Here at East Valley Real Producers, we have the honor and privilege to talk to REALTORS® from all over the East Valley and to hear their stories. We have the even greater honor and privilege to share a collection of those stories each and every month.

Although we feature many agents throughout the year, it is a distinct pleasure for us to recognize those who have gone — and continue to go — above and beyond for their clients, their teams, and everyone in their life.

Winners were nominated by members of the Real Producer community and chosen based on the 2022 sales numbers as well as community and industry involvement.

Shannon Gillette of the Gillette Group at Real Broker has been a featured guest on many different real estate podcasts over the past few years. “It is such an honor to have these opportunities to talk to the entire industry about how using social media and video can help grow your business,” she enthusiastically shares. Like most of the top REALTORS®, she and her team go above and beyond for their clients and community. They invest close to $60,000 per year into their client appreciation events.

 

Like all agents with a family, she is very familiar with the constant struggle to balance family life and work. As the mother of three young children, the ability to manage that struggle is a feat of its own.

 

Going beyond the real estate business, Shannon and her husband started a non-profit called Purpose Movement where the Gillette Group is one of the main donors. “We took over 300 foster kids living in local group homes on a shopping spree for Christmas and we also take hundreds of foster kids shopping for new shoes before school starts. We also donated $15,000 to the Department of Child Safety’s placement center to help provide a safe place for the kids to go to when they enter foster care.”

 

“I would love to see the Real Estate community raise the bar in the level of service that we provide our clients and also being actively involved in the communities where we sell homes.”

Fueled by drive, commitment, integrity, and creativity, Karl Tunberg with The Midland Team at Hauge Partners simply refuses to accept defeat. In his own words, “Everyone I work with knows my character, and they understand that I will not quit on them.”

 

Raising four children while running his business brings about many challenges that require balance. “My family is the most important thing to me in my life and making sure they are all safe, prospering, and loving life is my first priority.” After his family comes his business and team. Although never as intense as familial relations, many of the demands of the business and team are similar. He is very versed in the difficulties that come from balancing those sources of demands, yet he continues to conquer those difficulties each and every day. “It is very difficult sometimes in balancing the ebbs and flows, but making sure that they know that I have infinite love for them makes it work.”

 

Over the past year, Karl has personally participated in several charities as well as donating money to others. This includes Feed My Starving Children, AAWL, the Cardinals Charities, Homes for Hope, and Christmas Adopt-A-Family. Additionally, he supports local youth sports and school fundraising activities. On top of all that, he adds that he has “been involved with the AAR and NAR through donations to support our local PACs for realtor-friendly legislation.”

 

“I work very hard to deliver a world-class experience for my clients and team. I want everyone I meet to have a better experience in and through my interactions with them in real estate.”

 

 

Brittany Meyer with DPR Realty has worked tirelessly every single day building her business. Since obtaining her real estate license in March 2018, she has worked to forge a business that is organic, referral, and faith-based. “Since my very first closing, I've never wavered from a ‘whatever it takes’ attitude.”

 

Brittany admits that she knew nearly nothing when she first got her license, and she accredits much of her success to those that were there to guide her at the start. “I eagerly sought after the best Training/Mentorship Program that would teach me discipline, techniques, and walk me through the intricacies of a real estate transaction. I was blessed with an incredible mentor and to this day he is a very dear friend.”

 

There is absolutely nothing that Brittany would not do for her clients. After this past year, she is confident that her opportunities to help people have been hand-selected for her. “It takes a certain person to help grieving widows, divorcing spouses, investors, grandparents down-sizing, elderly seniors transitioning to nursing homes, and first-time homebuyers,” she shares.

 

Brittany does what she does because she truly loves to help others and has a heart to serve. In her own words, “When you have a strong faith base, you recognize those opportunities to give back and happily do so.”

 

“Overcoming life’s obstacles can seem like a challenge, but with the right mindset, they are God’s little blessings.”

John Evenson with Expert Collaborative with eXp Realty started his team in 2018. He takes great pride in being with a team of over 45 current members. “We focus on utilizing time and are hyper-focused on the client. There are no wasted time or steps with our style of real estate.”

