Lake Homes Realty CEO Honored by Auburn University

Lake Homes Realty CEO Glenn S. Phillips has received an Auburn University “Top Tiger” award for the second year in a row.

Auburn University Image with text overlay "2019 Auburn University Top Tiger"

Top Tiger designations are presented by the Raymond J. Harbert College of Business to Auburn alumni who own, lead or have founded successful companies and entrepreneurial ventures.

“Not only do I live by the Auburn creed, but also the members of our team do, too,” said Phillips who graduated with a computer engineering degree from Auburn. “We all believe in work, hard work, and it’s rewarding to have our success recognized by the University.”

To be eligible to receive a Top Tiger honor, alumni-led companies are evaluated on revenue growth over a minimum of four years.

Last year was the first year Lake Homes Realty was eligible for consideration. Both years the brokerage has been named to the list of award-winners in the medium-sized company class, those honorees whose revenue is between $5 million and $35 million.

Lake Homes Realty is one of three real estate brokerages in the Birmingham area named to the list. Fifty Top Tigers were named nationwide.

Other industries represented include landscaping, architecture, dermatology, digital marketing services, insurance and veterinary medicine.

Honorees were recognized at the 2019 Auburn University Entrepreneurship Summit, held March 28-29.

About Lake Homes Realty/LakeHomes.com

Based in Birmingham, Alabama, Lake Homes Realty is a full-service, multi-state real estate brokerage, and the nation’s largest lake-focused real estate company.

Leveraging the power of technology with the power of people, Lake Homes Realty uses data from nearly 100 MLSs to provide the most comprehensive and up-to-date database of lake-access, lakeview and lakefront properties available today through its website LakeHomes.com.

The website also connects home buyer and sellers with lake expert real estate agents who live, and play, in their local markets.

Lake Homes Realty is currently a licensed brokerage in 24 states and is rapidly expanding its market footprint. Most recently, the brokerage opened its first western U.S. operation in Idaho.

Exploring Lake Real Estate: Real Estate Moguls Interviews Lake Homes Realty CEO Glenn S. Phillips

“A gentleman asked me one day ‘Hey, Glenn. I’m thinking about buying a  lake home. We’ve never bought one. What’s the best lake?’ And I said ‘Well  that’s kind of like asking me what’s the best woman. It’s kind of a personal  choice, and if you don’t know which lake you like, you need to date a few’.”

Glenn S. Phillips

There’s no one who knows more about the ins and outs of the lake real estate market than Lake Homes Realty CEO Glenn S. Phillips. That’s why Real Estate Moguls creator Grant Findlay-Shirras caught up with Glenn recently to interview him about the industry.

What made Phillips, after a career in computer engineering, decide to tackle a nationwide niche real estate market? Why is LakeHomes.com built the way it is, and what makes it one-of-a-kind? And how does this brokerage differ from Century 21, RE/MAX, or any of the other well-known brands of today?

Well Findlay-Shirras just got the answers to all your questions. Check out the video below to learn more about the magic that makes Lake Homes Realty possible.

Lake Homes Realty Agent Reaches Half-Billion in Sales

Lake Homes Realty agent Justin Dyar received national recognition for reaching $500 million in lifetime sales during the brokerage’s Sixth Annual National Agent Summit, held October 16-19 in Hoover, Alabama.

In addition to maintaining his “Premier Agent” status for a fifth year in a row, the Smith Lake agent was presented with an exclusive “Rainmaker Award” for unparalleled effort, passion and dedication exhibited throughout his career.

Lake Homes Realty CEO and COO with Justin Dyar

“Since he began his career in real estate, Justin has been one of the most forward-thinking and savvy agents in the entire country,” said Glenn S. Phillips, CEO of Birmingham-based Lake Homes Realty, the nation’s largest lake-focused real estate company.

About Justin Dyar

A graduate of the University of Alabama, where he studied consumer and industrial marketing and computer science, Dyar became a real estate agent in 2003.

Immediately, he moved to Lewis Smith Lake to begin what has become a 15-year career in real estate.

“I chose to go into real estate because I enjoy the ability to control your own schedule, and you are unlimited as far as income and potential growth,” Dyar shared.

In 2013, he joined Lake Homes Realty, becoming the then start-up hybrid web/brokerage’s first boots-on-the-ground agent. Today, Dyar is a Realtor® and Associate Broker for the company.

“Lake Homes Realty is ONLY focused on waterfront properties,” Dyar said on his decision to join the nation’s largest lake real estate brokerage and two-time Inc. 5000 company. “No other company is laser-focused like that.”

Since then, “Mr. Smith Lake,” as he is known to locals, has made appearances on HGTV’s Lakefront Bargain Hunt and in in Top Agent Magazine and has been named the top-producing agent for his local Board of Realtors 12 years in a row, closing more than $90,000,000 last year, alone.

“Justin is the embodiment of our Lake Homes Realty brand,” said Phillips. “His joining our team was one of the first steps in setting this company up for success, and it’s been an honor having him excel right alongside us.”

“No matter the size of the deal, Justin gives every client the same personal attention, ” said Lake Homes Realty COO Doris Phillips. “What makes him a true winner is that he realizes all dreams are equal, and he works his hardest to make them all come true.”

