Jon has owned, operated, educated, managed and practiced real estate his entire career. His volunteer time with REALTOR® associations has made him one of a kind...

Volunteering through committee levels to the board levels does not only make him a good REALTOR® but an advocate for the entire real estate industry.

• Serves on National Association of Realtors® Professional Standards Committee
• Serves on the Arizona Association of Realtors® (AAR) Professional Standards Committee
• Serves as a Professional Standards Mediator for AAR
• Serves on AAR Risk Management Committee 2014-
• Serves on the Education Advisory Committee for Arizona Department of Real Estate (ADRE)
• Certified GRI Instructor
• Certified AAR Ethics Instructor for National Association of Realtors (NAR)
• Owner DSRE Consulting Group
• Served on AAR Business and Technology Committee 2019
• Served on AAR Purchase Contract Sub-group which revised the current Residential Purchase Contract
• Served on the AAR Risk Management Data/Cybersecurity Task Force 2018
• Co-chaired the ADRE Distance Learning CE Workgroup 2018
• Served on the SAAR Broker Mastermind group 2016-2019
• Served on AAR HOA Addendum Task Force Committee 2014
• Served on AAR Purchase Contract Task Force-revised the Purchase Contract re TRID requirements 2014

Tara Rutkowski is a licensed REALTOR® with a specialty in solar.  Along with her GREEN designation with NAR, she has nine years of previous experience working in the solar industry.  Her experience with solar includes, but is not limited to, sales, the installation process, permitting, utility interconnection, and a full understanding concerning APS/SRP billing.  She is a certified instructor with the Arizona Department of Real Estate teaching classes on solar and how it relates to a real estate transaction.  She also served on the AAR workshop to create the Solar Lease and Loan Addendum released in 2017.  It is her goal to equip agents with the knowledge and tools necessary to handle a real estate transaction involving solar.

Butch Leiber is the owner of Draw A Door Business Coaching and is a Managing Broker with Realty Executives. He also leads their Executive Launch Program. Licensed since 2002, Butch has devoted his career to learning the real estate business and the market and sharing that knowledge with other agents. Butch serves on the Board of Directors of AAR, Phoenix Realtors® and ARMLS. With his background in training and technology (GoDaddy, HOTT, DSC) Butch's classes are informative, interactive and occasionally fun.

Karen Kay has been a full-time Real Estate agent since 1994 servicing the Phoenix area. Karen is an agent with Desert Fairways Realty and is an ADRE Certified CE Instructor at Desert Sage Seminars. She loves working one on one with real estate agents to help them become more confident.

ABR, CRS, e-Pro, GRI, LTG, PMN

Arizona Association of REALTORS® Director 1998,2002,2009,2010

Arizona Association of REALTORS® GRI workgroup 2006-2014

A graduate of the SEVRAR Leadership Program 2007

Arizona Association of REALTORS® GRI Chairperson 2009 - 2010

Arizona Association of REALTORS® Risk Management- Sub-Workgroup member for the Purchase Contract 2017

WOMEN'S COUNCIL REALTORS®:

Women's Council REALTORS® Entrepreneur of the Year 2010

Women's Council REALTORS® Southeast Valley President 1998

Southeast Valley WCR REALTORS® of the Year 1997

Women's Council REALTORS® Arizona State President 2002

Tom has been a real estate professional for many years and had held many roles. He enjoys working in real estate as well as giving back to the industry.

