the author of several books, including "Market Volatility," "Irrational Exuberance,"... and most recently, "The Squam Lake Report: Fixing the Financial Markets."

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  • ECONOMISTS, ACADEMICS AND CONSULTANTS

    Mark Zandi

    Mark Zandi

    Chief Economist
    Moody's Analytics

    Policymakers, elected officials and the media often call on Mark Zandi for insight on the economy. Zandi frequently testifies before Congress, has provided advice to the Obama administration, and served as economic advisor to Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign. Known for his insight into the causes of mortgage foreclosure and personal bankruptcy, Zandi has also analyzed the economic impact of tax and government spending policies. He's often consulted... on ways to minimize the impacts of the financial crisis, and on measures that could prevent risky asset bubbles from forming again. He's currently working on a follow-up to his book, "Financial Shock," an exposé of the financial crisis. The new book, "Paying the Price," will attempt to provide a roadmap for meeting the nation's daunting fiscal challenges. Zandi conducted his doctoral research with Gerard Adams and Nobel laureate Lawrence Klein at the University of Pennsylvania.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    Melanie Aitken

    Melanie Aitken

    Commissioner of Competition
    Competition Bureau of Canada

    Melanie Aitken, commissioner of competition for Canada's Competition Bureau, an agency similar to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, oversaw the ratification of a consent agreement this year between the bureau and the Canadian Real Estate Association, a Realtor trade group that operates Canada's Realtor.ca real estate search website. The agreement brought to rest a 3 1/2-year dispute over rules that the Competition Bureau deemed restrictive to some forms... of limited-service real estate brokerage. The Competition Bureau had filed a complaint against CREA in February 2010. Aitken served as interim commissioner from Jan. 12, 2009, to Aug. 4, 2009, before she was appointed as commissioner for a five-year term that year.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    Sheila C. Bair

    Sheila C. Bair

    Chairman
    Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

    While bank failures are expected to exceed the 2009 volume, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila C. Bair has said she expects bank failures to peak this year. FDIC has a mission to protect bank customers’ deposits in the event a bank goes belly up. The FDIC reported that FDIC-insured institutions earned an aggregate profit of $14.5 billion in third-quarter 2010, much improved from $2 billion earned in third-quarter 2009. But the number of... institutions on the agency’s “Problem List,” with increased risk of failure, rose to 860 in the third quarter, which was the highest level since March 31, 1993. The agency had intervened in 127 failures of FDIC-institutions in the first three quarters of the year. Bair has served as FDIC chairman since 2006, and she had earlier served as assistant secretary for financial institutions at the U.S. Department of Treasury and as senior vice president for government relations of the New York Stock Exchange.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    Ben Bernanke

    Ben Bernanke

    Chairman
    Federal Reserve Board

    After implementing drastic measures during his first term that supporters say prevented a meltdown of the financial system, Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke was rewarded with a second four-year term and will continue leading the Fed through 2014. The Fed's massive purchases of mortgage-backed securities were credited with helping keep mortgage rates low in 2010. But some critics fear that the program's successor, "QE2" -- a second round of quantitative... easing through the purchase of Treasurys -- will spark inflation. With Bernanke's position at the helm secure, some Fed critics are now directing their animosity at the institution itself, demanding that it be stripped of its independence, if not abolished altogether. But implementation of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 is expected to give the Fed -- and Bernanke -- greater regulatory powers.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    Christopher J. Dodd

    Christopher J. Dodd

    U.S. Senator
    Connecticut

    As chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, Sen. Chris Dodd capped a 30-year career in the U.S. Senate by helping shepherd the financial regulatory reform bill that bears his name -- the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 -- to President Obama's desk. Like his colleague in the House, Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., Dodd was an ally of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac during the housing boom. Although Dodd, Frank and other Democrats... supported legislation aimed at strengthening oversight of Fannie and Freddie, they opposed Republicans' attempts to cap the mortgage giants' portfolios during the Bush administration. In his final term, Dodd was embroiled in controversy over his participation in Countrywide Financial's "Friends of Angelo" program, which allegedly allowed him to take out two mortgages at below market rates. Dodd said he didn't get a sweetheart deal on the mortgages, and a Senate ethics panel later found no evidence that he'd sought special treatment from Countrywide.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    Shaun Donovan

    Shaun Donovan

    Secretary
    U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

    Shaun Donovan, former commissioner for the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development, took office as secretary for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in January 2009. Donovan oversees the Federal Housing Administration, which is the largest government insurer of mortgages. The FHA has been instrumental in assisting buyers acquire loans in an environment of restrictive lending. HUD has worked to implement several... Obama administration programs intended to avoid foreclosure, such as the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives program, which is intended to expedite short sales or deeds in lieu of foreclosure for those who do not qualify for loan mods via the federal Home Affordable Modification Program -- HAMP has been widely criticized for its failure to produce a high rate of successful, permanent loan mods. During the Clinton administration, Donovan had served as deputy assistant secretary for multifamily housing and had served as acting FHA commissioner during the transition from the Clinton to Bush administrations.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    Kenneth R. Feinberg

