Chicago real estate firm @properties won five awards at the seventh annual Chicago Agent Magazine Agents’ Choice Awards. The event was held Oct. 24 at The Legacy at Millennium Park.
Chicago-based real estate firm @properties has been named to Inc. magazine’s exclusive Inc. 5000 list of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies again. This marks the sixth time in the last seven years that the firm has been ranked on the Inc. 5000 list. The firm made the Inc. 500 list in 2006, ranking 341st.
@properties was the No. 1 real estate broker in the city of Chicago throughout 2011 with 14.8 percent market share. The company also was the No. 2 brokerage firm in Chicago’s North Shore suburbs with 12.7 percent market share, and was the third largest brokerage firm in the Northern Illinois region (source: BrokerMetrics, LLC). Continue reading
@properties has named Kevin Van Eck, 33, director of agent development. Company co-founders Thaddeus Wong and Michael Golden made the announcement.
Van Eck joined @properties in 2008 as a licensed real estate salesperson. He was an @properties and Chicago Association of REALTORS® Top Producer in 2009, 2010 and 2011. In his new role, he will be responsible for the creation and implementation of educational, training, and business-development initiatives for @properties’ more than 1,100 brokers in the city and suburbs. He will also serve as a performance coach to @properties’ Chicago real estate agents, helping them set and achieve business goals.
“We’re continuously focused on providing agents with the very best services to help them build their business and accomplish their professional goals,” said Wong. “Kevin has dedicated his career to client service, making him a natural fit for this position. He will be instrumental in the ongoing development of our agents and the company as a whole.”
“Kevin is approachable and organized, and is very skilled when it comes to building and maintaining relationships. He also knows what it takes to be a top producer in this industry. All of these qualities will make him a great advisor and resource to our agents,” said Golden.
Prior to joining @properties, Van Eck spent several years in the restaurant industry, working as a managing partner at Corner Bakery Café. He also served in the United States Army and Army Reserve.
Van Eck is also very involved in philanthropy. Since 2009, he has served as president of the executive board of @properties’ Friends and Neighbors Community Fund, a non-profit foundation committed to supporting local charities with an emphasis on education, youth development and housing initiatives.
Van Eck attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Sales are currently underway for home sites in two phases of Sand Creek, a luxury country club community in Chesterton, Ind., by Blueprint Realty Partners, LLC.
Located near the southern shores of Lake Michigan, and less than one hour from downtown Chicago, Sand Creek is a gated custom-home development with 80 percent of its homes – about 250 residences – already completed.
Home sites in The Estates (Phase IV) range from .63 to 1.64 acres and are priced from $89,900 to $143,900. Home sites in Bramble Park (Phase V) range from .22 to .71 acres and are priced from $56,900 to $149,900. Both phases offer a diverse selection of home sites that feature golf course, water, and park views. Continue reading
Thaddeus Wong, co-founder, @properties
Thaddeus Wong, co-founder of Chicago real estate firm @properties, recently received the 2012 Damen Award from Loyola University Chicago’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies.
Named after Loyola University Chicago’s founder, Arnold Damen, S.J., the award recognizes outstanding professional achievement, leadership in the community, and service to others. Loyola University Chicago presents the award annually to one alumnus from each of its schools and colleges.
Wong graduated from Loyola in 1996 and began his real estate career that same year. He quickly established himself as one of the most successful brokers in Chicago, earning four consecutive Golden Eagle Awards from the Chicago Association of REALTORS®. In 2000, he and his business partner, Michael Golden, co-founded @properties. Since then, the company has grown into the largest real estate brokerage firm in Chicago and the No. 2 broker on the North Shore. Currently, the firm is ranked 30th on the REAL Trends 500 list of largest real estate companies in the U.S. Continue reading
Chicago-based real estate company @properties has announced two personnel moves within its fast-growing North Shore division.
Don Shea, 53, has been named vice president of brokerage services in the firm’s Evanston office. In a related move, Peter Moulton, 40, who has managed @properties’ Evanston office since it opened in 2009, is taking over management of the firm’s office in Lake Forest. Moulton is also vice president of brokerage services.
Shea had been a top-producing @properties agent on the North Shore. Now he takes on the task of overseeing the continued growth of the No. 1 real estate office in Evanston, which has market share of 18.26 percent, year to date (source: BrokerMetrics). He will be responsible for recruiting, training, marketing and strategic development.
Shea has more than 30 years of experience in advertising, product development, sales and marketing. He began his career in advertising, working on national accounts at DDB, FCB and Eire Partners in Chicago. Later, he launched his own consultancy and spent two and a half years as a vice president with Chicago-based sporting goods manufacturer, Riddell, Inc. For the past eight years, Shea and his wife, Mindy, have sold real estate on the North Shore, producing more than $250 million in sales volume.
Shea has a bachelor’s degree in English and history from Georgetown University and holds a master’s in management from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.
“As an agent who made the transition to @properties when we were just getting started on the North Shore, Don understands our value proposition as well as anyone. That’s incredibly powerful from a recruiting and training standpoint. He’s a great person to lead our continued growth up here,” said Golden.
Shea is taking over the post formerly held by Peter Moulton, who is moving up the North Shore to @properties’ office in Lake Forest, which opened this past January.
High expectations await Moulton in Lake Forest. He helped build @properties’ Evanston location into the No. 1 office in its market in less than two years. Then, he helped open @properties’ second North Shore location, in Winnetka, and within two years that office was producing more sales than any other single office on the North Shore (BrokerMetrics).
“We see great opportunities for growth in Lake Forest, Lake Bluff and the surrounding area. Peter has played a tremendous role in our expansion in northern Cook County, and he is committed to doing the same in Lake Forest. He continues to be a great mentor and manager to our agents,” said Wong.
Moulton is a past winner of Chicago Agent Magazine’s Agents’ Choice Award for Managing Broker of the Year – Suburbs. He is a lifelong North Shore resident.
Congratulations to @properties co-founder, Michael (Mike) Golden, who received the REALTOR of the Year Award from the Chicago Association of REALTORS.
Mike’s outstanding contributions to the industry landed him this recognition. When acknowledged at last night’s CAR Inaugural Gala, Mike remarked that he shares the award with all REALTORS and especially his business partner, Thaddeus Wong.
“I share this award with my partner, Thaddeus Wong, as well as all of the members of the association who, through hard work and innovation, have kept their businesses moving forward despite the incredible challenges in today’s real estate market,” Mike said.
Mike, a past president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® (2007-2008), was recognized for his outstanding contributions to the industry. In particular, his vision and tenacity have enabled @properties to expand and thrive during a tumultuous time for the nation’s housing and financial markets.
According to the association, the award is the industry’s highest and most coveted honor. In a statement, the association said, “Mike strives to improve client service and position his fellow REALTORS® as the voice of real estate in Chicago. His analytical abilities and entrepreneurial spirit have made @properties one of the city’s top sellers of residential real estate.”
Behind Mike and Thad, Chicago-based @properties accomplished a number of notable achievements over the past year, including opening new offices in Winnetka and Lake Forest; building on its No. 1 market share in the city; surpassing 1,000 agents; and completing sales at a number of Chicago condominium developments including R+D 659, SoNo and Elysian Private Residences.
Photo: Erik Unger for Crain’s Chicago
Has anyone actually made money buying and then selling a home in the past five years?
Crain’s Chicago Business did some digging and digging…and digging, and found a handful of Chicagoans who bucked falling home prices and managed to turn a profit.
@properties’ Jeanine Wheeler and Brooke Vanderbok were there to see it all go down…or up.
Read more on Crain’s Chicago: A fortunate few home sellers defy the real estate slide.