Owner/Broker, Long Realty Platinum Premier 2006-2021, General Manager, Associate Broker Keller Williams High Desert Realty 2003-2006, General Manager, Re/Max Professionals  2002-2003, General Manager, Prudential Arizona Properties  2001-2002,
Vice President, Branch Manager, Coldwell Banker Success Realty 1997-2001, Vice President, Regional Manager, Prudential Arizona Realty 1994-1997, Vice President, Regional Manager, Prudential Arizona Realty 1994-1997, Vice President, Branch Manager, Prudential Arizona Realty 1990-1994, TDN Consulting 2000-2001

VOLUNTEER: President of the Scottsdale Association of Realtors®, Executive Member of the Board of Directors for the Arizona Association of Realtors®, Chair of the Information Management Key Result Area-Arizona Association of Realtors®, Certified Facilitator, Pacific Institute, Certified Facilitator, Seven Habits for Highly Successful People, First Things FirstNational Association of Realtors®,Delegate Body/AAR Board Member, Accredited Instructor-Arizona Department of Real Estate
 

Gary has been in the real estate business since 1973.  The first 17 years in commercial real estate specializing in shopping center leasing and development.  In 1990 he started his residential real estate career and two years later became an assistant manager and then Branch Manager with Coldwell Banker Real Estate.  He has served on several committees with the Arizona Association of Realtors, Phoenix Association of Realtors and Scottsdale Area Association of Realtors.  In 2002 Gary left real estate for a brief time helping grow a national nonprofit credit counseling company.  Gary continued training and coaching real estate agents on his return to residential real estate in 2010.  From 2013 until September 1, 2022, he was a regional real estate instructor for a Coldwell Banker Real Estate, training new licensees on how to effectively begin their real estate career and also train experienced agents on how to take their real estate careers to the next level.

Gary began teaching Continuing Education real estate classes for licenses in 1995.  For the last nine years he has taught well over 400 CE classes and over 200 classes on effective sales training.  A motivational junkie, he wants to help all real estate agents live an exceptional life!

I got started in real estate activities in 2000 when I joined an investment group that bought and flipped properties. In 2004, having a thirst for how a real estate transaction took place I took my pre-licensing education at ASREB in Old Town Scottsdale where I earned my real estate license. My focus at that time was on purchasing snowbird rentals in Old Town Scottsdale and later selling them. After a brief period of being inactive I decided to reactivate my license in 2010. I joined a team of 4 realtors. My focus initially was on buyers then later to include sellers in active adult communities (age restricted communities), located in the west valley. In 2020, I started representing buyers in the greater Sedona, Verde Valley area.

Over the years I have earned several designations starting with BPOR, then SRES, RSPS and ABR. Completed the Advanced Loan Officer program in 2007. In 2018 I became a license CE Instructor.

I am a member of NAR (2004), WEMAR (2010) now WeSERV and SVVAR (2020). I served as Lt. Commander attached to Naval Intelligence flying a RA5 over the skies of Vietnam and Cuba.

Mark is a 22-year real estate veteran and the designated broker for UBI Business Brokers. As a real estate educator, he offers an energetic and entertaining experience peppered with real estate tidbits, current trends and recent headlines presented with a light showman’s touch.

Jana has combined her 18+ years experience in the property insurance claims industry and passion for real estate by creating a class to educate commercial and residential real estate agents about environmental hazards in properties.  As a REALTOR since 2007, she has become a resource for those who have questions regarding mold, asbestos and radon.  She began her career by housing home owners who had been displaced by fire, flood and other disasters.  She has a unique view of what home ownership means to people. She has been a board member for the AICA (Arizona Insurance Claims Association) for the last 4 years and was a featured speaker at the Western Region PLRB (Property & Liability Resource Bureau) in 2016.  She also coaches sales people and companies on how to connect with prospects so that they can close more business.

Sheila Long is the VP/Regional Sales Executive for Old Republic Exchange for the Southwest and Mountain States Regions. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Studies from Arizona State University and has a Certificate of Achievement in Speech-Communication. Sheila has over 20 years of real estate experience in diverse roles working in both the residential and commercial real estate.

She is also an affiliate of several Realtor Associations and is an active member in the Commercial Real Estates Services Committee for the Scottsdale Association of Realtors, and a board member of Central AZ CCIM Chapter. Sheila enjoys spending her time teaching and educating regarding the 1031 Exchange process, which includes classes with Realtors, Escrow Agents, CPAs, and Board Associations.