    Kenneth R. Feinberg

    Founder and Managing Partner
    Feinberg Rozen LLP

    Perhaps best as the administrator of the fund created to compensate victims of the 9/11 attacks, Kenneth R. Feinberg became an important person in the lives of many Gulf Coast Realtors when he was put in charge of the $20 billion fund established to compensate victims of the BP oil spill. After meeting with Realtor associations and brokers, and engaging in talks coordinated by NAR CEO Dale Stinton, Feinberg "walked out on a limb" and carved $60 million... out of the fund that was earmarked for real estate professionals. Realtor associations in five states -- Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida -- distributed the funds. Addressing Realtors in November in New Orleans, Feinberg said "my trust in you has been vindicated 1,000 percent." Feinberg wrote a book about his experiences administering the 9/11 fund. As an arbitrator, he helped determine the fair market value of the original Zapruder film of the Kennedy assassination, and legal fees in Holocaust slave labor litigation.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    Barney Frank

    Barney Frank

    U.S. Congressman
    Massachusetts

    As chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Rep. Barney Frank played a key role in shaping the landmark financial regulatory reform bill that bears his name: the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. The bill -- the most extensive revision of the U.S. financial regulatory system since the Great Depression -- creates a new Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection with jurisdiction over mortgage lenders and other providers... of consumer financial products. Many in the lending industry fear Dodd-Frank will restrict credit and create additional cost and complexity. Frank, who has served in Congress since 1981, will step down as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee next year, when the 112th Congress is sworn in. Republicans, who will be in the majority, have elected Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., to chair the committee, but Frank will continue to play a leadership role as the committee's ranking Democrat.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    Charles E. 'Ed' Haldeman Jr.

    Charles E. 'Ed' Haldeman Jr.

    CEO
    Freddie Mac

    Charles E. "Ed" Haldeman Jr. was named CEO for secondary mortgage giant Freddie Mac in July 2009. He had formerly served as chairman of Putnam Investment Management LLC, where he worked to reorganize the company during a period of scandal involving improper trading by the company's managers. While he lacked a background in the mortgage and housing industries, Haldeman has said that his navigation of the regulatory issues and experience in working with... financial services companies helped to prepare him for his role at Freddie Mac. The fate of Freddie Mac and sister mortgage entity Fannie Mae has been a political bouncing ball since the government-sponsored entitites were placed under conservatorship by the U.S. Treasury Department in September 2008, and legislation restructuring their role may not come to pass until 2012 or beyond. Haldeman had earlier served as chairman and CEO for Delaware Investments and as president and chief operating officer for United Asset Management Corp.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    Tom Miller

    Tom Miller

    Attorney General
    Iowa

    Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller this year took the lead in the Mortgage Foreclosure Multistate Group, with membership from all 50 state attorneys general and dozens of state banking and mortgage regulators, to delve into the "robo-signing" scandal over the improper processing of foreclosure documentation. Among the goals of the group, according to an October announcement: stopping improper mortgage foreclosure practices and establishing a mechanism for... better, independent monitoring of future practices. The robo-signing scandal has slowed the foreclosure process, as several major loan services temporarily halted foreclosure practices to review their practices. Miller's office established a Mortgage Help Hotline as a resource for distressed homeowners. Miller served as Iowa's attorney general from 1979-91, was elected to the office again in 1994, and was re-elected in 1998, 2002 and 2006. He has served as president of the National Association of Attorneys General.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    David Stevens

    David Stevens

    Commissioner
    Federal Housing Administration

    As the Obama administration's pick to run the Federal Housing Administration, David Stevens has so far managed to steer the FHA's loan guarantee program clear of the need for a taxpayer bailout. The former Long & Foster Cos. president and chief operating officer has implemented a series of changes to FHA's underwriting standards and premium structures that are intended to restore the program's capital cushion. Anticipated claims from loans insured... at the height of the housing bubble continue to weigh on FHA's capital reserve ratio. FHA now insures about 40 percent of purchase loans, and some critics have charged that FHA has shifted its focus away from low- and moderate-income borrowers. Earlier in his career, Stevens spent 16 years with World Savings Bank and also served in executive roles at Wells Fargo and Freddie Mac.

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  • GOVERNMENT

    Michael J. Williams

    Michael J. Williams

    President and CEO
    Fannie Mae

    Michael J. Williams was appointed to lead Fannie Mae in 2009 as the company continued to play a key role in responding to the housing crisis. Williams says he's focused on supporting realistic, common-sense lending, building a profitable new book of business, reducing credit losses on its legacy book, and transforming the company to better serve the housing and mortgage markets. In a career with Fannie Mae spanning nearly 20 years, Williams has been senior... vice president for eCommerce, helping bring Fannie Mae into the digital era by leading the development of Desktop Underwriter. In 2005, he was named executive vice president and chief operating officer, later overseeing Fannie Mae's role as administrator of the U.S. Treasury Department's Making Home Affordable program, bolstering the company's foreclosure prevention and credit loss mitigation operations and managing the majority of the organization. Since 2009, Fannie Mae has helped 475,000 homeowners avoid foreclosure through loan modifications and workouts.

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  • MEDIA

    Lani Anglin-Rosales

    Lani Anglin-Rosales

    New Media Director, Author
    AgentGenius

    Lani Anglin-Rosales is the new media director and author for AgentGenius, a multi-author online real estate magazine. Her husband, Benn Rosales, founded AgentGenius. The AgentGenius site launched in May 2007 as the RealtorGenius.com blog, though after a request by the National Association of Realtors the site rebranded. A life-long Austin, Texas, resident, Anglin-Rosales is co-founder and president of New Media Lab, a company that offers digital communications... and social media consulting and services.