 

John grew up in a single-wide trailer. He lists various examples of his family’s rough financial situation ranging from frequent evictions to mushrooms growing from the mold in the living room. He moved out when he was 16, promising himself that he would create something great with his life. “I will not be beat. I will outwork anyone and everyone in my path. I will be sure to provide the best to my clients as I know how important that is.” There is no doubt that John has risen far above where he had started, using the circumstances of his childhood as the drive of his determination.

 

He and his team frequently work with various charities. “We work with girl scouts to help the House of Refuge as well as many other organizations like Feed My Hungry Children. We always donate to Unite PHX for Christmas and last year we were able to donate over 1000 toys ourselves to the cause!”

 

“We all work together and understand that what we do is more than just real estate. It’s the way we carry ourselves, how we help the community, how we stand up in hard situations and make the best of it.”

 

 

Michelle Colbert and her team Wood & Rise Real Estate Group with Keller Williams Integrity First Realty always keep the client close and personal. As a team, they never pass a client along to the next “processor.” Each team member keeps with the client and makes sure to handle their needs personally by staying in constant contact throughout the entire transaction.

 

The current team came together in 2022 from the collaboration of two other teams: Rise Real Estate Group (founded in 2018) and The Wood Real Estate Team. As put by the current team, “The merger of two successful teams comes with many challenges and hiccups.” They describe that egos had to be set aside while still managing the merging of staff and clients. They continue on to share how Michelle’s extensive communication, mutual respect, and can-do attitude were an essential part of the combined team’s success over this past year.

 

As the team puts it, they experienced “a complete disruption and change of their systems and process.” Despite all that, they have become even stronger for it.

 

The team spends a significant amount of their time giving back to the community through numerous local charities and events. They are especially proud of and thrilled about an event that they organize themselves called “New Home for the Holidays” where they choose a needy family and flip the home at the team’s own expense.

 

“We have developed into a very cohesive team who has constant communication and a true team effort in all endeavors.”

 

 

 

Tyler Blair and his team, Legacy Real Estate Team with My Home Group, have proven to be a very powerful and cohesive team over the past seven years. Founded in 2016, the Legacy Real Estate Team has fostered and maintained a culture based on the fact that they are a family.

 

After seven years of success, Tyler lists his team’s greatest challenge as responding to the ups and downs of the real estate market, implementing the perfect processes, and finding the right people. Despite these challenges, he and his team have experienced rapid and incredible growth while continuing to maintain their culture of family.

 

“As a leader and entrepreneur, I am extremely passionate about personal and professional growth. I encourage our team to read or listen to something that will help them improve every single day. We also invest in our leadership team and pod leaders by giving them the opportunity to attend industry events.” In addition, they hold a team huddle every Monday morning where they take the time to focus on both professional and personal growth. “We provide our agents with weekly training, masterminds, and script practice.”

 

In addition to providing for his team, Tyler also gives a lot of focus on giving back to the world. “The Legacy Real Estate Team fully funded an orphanage in Vakyapuram, India. This orphanage is a home for 50 children and provides house parents, food and fresh water, clothing, shoes, and schooling.”

 

“Our mission is to build a legacy for generations to come for our clients, our team, and our families.”

 

 

Mindy Jones with the Amy Jones Group brokered by eXp Realty is an amazing team leader. She and her team won Team of the Year back in 2019 after just two years under her leadership. The Impact Leadership Award is designed to recognize those who have won team-related awards in the past, and those who have continued to show excellence in that category, a journey that Jones says she is on to inspire others to have big businesses and big lives as she hustles to raise her young child at the same time as her business has seen explosive growth.

 

Jones has been in the industry for over a decade, and after taking over leadership in 2017, she has grown the business into an all-female owned and operated team that is focused on serving families at a high level through both real estate and community including the nonprofit organization she launched in 2021 called Community on Purpose. As a team leader, Jones is committed to providing a platform for hard working, compassionate, and committed women to achieve financial success through real estate and community.