She takes pride in personally spending time with each of her clients to assure they understand the process from start to finish.

A little about Julie Goldammer – She developed a love for process and a reputation for being a detail "nerd" early on in her career.

Julie has a background and degree in Computer Science, and worked as an Engineer for the HVAC division of a large building automation company WAY back before the birth of internet. For nearly 30 years since, Julie has been working in and around the Real Estate industry, including 10 years in Cancun, Mexico in timeshare sales - where she helped them establish the first online Legal & Compliant timeshare sales application. This included coordinating with the Real Estate departments in 37 different states. She's been a full-time practicing Realtor in AZ since 2012. Her friends and clients call her “Aunt Julie”. She wants to acknowledge the great mentors and teachers she had when she began in the real estate business who shared of their knowledge freely. Julie teaches in this industry to pay it forward.

Armed with a born passion for real estate, Kathy started her career over 25 years ago. Kathy is motivated to help Agents reach a higher understanding of the contract and obtain their desired goals of Integrity, Community and Income.

​Education has remained a staple to all who enter and succeed in the Real Estate business, by making a difference in some agents base knowledge, Kathy hopes to impact the lives of each one of their clients home buying experience to the positive.

Chad has been in the Mortgage Industry since 2003. He is a Veteran Loan Officer and has been instructing Realtors with their Continuing Education needs for the last 7 years. Chad is very knowledgeable about ALL the Lending guidelines and has also received his Real Estate License in the past, although it is currently not active.

Chad has over 100 5-Star Testimonials ALL over the Internet from past clients and Realtor partners.  Okun works hand in hand with everyone to make it a pleasant transaction for all parties.  Okun is licensed in 9 states currently and is frequently adding more due to his past clients relocating and wanting to use him for their Home Financing needs.  

Through Okun’s leadership at LeaderOne Financial, he is able to leverage the company’s wide product selection, excellent rates and reputation of closing loans ahead of schedule in order to best serve his clients. Okun is able to utilize in-house processing, underwriting and funding to maintain control throughout the entire transaction process which is critical for success.

Okun’s exceptional communication skills and attention to detail provides clients with a sense of ease and allows them to make the most informed decision surrounding their personal finances. Okun encourages anyone contemplating a home purchase or refinance to contact him, guaranteeing extraordinary customer service every step of the way.

Okun is a Phoenix native and graduated from the University of Arizona. He currently resides in Scottsdale, Ariz. with his beautiful wife, Michelle, and their two children, Jake and Zack.

Erika became licensed in 1997 when she was 24. Her age presented some challenges in the beginning, but she found ways to overcome them and succeed quickly. She has been successful in many capacities of Residential Real Estate while holding many different titles & positions during my career. 

She has been an individual agent, built & managed teams, learned and taught other agents short sales as well as REO/foreclosure processes. In 2008, she earned her Hall of Fame Status within the RE/MAX Organization (The Hall of Fame Award is given to RE/MAX Sales Associates who have earned in excess of $1 Million in paid commissions within the RE/MAX System). Less than 12% of RE/MAX agents hold this accomplishment.

In 2015, she built a signature mentoring program from scratch & helped over 70 brand new licensees launch their careers.  She excels at helping agents (at all levels) find their innate strengths and work to create their own successful businesses.  

She has her Broker’s license and works within eXp Realty as an Associate Broker & Certified Mentor. She was recently approved by ADRE as a Certified CE Instructor with Desert Sage Seminars and looks forward to meeting you in one of her classes soon! 

Yours to Count On,  Erika 

Lynette Kontkanen is a Loan Originator with VIP Mortgage, Inc. Not only does she specialize in the Reverse Mortgage she and her team have over 20 years of experience in helping homeowners achieve their goals of homeownership and navigating home financing and refinancing options. Lynette is a contributing editor to the Real Estate Agent Magazine and Healthy Cells, she has been a guest host on the KTAR radio show and has presented many workshops and seminars to the Senior Communities around the Valley. She is also an accredited instructor with the Arizona Department of Real Estate offering continuing education classes to the Real Estate Community. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Business Management from Colorado State University.