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  • MEDIA

    John E. Featherston

    John E. Featherston

    Founder, CEO, Publisher
    RISMedia

    John E. Featherston founded real estate media company RISMedia in 1980. The company publishes daily real estate news online, and offers a monthly print magazine. Among its annual events are Power Broker forums, held in conjunction with National Association of Realtors conferences. The company's annual Power Broker Report and Survey ranks hundreds of U.S. real estate brokerages by transaction sides and sales volume. RISMedia operates the Real Estate Information... Network for brokers and Top 5 in Real Estate Network for agents. The company is based in Norwalk, Conn.

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  • MEDIA

    Kenneth Harney

    Kenneth Harney

    Columnist
    The Washington Post

    Ken Harney writes an award-winning, nationally syndicated column for the Washington Post Writers Group called "The Nation's Housing" on tax laws, mortgages, and real estate markets. He has written two books on real estate and mortgage finance and served successive terms as president and chairman of the board for the National Association of Real Estate Editors in 2008 and 2009. Harney is a former member of the Federal Reserve Board's Consumer Advisory Council.

  • MEDIA

    Jody Lane

    Jody Lane

    President, CEO, Publisher
    Realty Times

    A past member of the National Association of Realtors, Jody Lane is the publisher and majority owner of Realty Times, a national real estate news service based in Dallas that launched as an online news service called Agent News in October 1997. The company later rebranded as RealSelect through a partnership with Realtor.com's operator, and the name was changed to Realty Times when Lane and his partners gained full ownership.

  • MEDIA

    Steve Murray

    Steve Murray

    Editor, President
    Real Trends

    With 33 years of experience in the residential real estate brokerage industry, Steve Murray leads Castle Rock, Colo.-based Real Trends, a research and publishing company. Real Trends publishes an annual report that ranks top U.S. brokerages based on transaction sides and sales volume. Murray also serves as president of Murray Consulting firm, which offers consultations on mergers and acquisitions, management strategies, and profit and loss analytics, among... other specialties. Real Trends and Murray Consulting were formed in 1987.

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  • MEDIA

    Lockhart Steele

    Lockhart Steele

    Founder
    Curbed

    Lockhart Steele, founder of the Curbed family websites, which now includes a string of city-based sites and a national site, is also the proprietor of Eater.com and Racked.com. The Curbed sites offer quick, sly takes on all things at least loosely related to real estate, with content ranging from celebrity homes for sale to home decor and new developments. The Curbed National site launched this year, and Curbed local sites cover New York City, Los Angeles,... San Francisco, Chicago and the Hamptons, N.Y. Steele is former managing editor of Gawker Media and co-author of "The Pharmer's Alamanac," a bible of sorts for fans of the rock band "Phish."

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  • MORTGAGE AND ANCILLARY SERVICES

    John Courson

    John Courson

    President, CEO
    Mortgage Bankers Association

    Having begun his career in mortgage lending during summers in high school and college, John A. Courson has been involved in the home loan business for more than 40 years. Before earning an undergraduate degree in business and finance from the University of Colorado, he was originating loans as branch manager of a two-person office in a Denver suburb. After graduation, Courson worked as a loan officer for Fort Wayne Mortgage, working his way up to become... the Detroit-based company's president and CEO. He's served in the same capacity for Central Pacific Mortgage Co. and Westwood Mortgage Corp., and was president and chief operating officer of Fundamental Mortgage. Courson was chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association in 2003, and was appointed the following year by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to the board of directors of the California Housing Finance Agency, which he chaired for four years. Courson became the Mortgage Bankers Association's chief operating officer in 2008, and was appointed president and CEO in January 2009.

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  • MORTGAGE AND ANCILLARY SERVICES

    Raymond R. Quirk

    Raymond R. Quirk

    CEO
    Fidelity National Title Group

    Raymond "Randy" Quirk has served as CEO of Fidelity National Title Group (FNTG), the nation's largest title insurance company, since 2005. He is also president of Fidelity National Financial Inc., a leading provider of title insurance, specialty insurance, claims management and information services. As FNTG's CEO, Quirk is responsible for the direct and agency operations of five leading title insurance underwriters: Fidelity National Title, Chicago... Title, Ticor Title, Security Union Title Commonwealth Land Title, Lawyers Title and Alamo Title. He's also responsible for ServiceLink, a provider of centralized title and closing services to national lenders.

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  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Rudolph 'Rudy' D. Bachraty III

    Rudolph 'Rudy' D. Bachraty III

    Social Media Guru
    Trulia

    As a co-founder of the Sellsius blog, which launched five years ago, Rudy Bachraty made a name for himself in the world of online real estate, along with fellow co-founder Joseph "Joe" G. Ferrara. In 2008 Bachraty joined real estate site Trulia as social media guru, overseeing social media activities and authoring a Trulia blog. He has worked as a real estate broker, launching Manhattan-based Kiosk Realty in 2007.

  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Jason Berman

    Jason Berman

    Lead Organizer
    REBlogWorld

    Jason Berman founded Sierra Funding in 1995 in Colorado and in 2006 served as president of the Colorado Association of Mortgage Brokers. During his tenure as president, a new regulation was passed mandating minimum standards for mortgage brokers working in the state. Berman has also served on National Association of Mortgage Brokers committees, and he serves as lead organizer for REBlogWorld, a real estate blogging and social networking conference that... launched in 2008. The latest event was held in October 2010.

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  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Todd Carpenter

    Todd Carpenter

    Manager of Social Media
    National Association of Realtors

    Todd Carpenter is in charge of social media engagement for the National Association of Realtors. A veteran of the mortgage industry, he founded industry blog Lenderama in 2005 and authored it until March 2009. Carpenter is a frequent conference speaker and co-founder of REBlogWorld, a Web 2.0 marketing conference for the real estate industry.

