44th Annual Excellence Awards Honors 2021 Top Agents

Colorado’s largest Realtor® awards event commemorated industry leader achievements in a live, in person program at the Grand Hyatt Denver.

March 9, 2022

Download list of winners here

DMAR hosted its 44th Denver Metro Association of Realtors® Excellence Awards event on March 9, 2022. The annual event, held in person this year at the Grand Hyatt Denver, is the summit of real estate achievement in metro Denver recognizing the highest-performing and most inspiring Realtors® and industry leaders from 2021.

With winners across 10 different categories, and over 25 awards given out, highlights of the event included the special awards given in the following categories: Lifetime Achievement Award, Broker Manager of the Year, Realtor® of the Year, Industry Partner of the Year, Rookie of the Year, Support Person of the Year, Top Project Awards, Top Producers, Top Office Awards as well as those dedicated to Community Service efforts.

“The Excellence Awards is a monumental event for the Denver area’s residential real estate industry and we are thrilled that this year we could return to a sense of normalcy with an in-person event,” said Milford Adams, DMAR’s Chair of the Board. “2021 was another crazy year for real estate, and anyone who is raising the bar, putting in the work and redefining the definition of excellence in real estate, especially in such a demanding seller’s market, deserves more than ever to be recognized and acknowledged in a celebratory setting.”

Serving as co-emcees were Scott Peterson, General Counsel for the Colorado Association of RealtorsR® as well as a real estate attorney and licensed Realtor® for more than 20 years, alongside Damian Cox, founder of Cox Education, LLC, which offers a wide variety of state-approved real estate broker continuing education courses, and a Denver real estate attorney and veteran agent for over 20 years.

“With 950 submissions, this was a record year for Excellence Award applicants, which really speaks to both agents and teams resolve to provide world-class client service no matter the complexities of our current times,” stated Nobu Hata, CEO of DMAR. “2021 remained another challenging year in the market and reminded us of the resolve and dedication that Denver real estate agents and teams make in order to help others. On behalf of the Association, my team and I applaud our Realtor® members on their success this year.”

SPECIAL RECOGNITION AWARD WINNERS

Oliver Frascona Lifetime Achievement Award: This year’s prestigious Oliver Frascona Lifetime Achievement Award was given to Julie Hummel, Broker Associate and co-founder of Kentwood Cherry Creek. Julie has been a leader, engaged in her community and licensed Realtor® for over 40 years and was an active member of the Denver Board of Realtors®, serving as a member of the Board before going on to serve as President. She was appointed NAR Federal Political Coordinator to Congresswoman Diana DeGette in 1997 and has been reappointed every two years since then. She has always been an RPAC investor and actively recruits other Realtors® to invest. Julie has always taken the industry seriously and been a successful small business owner. She co-founded Preferred Properties, Moore Preferred Properties and Kentwood Cherry Creek. All are success stories, and she helped many brokers become successful while giving her clients first class service all the way.

Broker Manager of the Year: Shyla Rogers won Broker Manager of the Year as the Vice President Managing Broker of LIV Sotheby’s International Realty, DTC office serving all of Metro Denver. As a Denver Business Journal 40 Under 40 nominee, Shyla advocates with compassion, tenacity and dedication – the very traits that led her office of 65+ brokers to benchmark sales topping over $1 billion in 2020. The feat was a personal best for Shlya and also a company record. Shyla brings with her an extensive background in real estate, including being named a top 100 Managing Broker and earning the prestigious President’s Council Award in 2018 at her previous firm, SIR parent company, Realogy. From desk support to transaction manager, office administrator to buyer’s agent, Shyla understands the inner workings of a successful brokerage. As a dedicated managing broker, Shyla works hard to connect with her agents and their specific needs, so she can best support them in a customized way. She finds great fulfillment in taking experienced brokers to the next level and partnering with them to build a distinct set of actions to achieve winning outcomes. Shyla creates more than a business plan with her agents—she helps them curate a career path.

Realtor® of the Year: Jill Schafer of Kentwood Real Estate Cherry Creek, has served on, and formerly chaired, the DMAR Market Trends Committee since 2014. Her commitment to service, knowledge of Denver and tireless work ethic earned her over $15 million in sales in 2021. Every year, she remains a top producer at Kentwood Real Estate in addition to all of her volunteer and community work. She has been named one of the top 25 agents at Kentwood Real Estate in 2020 and was also named on the list of top Colorado agents by volume by REALTrends in 2019. She is also a multi-year winner of the DMAR Excellence Awards and a multi-year winner of 5280 Magazine's Five Star Real Estate Award. Less than three percent of Denver Metro agents have received the Five Star Award as many times as she has. She is honored that her past clients nominate her year after year for providing the highest level of overall customer satisfaction. Jill is also a certified Negotiation Expert and Relocation Specialist, and is very engaged with her local community and excels in finding the best fit for her clients' housing as well as finding the best community for their lifestyle.