Managing Broker for over 300 Realtors who produce $40 million per month in Residential and Commercial Sales. He regularly assists Realtors with all facets of the transaction, contracts, legal, ethics, finance, disclosure, fair housing, agency and more. Over 20 years of Coaching and business development experience, including the development and sale of start-up companies, Internet and lead generation, lead development and Internet Marketing. He regularly teaches negotiations, comparative market analysis, contracts and general real estate classes to 150+local real estate agents per class for over 15 years. Train the Trainer classes for over 400 Team leaders and Brokers. An active Real Estate Broker, State of AZ. Certified Real Estate Instructor for over 150 classes by ADRE, in Agent Licensing, Broker Licensing and Contract Boot Camp.

Rosie Pollaehne became a Residential Mortgage Loan Officer and Financial Services Expert the old-fashioned way – she started at the beginning, worked hard and gathered expertise. Her path to success began in California during the late 1980’s, where she began her career as a loan funder, then an assistant to highly accomplished loan officer and to now being a highly accomplished Loan Originator. She moved to the Phoenix Arizona area in 1991 where she has built a commanding knowledge of the market and it’s participants and an expansive customer base. Rosie has become a true Industry Leader as demonstrated by her role as a Continuing Education instructor to Real Estate agents in the state of Arizona for the Arizona Department of Real Estate. Rosie is sought after by many Realtors as a partner, expert and problem solver. Call her today to for an evaluation of your needs and be certain you are served by an Expert and Leader!

As a descendant of the Hatfields of the infamous Haftields and McCoys, Desiree’ is no stranger to hard work and determination!  She was a top-producing professional negotiator for a decade, serving many of the major health insurance providers in the US.  She went on to found a national event production company, which garnered her a product line in many major retailers as well as several awards, including Top Up and Coming Entrepreneurs to Watch Out For.  Today, she serves as a mortgage loan advisor with Mason-McDuffie Mortgage Corporation, which offers a wide-variety of mortgage loan product.  If it’s real estate, she can fund it!

Her goals include loving God, loving people, and serving every client above and beyond what is expected.  She believes everyone can be a homeowner and is willing to invest her time, knowledge, and expertise in educating them, walking side by side to fulfill the steps necessary to reach their homeownership goals.  Personally, she is a mother to two wonderful children.  She’s married to a highly educated, highly dedicated, and in her words, “highly good-looking” educator. Her hobbies include singing, DIY construction, and studying history, finance, and politics.  She is a creative and life-long learner at heart.  As your CE instructor, her goal is to make her courses unique, fun, memorable, and most importantly informative with practical information and skills that help real estate professionals serve and protect their clients better.

Lois Cooper is new to the valley but not to Real Estate or Arizona! Licensed since 1998, Broker of Connect Realty.com, Inc. since 2010. Being a Real Estate Professional has always been my highest priority. Volunteering for local Boards, State Risk Management Committee, MLS Standards Committee and being involved in the community has enriched not only my career but my life. I like to share my knowledge, experiences, and expertise with others, becoming a certified ADRE Instructor allows me to share on a new level.

Prior to entering the real estate industry, Nancy taught Home Economics and PhysicalEducation to Jr. High and High school kids atChristian Challenge Academy in Phoenix. When the School budget was cut her classeswere the first to go. So she and her husbandbegan their Real Estate career as “Spouses Selling Houses”.

Nancy has been a full time, full service REALTORsince licensed in 1985. She served on thePhoenix Association of REALTORS Board ofDirectors for ten years and as its Presidentin 2000. She also served on the Board of thePhoenix Chapter, of the Women’s Council ofREALTORS for fifteen years and as its President in 1993 and again in 2001.

Specializing in resort lifestyle living in the MetroPhoenix and Scottsdale areas, Nancy has soldhundreds of second/vacation homes in resortresidential communities around the Valley overher 35 years in the business.