  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Dale Chumbley

    Dale Chumbley

    Realtor
    Clark County Real Estate Guide

    A second-generation Realtor in Vancouver, Wash., Dale Chumbley hosts the "365 Things To Do in Vancouver, WA" site on Facebook, which each day features local items of interest. He also posts the items to his blog site, the Clark County Real Estate Guide. Prior to launching his real estate career in 1994, Chumbley worked with land records for the Clark County Department of Assessment and Geographic Information Systems. Chumbley has organized and participated... in real estate training and education events to share his social media experience with others.

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  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Frank Garay

    Frank Garay

    Co-creator
    TBWS Daily Show

    Frank Garay and Brian Stevens are leaders in video marketing for real estate agents and mortgage brokers. They host the TBWS Daily Show, a video blog that mixes humor and real estate news. They claim to get more than 20,000 views for each daily show and more than 100,000 unique viewers monthly. They also offer video training and online lead-generation services at ThinkBigWorkSmall.com. Before founding TBWS, both had worked in the mortgage business for... more than 20 years.

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  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Andy Kaufman

    Andy Kaufman

    Organizer
    Real Estate BarCamp

    In 2008, Andy Kaufman organized the first Real Estate BarCamp in San Francisco, an informal, user-generated, real estate-themed grassroots event that has since spread to numerous locations across the country and internationally. The RE BarCamp movement borrowed from the formula introduced by predecessor technology BarCamps. Kaufman, founding partner of the MyEastBayAgent team with Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie Real Estate in Berkeley, Calif.,... continues to consult with other local RE BarCamp organizers. He also is an advisory board member for the Social Media Marketing Institute.

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  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Bill McBride

    Bill McBride

    Author
    Calculated Risk blog

    A full-time blogger who retired as a senior executive of a small public company in the 1990s, Bill McBride has built a large following of readers with his astute commentary on statistics and trends he gathers from a diverse range of sources. Founded in 2005, Calculated Risk is rated by EconDirectory.com as the most popular blog of its kind. McBride holds an MBA from the University of California, Irvine.

  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Nicole Nicolay

    Nicole Nicolay

    Co-founder, Chief Creative Officer
    Agent Evolution

    Nicole Nicolay is a social media butterfly who has commanded an online following. As creator and chief creative officer for Agent Evolution, Nicolay offers social media and WordPress design training for real estate professionals. Nicolay is also a frequent speaker at real estate industry events, and has contributed to MyTechOpinion, a real estate technology blog, since 2005. She is co-founder and owner of Effektive Solutions, a real estate technology and... marketing services company. She has previously worked as an elementary school teacher and is wife to Reggie Nicolay, director of social media for the National Association of Realtors' Realtors Property Resource.

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  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Reggie Nicolay

    Reggie Nicolay

    Director of Social Media
    Realtors Property Resource

    Reggie Nicolay, founder of real estate technology blog MyTechOpinion, landed a job as social media director for the National Association of Realtors' Realtors Property Resource, a property database for Realtors, last year. He moved to RPR from real estate search and valuation site Cyberhomes.com, where he also served as social media director. RPR launched in September 2010, and more than 100 MLSs, representing about 265,000 Realtors, have signed up for... access to the property database system, which has data on about 147 million parcels of property. As social media director for RPR, Nicolay is responsible for brand monitoring and social media strategies, among other functions. He previously has served as a Web producer at Internet start-up Markettools.com and regional tech director for Fidelity National Financial. He is husband to Nicole Nicolay, a real estate tech blogger and co-founder of Agent Evolution.

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  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Daniel Rothamel

    Daniel Rothamel

    Realtor, Blogger
    Strong Team Realtors

    Daniel Rothamel is an avid blogger and a Realtor for Strong Team Realtors in Palmyra, Va. An avid social media proponent, Rothamel is a former community manager for Inman News and is a frequent speaker about real estate marketing, technology and social media. He also completed training to teach e-PRO tech classes to real estate professionals.

  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Chris Smith *People's Choice

    Chris Smith *People's Choice

    Co-Founder
    Tech Savvy Agent

    Chris Smith co-founded Tech Savvy Agent, a blog that offers hardware and software reviews, videos, tech advice and tips, and social media strategies. Tech Savvy Agent won this year's Inman News Innovator Award for most innovative blog and more than 11,000 people have "Liked" the blog on Facebook. Smith was also the driving force behind the launch of a real estate blog focused on Apple products, Mac Savvy Agent. Smith has been an Internet marketing... and social media consultant for Move Inc. for the past two years.

    *Chris Smith is the "People's Choice" in this year's Most Influential list. He received the most votes among hundreds of reader nominees in an online survey conducted from Oct. 27 to Nov. 15.

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  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Brian Stevens

    Brian Stevens

    Co-Creator
    TBWS Daily Show

    Brian Stevens and Frank Garay are leaders in video marketing for real estate agents and mortgage brokers. They host the TBWS Daily Show, a video blog that mixes humor and real estate news. They claim to get more than 20,000 views for each daily show and more than 100,000 unique viewers monthly. They also offer video training and online lead-generation services at ThinkBigWorkSmall.com. Before founding TBWS, both had worked in the mortgage business for... more than 20 years.

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  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Jay Thompson

    Jay Thompson

    Founder
    PhoenixRealEstateGuy.com

    Jay Thompson is designated broker and a co-owner of Thompson's Realty, an independent brokerage based in Phoenix, Ariz. A self-professed "man with a blogging problem" and "social media fanboy," Thompson founded the real estate blog Phoenix Real Estate Guy in May 2005. Inman News recognized the blog as the most innovative real estate blog of 2009. Thompson is a frequent speaker at real estate conferences and is licensed to teach continuing... education classes on social media marketing and prospecting in the state of Arizona.