Industry Partner of the Year: Andrew Sams is the founder of Alpine Building Performance, LLC, a home inspection and home energy auditing company serving the Denver Metro area. Andrew was awarded this honor because of his commitment to show up and provide both his time and fiscal resources for DMAR’s Young Professionals Network (YPN) community service endeavors. He is integral in supporting DMAR with his willingness to step in and sponsor YPN and DMAR events. He has been an integral partner to Extreme Community Makeover, DMAR’s New Development Insider Projec, and Lunch with an Icon. Alpine Building Performance’s focus is built on educating and helping home buyers navigate the physical aspects of buying a property, and helping homeowners get the most out of their dwelling. Utilizing his and his team's knowledge of building science and home performance, they are positioned to offer their clients the added value of helping to ensure a healthy, comfortable and energy-efficient home.

Rookie of the Year: Alison Vuijsters of HK Real Estate was awarded Rookie of the Year for how quickly she became a go-to for new agents in the office with her soft support and quick ability to help others. In her first year, Alison has taken on a mentor role in the HK Real Estate office. She helps support the new agents by scheduling time with them and sharing best practices. Alison goes above and beyond with her continuing education;not only does she take the recommended courses she builds her skills by taking other courses to improve her knowledge in the industry, which proved effective as her total sales production in 2021 equaled $9.9 million.

Support Person of the Year: Colby Miller serves as Transaction Manager at 8z Real Estate, Denver Central Office. She is awarded Support Person of the Year as her team nominated her for her endlessly welcoming and comfortable attitude that she gives and creates for all agents who use the office. This goes beyond the agents she works with directly. If an agent is struggling with a program, piece of technology or where to get lunch she'll have answers on hand for them. With the agents she works with directly, she sets out to help them with every element of their business within her scope. Her foundation is rooted in consistency, so that others know they can rely on her. She understands that they are balancing a wide variety of tasks at any time, and wants to be the one point of contact for them on as many facets of business as possible. Colby is always trying to expand her understanding of contracts and language, along with the nuances of a transaction, to be able to help her team as much as possible.

Community Service Award: Bob Bell of Mile Hi Property was awarded the Community Service Award for his contributions to eliminating hunger in the Denver Metro area. Bob is the founder and a member of the Executive Board of a non-profit called Food for Thought in the Metro Denver area, which strives to eliminate weekend hunger for children in Denver by providing food PowerSacks for the weekend because they believe that no child should go hungry. Each PowerSack has 10-15 items, enough to feed a family of four two meals. Each week, hundreds of volunteers help pack and deliver PowerSacks to the schools they serve across Denver. The schools they serve are where 90 percent or more of the student population is eligible for free and reduced lunch programs. These schools are known as "Title One," which means an annual income for a family of four is less than $29,000 per year. Bob was also the recipient of the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) Good Neighbor Award for his work and he was recognized at the NAR conference in San Diego in November 2021. In addition to his fine work with the Food for Thought organization, Bob is a strong producer and long-time DMAR Realtor® who has spoken to other members at events about his organization and charitable efforts.

TOP INDIVIDUAL AWARD WINNERS

Individual | $ Sales Production

Anne Dresser Kocur, LIV Sotheby's International Realty, DTC
Gina Lorenzen, Kentwood Real Estate DTC
Mckinze Casey, LIV Sotheby's International Realty, Cherry Creek
Brianna Springer, Madison & Company Properties, Greenwood Village
Lori Abbey, Compass, Cherry Creek Office

Individual | Number of Transactions

Brianna Springer, Madison & Company Properties, Greenwood Village
Anne Dresser Kocur, LIV Sotheby's International Realty, DTC
Madison Kissel, Compass, Cherry Creek Office
Lori Abbey, Compass, Cherry Creek Office
Leo Rowen, RE/MAX of Cherry Creek

TOP PARTNERSHIP AWARD WINNERS

Partnership | $ Sales Production

Ian Wolfe & Chris Bouc, LIV Sotheby's International Realty, Cherry Creek
Liz Richards & Deviree Vallejo, LIV Sotheby's International Realty, Cherry Creek
Peter Blank & Carmelo Paglialunga, milehimodern
Trish Bragg & Maggie Armstrong, LIV Sotheby's International Realty, Cherry Creek
Danielle Davis & Ryan Mogan, First Summit Realty

Partnership | Number of Transactions

Chris Harvey & Debra Guy, RE/MAX of Cherry Creek
Liz Richards & Deviree Vallejo, LIV Sotheby's International Realty, Cherry Creek
Danielle Davis & Ryan Mogan, First Summit Realty
Peter Blank & Carmelo Paglialunga, milehimodern
Robyn Phipps & Lauren Hardin, Compass, Cherry Creek Office

TOP TEAM AWARD WINNERS

Team | $ Sales Production

The Behr Team of LIV Sotheby's International Realty, DTC
Be1 Team of Compass, Cherry Creek Office
Nostalgic Homes Group of Compass, Cherry Creek Office
Griffith Home Team of RE/MAX Professionals
The Ribble Group, Williams Realty DTC

Team | Number of Transactions

Be1 Team of Compass, Cherry Creek Office
Griffith Home Team of RE/MAX Professionals
Nostalgic Homes Group of Compass, Cherry Creek Office
Team Fontyn, Realtors® Extraordinaire of Coldwell Banker Realty, North Metro Office
The Ribble Group: Gaye Ribble of Keller Williams Realty DTC

TOP PROJECT AWARD WINNERS

Project | $ Sales Production & Number of Transactions