 

“Our team has always been committed to making our clients feel like family, in fact, our first tagline was that working with us was like working with your best friend — until we realized it’s not always best that people work with their best friends.” They have since changed their tagline to “helping you move forward” and have focused their efforts on helping clients get to the next stage of life.

 

“Our team members are no strangers to personal challenges, just like our clients. Losing a spouse, fertility challenges, even my own divorce – all of these challenges better prepare us to help our clients.”

 

Kenny Klaus of Klaus Team Real Estate Solutions powered by Keller Williams Integrity First Realty has been an outstanding leader in the industry on multiple fronts. He and his team won Team of the Year back in 2018, and he won Innovator of the Year back in 2019. The Impact Leadership Award is designed to recognize those who have won team-related awards in the past, and those who have continued to show excellence in that category.

 

“Consistency has been the key to our sustained success over the years and through so many market shifts,” proudly claims Kenny. He continues to describe how he and his team’s willingness to adapt has been a significant key to their success. “We’ve averaged a home sold a day for 13 years straight and counting, now that’s consistency.” Many challenges in this industry and life come from beyond our control, so, as Kenny puts it, “we work to focus on what we can control.”

 

“We have Klaus Team Cares, our 501c3 Charity, where we donate from every home sold to our charity to be able to give back to our local communities.” This past year, and for many years before that, he and his team have taken care of 88 kids who weren’t going to have a Christmas. All of this just being the tip of the iceberg of the various ways they have given back to the community. They have volunteered at the local food banks and supported Jacob’s Mission, Sunshine Acres, and United Food Bank just to name a few. “In 2022, we collected over 4 tons of food for United Food Bank,” he specifies.

 

“I believe when we work on ourselves first and stop looking out the window but start looking in the mirror, that’s when real lasting change occurs.”

 

 

The key to Kimberly Tocco’s success has always been her tenacity. As a REALTOR® with Kenneth James Realty, she has dedicated herself to matching the correct clients with the correct home. “Each home has an energy, each client and family have an energy, need, and purpose for their move or sale.”

 

“Real estate is not an easy profession and fitting in, and finding the right brokerage was almost my downfall. Yet so many also have been my friends, partners, and colleagues. The industry has changed for the better and now I find it is focused on community and a genuine desire to be one.”

 

In her pursuit of success, she has always had the goal of assisting families who have been through hardships to the start of a new chapter. “During these unpresidential times, it is not enough to just do a good job, we must excel on every level for our clients and our community because we have a huge opportunity to set the example.” To place a dollar value to it, she has given back over a quarter million dollars of her own commission to help her clients.

 

Additionally, Kimberly has blazed a path in the inspirational speaker field. She published a number one best seller, developed her own show and podcast, took many stages, and won multiple awards so that she could bring awareness to the stigma of suicide.

 

“Success is measured by how many lives we change not the transactions or money we make because the only thing we take with us is who we become.”

For Nate Knight with Knight and Associates with ProSmart Realty, it is helping others that brings him happiness in life. “If I am ever having a hard day or hard time, I find an opportunity to go help someone else whether it be a stranger, co-worker, friend, or family member. If I am not helping others, I am not happy.”

 

Nate’s motto is “Work Hard and Be Nice to People.” It is one that he has posted all over his office. “Money and success are a byproduct to putting positive energy back in the world and lucky enough for me, simply helping others whenever I get the opportunity is what I live for.”

 

Throughout this past year, Nate has given back to his community in many ways. For one, he and his team volunteered every quarter at Feed My Starving Children in Mesa where they packed thousands of meals to be sent overseas to impoverished countries. He also successfully helped adopt 116 children for Christmas where members of the community that had the means to help helped to buy gifts that were on each child’s “wish list.” These are just examples of what Nate has done over the past year alone.

 

“This last year I was involved in sitting on different panels at WESERV, Women’s Council of Realtors, and other events hosted at other brokerages. I love these events because it allows me to share my personal experiences in this industry and also share what has worked for me to help others.”

 

“I remain intentional in giving back and providing value to others. My business is not about me but rather everyone else.”