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  • ONLINE - BLOGGING, SOCIAL MEDIA

    Jeff Turner

    Jeff Turner

    President
    Zeek Interactive

    Jeff Turner is the president and chief operating officer of Zeek Interactive and RealEstateShows.com, and a popular tech and online strategist. Zeek Interactive develops websites and games as marketing vehicles for clients. Real Estate Shows, which helps agents and brokers create virtual tours from still photos, is one of the company's proprietary products. Turner has more than 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur.

  • TECHNOLOGY

    Steven H. Berkowitz

    Steven H. Berkowitz

    CEO
    Move Inc.

    Steve Berkowitz was named the CEO of Realtor.com operator Move Inc. in January 2009, having been appointed to the company's board of directors in June 2008. Berkowitz came to Move from Microsoft Corp. where as senior vice president of the Online Services Group he ran the company's online business group, which includes MSN.com, MSNTV and MSN Internet Access programming, advertising sales, business development and marketing for Live Platform, MSN and Windows... Live. Before joining Microsoft in May 2006, Berkowitz was CEO of online search engine Ask Jeeves from January 2004 until August 2005, when the business was sold to IAC/InterActiveCorp. Ask Jeeves was renamed IAC Search and Media, and Berkowitz served as its CEO until May 2006.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Louis Cammarosano

    Louis Cammarosano

    General Manager
    HomeGain

    Louis Cammarosano joined Emeryville, Calif.-based lead generation and real estate marketing company HomeGain in 2005 as general counsel. He held two other executive-level positions with the company before becoming general manager in May 2006. Cammarosano is a former lawyer for Homestore, predecessor to Realtor.com operator Move Inc. Before getting his law degree, Cammarosano was a tenured school teacher in New York's South Bronx.

  • TECHNOLOGY

    Pete Flint

    Pete Flint

    Co-founder
    Trulia

    Pete Flint co-founded property search site Trulia in 2005. Since then, the site has grown to become one of the top 10 most-visited real estate websites in the U.S., according to Web metrics firm Hitwise. This year, Trulia added rental search and a rent-vs.-buy index to the repertoire of tools available on its site. The company also updated its iPhone application to include rental and sold listings.

  • TECHNOLOGY

    Marty Frame

    Marty Frame

    President
    Realtors Property Resource LLC

    Marty Frame is the president of RPR LLC, the National Association of Realtors' subsidiary that's providing a parcel-based national property database to NAR members. After launching in 2009, RPR went live this year and is on track to be accessible by nearly 500,000 Realtors by year end. Frame is responsible for RPR's product strategies and business operations. Before moving to RPR as one of the company's founding executives, he was the general manager of... Cyberhomes.com for Fidelity National Financial and Lender Processing Services. A graduate of Yale University, Frame has also served as chief technology officer of Move Inc.'s Realtor.com.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Sami Inkinen

    Sami Inkinen

    Co-founder
    Trulia

    Sami Inkinen co-founded property search site Trulia in 2005. Since then, the site has grown to become one of the top 10 most-visited real estate websites in the U.S., according to Web metrics firm Hitwise. This year, Trulia added rental search and a rent-vs.-buy index to the repertoire of tools available on its site. The company also updated its iPhone application to include rental and sold listings.

  • TECHNOLOGY

    Todd John

    Todd John

    Chief Operating Officer
    Listingbook

    Todd John joined Listingbook, a company that partners with multiple listing services to provide tools connecting agents and their clients online, in 2008. As chief operating officer, John is responsible for company sales and revenue, marketing, customer service, operations and site development. He left an on-demand book publishing company in December 2000 to work at AOL, and served for eight years in various divisions at Time Warner. Listingbook in August... announced it was taking over operations at online real estate search site Cyberhomes.com from LPS Real Estate Group Inc. Earlier this year, Listingbook reported that about 140,000 agents were using Listingbook accounts to serve an estimated 1 million consumers, and the company has partnerships with more than 40 MLSs that, together, represent about 500,000 agents.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Saul Klein

    Saul Klein

    Senior Vice President
    Point2 Technologies

    Saul Klein has 36 years of experience in the real estate industry. He was appointed CEO of Point2 Technologies in December 2007. This year, he led the company through a successful acquisition by Yardi Inc., a software development and technology services company. Klein co-founded Internet Crusade, which operates the RealTown online real estate network and is the course provider for the National Association of Realtors' e-PRO certification program and a... complimentary Web 2.0 and Social Media course for Realtors.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Mark A. Lesswing

    Mark A. Lesswing

    Chief Technology Officer
    National Association of Realtors

    Mark Lesswing is a bona fide techie, whose career experiences include programming robots right out of college (B.S., electrical engineering, Lehigh University) before moving into the field of object-oriented programming. Lesswing has worked for large database vendors like Sybase and Oracle, and started his own consulting business in 1992. Before joining NAR, he spent three years facilitating corporate turnarounds. Lesswing is a regularly featured speaker... at major trade conferences.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Ian Morris

    Ian Morris

    President and CEO
    Market Leader

    Ian Morris led the successful public offering of HouseValues, now known as Market Leader, in late 2004. The company offers online marketing services to real estate professionals and the weak housing market has struck the company hard -- it reported a net loss of $3.4 million in the third quarter. Morris came to HouseValues in 2002 and was promoted to CEO after his first year with the company. Before joining HouseValues, Morris had operated MSN HomeAdvisor,... Microsoft's online real estate business.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Craig Newmark