Nancy loves teaching and has been an ADRECertified Real Estate Instructor for over 15 years.In her spare time Nancy has been a volunteertutor in the Oasis Literacy Program at MadisonHeights Elementary School for seventeen yearsand she and her husband have cooked meals monthlyat the House of Refuge, a men’s homelessshelter in Sunnyslope for over ten years.Nancy believes that if you help othersbe successful then it will always come backto you many times over and that hascertainly been true in her life.

Glen is a licensed loan officer with a special focus on VA loans and helping Veterans. He has a passion for teaching whether it be borrowers, teammates, or Realtors. He has over twenty years of experience in the lending industry and has closed 1000’s of loans. He is a member of Military Mortgage Boot camp as well as Veteran Mortgage Advisor, both are paid memberships to groups going out of their way to educate the real estate industry and help Veterans. Glen was born and raised in New England and has resided in the Phoenix area for the last 22 years. In his free time, he enjoys bike riding, hiking, go-kart racing, high performance driving, and hanging out with his family.

Glen's classes have received comments like “very Well Organized”, “You completely changed my mind about VA loans”, “I never knew there were two dispute process for VA appraisals”, and “updated and relevant info to help my buyers and sellers.” This will be engaging, educational and maybe even fun.

Currently an Associate Broker with United Brokers Group after years of owning and managing in the industry. My passion is helping my Clients and mentoring agents to learn & grow their business, repeat that process and improve each time! As a Licensed Instructor I try to share this philosophy with others through education.

“I believe it is important to give back to the industry and leave it a little better for the future – that has been my goal in all of the roles I have taken on.”  My business approach is quite simple in working with my or with other professionals inside of our industry – is to treat people with respect and follow through on commitments and treat folks like I would want to be treated. Over 40 plus years of business experience.
 

• MRE(Master Real Estate)DesignationinStateof AZ.
• Founder SEVRAR Leadership program and Tempe Leadership classVIII graduate. Worked to merge SEVRAR & WeMAR to form WeSERV, 7th largest REALTOR Association in the US with over 23,000 members.
• FPC (Federal PolicyCoordinator for AAR/NAR) for Senator and Congress woman Sinema and have served in the past for others
• Chair in 2021 – Legislative and Political Affairs at ArizonaREALTOR’S & member of Executive Committee
• RVP Region 4 for AAR, Past-President at SEVRAR and Board member & REALTOR OF THE YEAR - 1999 and Past-President at ARMLS; current NAR Director.
• Chair Tempe Parks Board past two years and serviceTempe Police panel

Jim was raised in a real estate household as his dad sold it, owned multiple brokerages, was a homebuilder, and a developer, manager, and investor of apartment and office buildings.

Coming into the business well over 30 years ago in Arizona (and full-time ever since), Jim has spent most of his career running realty brokerages in all disciplines except timeshares.

Having been asked to do his first class for other Realtors after only 6 months from getting his real estate license, Jim has since led lots of sales training and post-licensing continuing education, as well as both salesperson and broker pre-licensing courses.

Jim was invited to teach realty continuing education subjects at multiple private schools and Associations of Realtors in 1996, and to this day he still delights in leading classes on all required categories of renewal hours, but especially so with Broker Management Clinics, Agency, Disclosure, and Fair Housing.

When not engaged in his role as an instructor or designated broker, Jim helps oversee investments in apartments, office space, and vacation rentals for himself and his family in two states and countries, including a working ranch, accommodations, and aviation business in Belize, where he leads up developing and handling sales of a hangar home subdivision.

Tim O’Neall, ACI is the Founder and President of AZ Property Inspections and is a licensed and ASHI Certified Home Inspector. Tim’s company has conducted more than 20,000 inspections in Arizona since 1996. He has a background in Environmental Engineering and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Tim is a well-respected instructor with the AZ Department of Real Estate and has taught thousands of Agents. His high energy and interactive class gives attendees an in-depth understanding of houses.