Dyar attributes his achievements to his professional philosophy, which he believes is the key to success in real estate over time.

“Do as you say, and live right,” he said. “You will succeed. And with that in mind, I am looking forward to hitting the $1 billion mark!”

For more information about Justin Dyar, visit him at: https://www.lakehomes.com/alabama/lewis-smith-lake/justin-dyar.

Lake Homes Realty

Lake Homes Realty (www.LakeHomes.com) is a full-service, multi-state real estate company focused on lake homes and land. The two-time Inc. 5000 company is a licensed real estate brokerage in 23 states, including its home state of Alabama, and is expanding rapidly into additional states.

Lake LBJ Agent Recognized as National Agent of the Year 2018

Bruce Jones has been named the 2018 Agent of the Year and Splash Award honoree at Lake Homes Realty’s sixth annual Agent Summit, held October 16-19, 2018 in Hoover, Alabama.

“It’s such an honor to be recognized by our company,” Jones said. “I am especially proud to win this year’s Splash Award because it honors my relationship with the community and the caliber of service I deliver, not just how many properties I sold.”

Lake Homes Realty CEO Glenn S. Phillips and COO Doris Phillips with Bruce Jones

Recognized as the company’s best overall performing agent for the year, Jones also received a “Premier Agent” designation.

Splash Award Criteria

To determine the 2018 Agent of the Year and Splash Award recipient, Lake Homes Realty agents were ranked, relative to each other, for performance in six key areas over a 12-month evaluation period.

These key areas included:

  1. Average number of days from close-to-completed office files
  2. Overall effective commission percentage per side
  3. Total sides closed
  4. Total transaction volume closed in dollar amount
  5. Percent increase of year-over-year transaction volume in dollar amount
  6. Number of listings in MLSs on September 1, 2018

To be eligible for Splash Award consideration, agents were required to have been licensed with Lake Homes Realty for at least 24 months by August 31, 2018, and completed 12 transactions or more between September 1, 2017 and August 31, 2018.

“Agents’ transaction volume also had to be $3.5 million or greater in order to be eligible,” Lake Homes Realty CEO Glenn S. Phillips explained. “This value is based on a property’s sale price, independent from the number of sides represented. Transaction volume also excludes referral transactions.”

Award Scoring

Those agents with the best performance in each of the above areas received a single point, with the next best receiving two points, the third best three points and so forth.

Each area’s points were then totaled to determine the agent with the lowest combined score, who was then named the Splash Award winner and Lake Homes Realty Agent of the Year.

Should more than one agent have had the lowest score, the agent with the highest total transaction volume in the 12-month evaluation period would have won the award.

“Our agents are the very best at what they do. They are the special forces of lake real estate, and each year their expertise and talents continue to impress,” Phillips said. “This year’s Summit was the best yet, and it’s because of the work our agents put in all year long.”

Client Advocacy-Driven Success

This year’s Agent of the Year and Splash award winner is no stranger to hard work. Bruce Jones has been selling real estate in Texas’ Austin area since 2005.

“In a industry as competitive as real estate, being willing to go above and beyond for your clients is what can set an agent apart,” Jones said. “That’s one of the biggest components of my service: being readily available to my buyers and sellers whenever they need me to be.”

Jones continued by adding most of his business revolves around former client referrals and repeat clients. Without the solid relationships he’s built over the last decade, Jones contends he might not have won this year’s Splash Award.

Not only an active member of his community, serving on the local city council, Jones is also a member of the National Association of Realtors, the Texas Association of Realtors and the Houston, Austin and Highland Lakes Association of Realtors.

“Over the next year, I’ll continue to grow my brand as a client-first lake expert by staying up-to-date with the latest industry tech, and by utilizing the tools provided to me through LakeHomes.com,” he said. “But above all else, I will continue providing my clients with the most convenient, effortless and remarkable service I’m able to provide.”

Lake Homes Realty makes Top Tier of Inc. Magazine’s List of 5,000 Fastest-Growing Companies

Lake Homes Realty was the highest-ranked Birmingham-area company to make the 2017 Inc. 5000, the prestigious annual ranking by Inc. Magazine of the 5000 fastest-growing companies in the U.S.

Lake Homes Realty landed in the top fifth of the 2017 list, at number 927, courtesy of its three-year growth of 473 percent.

To be eligible for inclusion in the Inc. 5000, companies are evaluated for growth from 2013 to 2016 and ranked by revenue growth rate.  This was the first year Lake Homes Realty was eligible for inclusion in Inc.’s analysis.

Nationally, Lake Homes Realty was ranked the ninth-fastest growing multi-state real estate brokerage.

The company was the only Birmingham-area business to make the top 1,000, and was the eighth-highest ranked of the 59 Alabama companies on the list.

Glenn S. Phillips, Lake Homes Realty CEO
Glenn S. Phillips, CEO
Lake Homes Realty

“All of us at Lake Homes are thrilled that our hard work has paid off with this kind of national recognition,” said Glenn S. Phillips, CEO of Lake Homes Realty.