    Craig Newmark

    Founder, Customer Service Representative
    Craigslist

    Craig Newmark -- the man behind the global network of Craigslist websites -- launched an e-mail list of San Francisco events as a hobby in 1995. The list became a website, the company was incorporated as a for-profit in 1999 and its family of sites -- which offer real estate for-sale and rental listings among a wide range of categories -- now collect over 20 billion page views per month. The site earns revenue from job ads in 18 city areas, New York City... apartment listings and some other ads. There are about 700 local Craigslist sites in 70 countries, and about 50 million U.S. users. Newmark has taken up a number of causes since founding craigslist, supporting the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Donorschoose.org, the Sunlight Foundation and Kiva.org, among others. He also serves on the advisory board for Wikipedia. A self-described nerd, Newmark is a software engineer who spent 30 years working with computers for a range of companies, including IBM and Bank of America.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Sean O'Toole

    Sean O'Toole

    Founder and CEO
    ForeclosureRadar.com

    Sean O'Toole is the founder and CEO of ForeclosureRadar, a site that tracks the foreclosure market in five Western states. O'Toole started his first software company at 18 and remained in the software industry for 15 years before trying his hand at real estate investment. By the time he launched ForeclosureRadar, he had bought and flipped more than 150 residential and commercial foreclosures.

  • TECHNOLOGY

    Steve Ozonian

    Steve Ozonian

    CEO
    RealEstate.com

    Steve Ozonian, a well-traveled real estate veteran who has served in executive roles for Re/Max International Inc., Prudential Real Estate Services, Realtor.com and Bank of America, among others, was hired to serve as CEO for the RealEstate.com division of Tree.com -- parent to LendingTree.com -- in October 2010. Ozonian has seen the real estate industry from many sides during his 25 years in the industry. He had served as CEO and board chairman at Help-U-Sell... Real Estate from 2006 to 2008, resigning from his role amid a management restructuring and financial troubles that resulted in Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. RealEstate.com, Realtors is a brokerage company that operates in about 20 markets and has about 800 sales agents. RealEstate.com also offers Broker Network, a lead-generation program for real estate brokers, and the RealEstate.com site serves as a consumer property-search portal.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Spencer Rascoff

    Spencer Rascoff

    CEO
    Zillow

    Spencer Rascoff, who served as chief financial officer and vice president of marketing when Zillow launched in 2005 and was promoted to chief operating officer in October 2008, stepped into the CEO role when co-founders Rich Barton and Lloyd Frink departed from their respective posts as CEO and president in September 2010. Barton, who earlier founded online travel agency Expedia, still serves as executive chairman for Zillow, and Frink, formerly senior... vice president of supplier relations at Expedia, serves as chief strategy officer. Rascoff also worked at Expedia, serving as vice president of lodging, and in 1999 he founded travel company Hotwire.com prior to its acquisition by IAC/InterActiveCorp in 2003. From 1997-99 he worked as an investment banker at Goldman, Sachs & Co., and also had served as an investment professional for Texas Pacific Group.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Greg Robertson

    Greg Robertson

    Founder
    Vendor Alley blog

    Greg Robertson founded Vendor Alley, a blog dedicated to the real estate technology industry, in February 2007. He is also co-founder of W&R Studios, a Web applications software company. The company's apps include real estate social bookmarking site Dwellicious, and online real estate report generator Cloud CMA. In the past, Robertson served as the general manager and vice president of real estate tech company eNeighborhoods. He currently sits of the board... of directors of the Council of MLS, a trade group for MLS providers.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    James Saccacio

    James Saccacio

    CEO
    RealtyTrac

    Since joining RealtyTrac as chairman and CEO in October 2000, James J. Saccacio has built the company from a local provider of foreclosure data to the nation's leading online foreclosure marketplace, with more than 1.5 million foreclosure properties attracting more than 3 million unique monthly visitors. Before joining RealtyTrac, Saccacio was the principal of the Transition Management Group (TMG), a turnaround specialty firm, where he managed the successful... turnaround of a $75 million consumer products company. He began his career at Bank of America as one of 50 undergraduates selected to receive accelerated training, rising to assistant vice president in the corporate banking division. Saccacio holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting and finance from Southern Methodist University and an MBA from the University of California, Irvine.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Errol Samuelson

    Errol Samuelson

    President
    Realtor.com

    Errol Samuelson has served as president of Realtor.com since February 2007 and was appointed chief revenue officer of Move Inc., the website's parent company, in May 2009. Samuelson has been with Move Inc. since 2003, where he previously served as president of Top Producer Systems, a Move subsidiary. Prior to Move, Samuelson was director of sales, marketing and product management at GTE Enterprise Solutions.

  • TECHNOLOGY

    Steve Schultz

    Steve Schultz

    Director, Finance and Real Estate (former)
    Yahoo Inc.

    Steve Schultz had served as director of finance and real estate for search giant Yahoo until late 2010, seeing through the formation of an advertising alliance between Yahoo Real Estate and Zillow that allows Zillow to manage for-sale property listings on both sites and supplies Yahoo with Zillow's "Premier Agent" advertising platform. In August, Yahoo Real Estate overtook Realtor.com as the most-visited real estate website for the first time in the three-year... history of monthly data gathered by Web metrics firm Experian Hitwise, that company reported in September. Schultz had previously served as director of product management at Active Decisions, a company that produced software for retailers and banks, and he was director of product marketing at Epiphany, a tech company offering customer relationship management and automated marketing tools.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Sam Sebastian

    Sam Sebastian

    Director, Local and Business-to-Business Markets
    Google Inc.

    Sam Sebastian, who has led Google's local and business-to-business markets' direct sales and service organizations in North America for the past four years, assists a range of local business types, including real estate brokerages, in using Google's advertising platform. He previously worked for Classified Ventures LLC, a tech venture launched by collaborating newspaper companies, as general manager for search site Homescape.com, and senior vice president... of sales and marketing at real estate lead-generation and marketing company HomeGain. Sebastian had earlier also served as a consultant for Arthur Andersen in Chicago. Sebastian was a featured speaker during Google's Think Real Estate 2010 event for real estate marketers, which was held in New York City in October.

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  • TECHNOLOGY

    Anant Yardi

    Anant Yardi

    President
    Yardi Systems Inc.

    Anant Yardi launched a startup software venture in 1982 that has since grown to over 1,600 employees working in 20 offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. The company has a headquarters in Santa Barbara, Calif. In 1984, the company's first program, "Basic Property Management," which ran on an Apple II computer, was sold to brokerage company Sabaco Realtors. The company's client list now exceeds 20,000 companies, which collectively represent... about seven million residential units and 7 billion square fee of commercial space, the company has reported. Yardi made some big plays for real estate tech companies in 2010, acquiring real estate data company PropertyShark.com and Point2 Technology Inc. PropertyShark.com offers volumes of information, down to the parcel level, on a range of properties in select markets across the nation, while Point2 offers real estate software, marketing, website and syndication tools, and software and software and online tools for the heavy equipment industry. Prior to launching Yardi Systems, Yardi worked for Burroughs Corp., now Unisys.

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  • TRADE ORGANIZATIONS, MLSs

    Russ Bergeron

    Russ Bergeron

    CEO
    Midwest Real Estate Data LLC

    Russ Bergeron is known as a leader in fostering technological innovation in the multiple listing service industry. Bergeron joined Chicago-based Midwest Real Estate Data LLC (MRED), one the largest MLSs in the country, at the end of May 2010. Before his move to MRED, Bergeron had been the founding CEO for the Southern California Multiple Listing Service (SoCal MLS) since 1993. He was instrumental in the formation and growth of California Real Estate Technology... Services (CARETS), a data aggregation service comprised of more than 100,000 real estate professionals from nine MLSs in Southern California.

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  • TRADE ORGANIZATIONS, MLSs

    Art Carter

    Art Carter

    CEO
    California Regional Multiple Listing Service Inc. (CRMLS)

    Art Carter is the CEO of the newly created California Regional Multiple Listing Service Inc. (CRMLS). CRMLS is the result of a merger of the California Association of Realtors' calREDD MLS system and the Pomona, Calif.-based Multi-Regional Multiple Listing Service Inc. (MRMLS). Carter had served as CEO of MRMLS since August 2005. A strong advocate for data standards and data aggregation, Carter serves on the boards of the Council of Multiple Listing Services,... California Real Estate Technology Services (CARETS), Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) and the National Association of Realtors.

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  • TRADE ORGANIZATIONS, MLSs

    David Charron

    David Charron

    President and CEO
    Metropolitan Regional Information Systems Inc.

    David Charron has been with Rockville, Md.-based MRIS since January 2001, having managed several organizations that provided information systems to real estate professionals from 1980 to 1997. In addition to overseeing MRIS's operations and maintaining communications with the board of directors and shareholders, Charron is chairman of the MRIS Investment Committee, serves as a director of the Realtors Federal Credit Union, and is a member of the NAR MLS... Policy Committee. Before joining MRIS, Charron was the president of Net Input, an Internet-based business consulting practice serving Fortune 500 clients in apparel, media, sports and real estate.

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  • TRADE ORGANIZATIONS, MLSs

    Craig Cheatham

    Craig Cheatham

    President and CEO
    The Realty Alliance

    Craig Cheatham, president and CEO for The Realty Alliance since 2006, served as CEO for the Association of Real Estate License Law Officials, an organization for real estate regulators, from 1998-2006. The Realty Alliance is a network of large real estate brokerage companies in the U.S. and Canada. Among its board members are Lawrence F. Flick IV, chairman and CEO for Prudential Fox & Roach Realtors; Robert Sibcy, president of Cincinnati's Sibcy Cline,... Realtors; and Robert Moline, president and chief operating officer for HomeServices of America Inc. From 1991-98 Cheatham served as assistant executive vice president for the Alabama Association of Realtors.

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    Vicki Cox Golder

    Vicki Cox Golder

    2010 President
    National Association of Realtors

    A 37-year industry veteran, Vicki Cox Golder was the 2010 president of the National Association of Realtors. Golder has been on the association's board of directors since 1993 and a trustee of NAR's political action committee since 2002. In the past year, NAR successfully lobbied Congress to extend the federal homebuyer tax credits and to extend the national flood insurance program for another year. NAR also launched homeownership site HouseLogic and national... property database Realtors Property Resource.