“And in many ways, we are just getting started. Our growth this year has been outstanding and we’re excited what our growth has done to genuinely benefit our real estate buyers, sellers and agents,” Phillips adds.

Leveraging Traditional Real Estate with Powerful Web Tools

Lake Homes Realty has grown to become the nation’s largest lake-focused real estate company. The firm’s website, LakeHomes.com, aggregates lake-area real estate listings from more than 60 Multiple Listing Services (MLS) in 13 states.

Increasingly popular with lake real estate buyers and sellers, LakeHomes.com is on track this year for more than 4 million visitors, and that already includes people in from every state and nearly 100 countries on five continents.

Since 2013, the company has expanded it’s licensed real estate brokerages from one state to now thirteen states in the Southwest, Southeast, Mid-Atlantic and New England regions. Additional states are opening operations this year.

Lake Homes Realty offers a unique combination of services to prospective buyers of lake property: the convenience of using a single website to research all thousands of lake-related listings coupled with its own licensed local real estate agents.

Real Estate Listings from More than 500 Local Lake Markets

LakeHomes.com currently provides visitors with access to view and search real estate listings totaling more than $16.5 billion across more than 500 local lake markets in 13 states.

 

Lake Homes Realty Named One of the Fastest Growing Companies

Birmingham Business Journal Fast Track 30 sign

For the second year in a row, The Birmingham Business Journal named Lake Homes Realty as one of the fastest growing companies in Birmingham, Alabama.

Lake Homes Realty is a licensed real estate brokerage in multiple states. Current operations are in states across the Southeastern and Southwestern United States. Work is underway for new brokerage operations in other regions of the country.

The company’s popular website www.LakeHomes.com helps lake real estate buyers from all over the country locate lake homes and land to purchase. The website is also popular with sellers, as it helps their property for sale to be found more easily.

Currently LakeHomes.com has real estate listings for more than 44,000 lake homes, lake lots and land.

lake homes realty's Fast Track 30 plaque

The 2016 rankings for fastest growing companies are based on company revenue growth from 2014 to 2015.

Lake Homes Realty was recognized as the eight fastest growing company in Birmingham, matching it’s number eight ranking in the 2015 rankings.

Glenn S. Phillips, Lake Homes Realty’s CEO, shared, “Our team of agents and staff work very hard to create the best possible customer experience. To see our business grow rapidly is a compliment to their hard work and service mentality. And we believe the biggest growth is still ahead of us.”

All of the companies in the rankings were honored at an awards breakfast on Thursday August 25, 2016 at the Harbert Center in downtown Birmingham.

You can read more about this recognition at http://www.bizjournals.com/birmingham/news/2016/08/25/fast-track-30-lake-homes-realty.html  (Note: To see the full article may require a Birmingham Business Journal subscription login.)

Top 50 Over 50 Recognizes Lake Homes Realty Management Team

Top 50

What do Auburn football coach Gus Malzhan and sportscaster Eli Gold have in common with Lake Homes Realty’s Doris Phillips and Glenn S. Phillips?

They are all among the recently announced 2016 honorees of the Positive Maturity’s Top 50 Over 50.

Past award winners include Alabama football coach Nick Saban, civil rights leader and marketing entrepreneur Shelley Stewart,  meteorologist James Spann and two-time NFL Super Bowl MVP Bart Starr.

Doris Phillips is Lake Homes Realty’s Chief Operating Officer, as well as Director of National Brokerage Operations.

She founded and manages the children-focused non-profit organization The Circle of Love Foundation, which serves thousands of children living in local shelters and rural areas. Doris has been featured in Good Housekeeping Magazine, MyBusiness Magazine, and MSN.com.

Glenn S. Phillips is Lake Homes Realty’s CEO. Glenn is also an adviser to the Auburn University College of Engineering, a board member for Camp ASCCA, speaker and author.

His projects and teams have been nationally recognized for innovation by Harvard University, Auburn University, Microsoft and Dell.

Positive Maturity is an Alabama-based non-profit organization that serves the senior community.

The organization presents this annual award to recognize individuals exhibiting inspiring success in their careers, community involvement or personal lives.

Community impact is important in selection of honorees.

All of the honorees will be recognized at an awards banquet on July 28, 2016 at the Cahaba Grand Conference Center in Alabama. Each honoree is also featured in the July 2016 edition of B-Metro magazine and by the Birmingham Business Journal.

A complete list of all 2016 Top 50 Over 50 honorees can be found at http://www.top50over50.com/2016-recipients

Twice the adventure! Buying and selling a home at the same time!

Have you ever needed to sell your home while buying a new one?

This happens often when your family outgrows your house or when you or your spouse changes jobs and moving to a new city is necessary. buying; selling

Recently, USAToday.com featured a Nerd Wallet article by Hal Bundrick which shared tips from Glenn Phillips, CEO at Lake Homes Realty, and several other prominent real estate experts.

In the article, Phillips describes the process of buying and selling at the same time is “twice the adventure.”

“Be aware of the market,” he encouraged. ” Typically when it is easier to sell, it is hard to buy. And vice versa. Know which market you’re in, then work on the hardest part first.”

Read the full article,”How to buy a home while selling one” here.