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    Gerard N. 'Jerry' Giovaniello

    Gerard N. 'Jerry' Giovaniello

    Chief lobbyist and senior vice president, government affairs
    National Association of Realtors

    As chief lobbyist and senior vice president of government affairs for the National Association of Realtors, Gerard N. "Jerry" Giovaniello manages the association's government affairs staff of approximately 50 people in Washington, D.C. He also serves as NAR's lobbyist for members of Congress from California, Washington, Nevada, Hawaii and Oregon. After winning an extension of the homebuyer tax credit in 2009, NAR focused much of its efforts in 2010 on... the problems homebuyers face in obtaining mortgages. To further its members' interests, NAR played an active role in the 2010 elections, racking up more than $6 million in independent expenditures on behalf of incumbents who have supported the group's causes in the past. Giovaniello has firsthand knowledge of how things work on Capitol Hill, having served as chief of staff for two California Congressman from 1972-81.

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    Bob Hale

    Bob Hale

    CEO and President
    Houston Association of Realtors

    Bob Hale first came to the Houston Association of Realtors in 1973 as the association's legal and legislative counsel. He has been HAR's CEO and president since 1988. A champion of technological advances within the association and its multiple listing service, Hale won the Inman News Innovator of the Year Award in 2008. HAR's Realtor Match tool, which allowed consumers to search for Realtors based consumer ratings and transaction history, won this year's... Innovator Award for Most Innovative Web Service.

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    James 'Jim' Harrison

    James 'Jim' Harrison

    President and CEO
    MLSListings Inc.

    In 2007, Jim Harrison facilitated the consolidation of two multiple listing service organizations -- RE InfoLink and Central Valley MLS -- in Northern California to create MLSListings. Harrison then became president and CEO of the Silicon Valley-based company, which now serves nearly 18,000 subscribers and 6,000 firms. Before joining RE InfoLink as CEO in May 2005, Harrison held three executive positions at the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors... over a period of 10 years and was CEO of North Texas Information Systems for five years. Harrison is currently an adviser for Realtors Property Resource and is a member of the Alliance of Chief Executives.

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    Karen Kage

    Karen Kage

    CEO
    Realcomp II Ltd.

    Karen S. Kage has been the CEO of Farmington Hills-based Realcomp II Ltd., Michigan's largest Realtor-owned multiple listing service, since 1998. Kage first entered the world of real estate more than 30 years ago as a statistical typist at a local board of Realtors, when property information was manually typed onto the backs of listing photo cards, which were the vehicles brokers and agents used to share listing information. Throughout the years, Kage... has held many positions that allowed her to experience firsthand many facets of the real estate industry as it evolved. At Realcomp, she supervises a staff of 35 who provide MLS and real property data-related services to nearly 11,000 Realtor members.

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    Teresa King Kinney

    Teresa King Kinney

    CEO
    Miami Realtors

    Teresa King Kinney is CEO of Miami Realtors, which with more than 23,000 members is the largest local Realtor association in the nation. As CEO of the Realtor Association of Greater Miami and the Beaches (RAMB), Kinney helped lead negotiations that led to the association's merger with the Realtor Association of Miami-Dade County (RAMDC) this year. Kinney has more than 30 years' experience in Realtor association management, and has written a number of articles... and presented seminars on the topic at state, national and international association meetings across the U.S., Latin America, France, Spain and Russia.

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    Joel Singer

    Joel Singer

    Executive Vice President
    California Association of Realtors

    Joel Singer has led the California's statewide Realtor association since 1989. He joined the group in 1978 and has served as its chief economist and led its public affairs department. He helped to developed CAR for-profit subsidiary Real Estate Business Services Inc. and is president and CEO of zipLogix, a real estate technology subsidiary of REBS that offers electronic real estate forms and a transaction management system. The California Association of... Realtors' board of directors in June approved the merger of the association's calREDD multiple listing service system with Pomona, Calif.-based Multi-Regional MLS Inc., creating California Regional Multiple Listing Service Inc.

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    Steven Spinola

    Steven Spinola

    President
    Real Estate Board of New York

    Steven Spinola has served as president for the Real Estate Board of New York, a trade association with about 12,000 members, since 1986. The powerhouse organization, more than 100 years old, represents a range of real estate professionals, including builders, brokers, managers, banks, insurance companies, pension funds, real estate investment trusts, attorneys, architects and others. The organization maintains a property listings portal for its members... and regularly publishes public housing market reports. Spinola previously served as president for New York City's Public Development Corp.

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    Dale Stinton

    Dale Stinton

    CEO
    National Association of Realtors

    Dale A. Stinton was named a 2010 Innovator of the Year by Inman News for his role in keeping the National Association of Realtors at the forefront of technological change. Under Stinton's leadership, NAR launched Realtors Property Resource, a national property database that went live in September. Other significant milestones during Stinton's five-year tenure as CEO include the creation of NAR's "Game Changer" program, which provides grant funding to innovative... Realtor association initiatives, and the formation of NAR's technology incubator and venture capital fund, Second Century Ventures LLC. Stinton also serves as president Second Century Ventures, which last year purchased a 5.4 percent stake in electronic signature services provider DocuSign. On the political front, under Stinton NAR successfully lobbied lawmakers to keep banks from offering real estate brokerage services, and to provide tax credits for homebuyers.

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    Lawrence Yun

    Lawrence Yun

    Chief Economist
    National Association of Realtors

    As chief economist and senior vice president of research for the National Association of Realtors, Lawrence Yun not only directs NAR's research activity but provides commentary on real estate market trends for the news media and NAR members. Yun, who has worked for NAR for a decade, oversees NAR's forecasts and participates in many economic forecasting panels, including Blue Chip and the Harvard University Industrial Economist Council. USA Today has listed... Yun as one of the nation's top 10 economic forecasters, based on an analysis by the Atlanta Federal Reserve of predictions made by 37 economists. Before coming to NAR, Yun worked as an economic consultant to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the U.S. Department of Education.

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