The Hall of Fame Gala, the most anticipated night of the year for First Team Real Estate agents, took place on Friday, March 18, at the Ritz-Carlton in Dana Point.
An annual affair now in its 30th year running, the event—which celebrates the drive, commitment and accomplishments of our company’s top real estate experts—was attended by more than 600 people, including agents, staff and prominent members of the community.
“This awards program makes for one of the most memorable nights of the year for everyone at First Team,” said Lori Namazi, First Team’s Broker of Record and Vice President of Administrative Services. “All attendees—from agents who have been in the business for 30 years, to those just beginning to make a name for themselves in Southern California’s thriving real estate industry—walk away at the end of the evening feeling inspired.”
This year’s ceremony began with opening remarks from Namazi, who was joined by our Senior Vice President Terry LeClair, as well Founder and CEO, Cameron Merage. We celebrated a collective $5.3 Billion in sales volume for 2015, up 10% from last year alone, helping 8,500 families buy and sell homes as well as helped 2,000 families with leases.
2015 gave us so much to celebrate here at First Team and our successes are following us into 2016. Right now First Team is the number one luxury broker in Orange County following 2015 in which we sold the most homes over $1 Million than any other brokerage in OC. As we enter our 40th year as a company, things are looking better than ever!
At the conclusion of the evening’s formal dinner, Namazi and LeClair returned to the stage to announce award recipients, who were honored for their 2015 accomplishments.
Determined by criteria including listing and sales volume, Hall of Fame awards were given not only to individuals, but to top-producing offices as well—of which we have over 20 in Southern California. First Team Founder’s Awards, the program’s highest accolade, went to Jason Bradshaw and Dean Lueck of the Newport Beach office as well as Lily Campbell of the Huntington Beach Brookhurst Office.
In the office category, the Hall of Fame accolade for No. 1 in Units Sold went to the Dana Point – Laguna Niguel office, while the First Team 2015 Lifetime Achievement award was presented to Marty Armstrong of the Huntington Beach – Seacliff office. Prior Lifetime Achievement Award winners also in attendance included Vikki Morrison, Adrienne Oranges, Jerry Beusee, Jo-An Hawley Verstraete, Tim Morissette, Barbara Greenfield, Janice Konkol, and Chuck Buscemi.
In total for 2015, 261 awards were given including 174 Silver honorees, 52 Hall of Fame honorees, 11 Gold Medallion honorees, 18 Sapphire Medallion honorees, 3 Diamond Medallion honorees and 3 Founders honorees. Included in the esteemed employees was our Seal Beach Rossmoor office manager, Fred Nassab, who was awarded our Excellence in Management award for his hard work and dedication as a leader for his agents.
Also recognized was Bill Plattos with a Lifetime Achievement in Management for 38 years with the company.
Following is the complete list of winners from this year’s event.
Top Offices
Overall Listings Taken: (3rd) Yorba Linda Office • (2nd) Rossmoor Office • (1st) Dana Ocean Ranch Office • Overall Units Sold: (3rd) Irvine Office • (2nd) Rossmoor • (1st) Dana Ocean Ranch Office • Overall Sales Volume: (3rd) Irvine Office • (2nd) Newport Beach Office • (1st) Dana Ocean Ranch Office
Top Teams
Overall Listings Taken: (3rd) The Jody Clegg Team • (2nd) The Lily Campbell Team • (1st) Yoomi & David Team • Overall Units Sold: (3rd) Yoomi & David Team • (2nd) The Jody Clegg Team • (1st) The Lily Campbell Team • Overall Sales Volume: (3rd) Rosemary Kral & Jennifer Palmquist • (2nd) The Jody Clegg Team • (1st) The Lily Campbell Team
Top Agents
Overall Listings Taken: (3rd) Terry McCarty • (2nd) Sean Jarne • (1st) Doug West • Overall Units Sold: (3rd) Ryan Argue • (2nd) Monica Carr • (1st) Steve Marsh • Overall Sales Volume: (3rd) Monica Carr • (2nd) Dean Lueck • (1st) Jason Bradshaw
Luxury Awards
Highest Listing Sold over $1 Million: Jason Bradshaw • Highest Buyer Side Sale over $1 Million: Jason Bradshaw • Most Sales over $1 Million: Dean Lueck • Most Sales over $1 Million (Team): The Jody Clegg Team • Highest Volume over $1 Million: Newport Beach Office • Highest Sale over $1 Million: Newport Beach Office • Highest Percentage Increase over $1 Million: Temecula Office • Highest Percentage of all Listings Sold over $1 Million: Laguna Beach Office
Diamond Medallion Winners
Monica Carr • The Jody Clegg Team • Ryan Argue
Sapphire Medallion Winners
Yoomi & David Team • Buscemi/Noonan • Tracey Fullenkamp • Doug West • Bob & Gale Gottuso • Terry McCarty • Tim Morissette • Jenny Ikeda • Cathy Haney • Rosemary Kral & Jennifer Palmquist • Andrea Ballesteros • Sue La Bounty • Sean Jarne • Rob Magnotta • Philip DeMatteo • Carolyn Theriault • Steve Leitner Jr. • Heidi & Markus Brown
Gold Medallion Winners
Mike Kelly & Travis Fairweather • The Williamson Team • Danelle Stroble • Andy Galfi • Robert & Susan Blatman • Debbie Sagorin • Melinda Zoller • Brandon Caldarella • Craig Marson • Steven Marsh • Mary Henderson McVey & Terri Newland
The Hall of Fame Award for Teams Winners
Jade Beardsley & Danny Murphy • Sandi Clark & Debbie Miller • Phoebe Chiang & Theresa Wen • The Whitney Team • Nichole Doughty & Mel Steiner • Liz Oliverio & Anna Martinez • Paula Aragone & Dawna Kuch
The Hall of Fame Award for Individual Winners
Dale Herbert • Gary Ceasar • Jacqueline Chase • Dani Walker • Marietta Philpott • Martucci Angiano • Hiram Aviles • Jancie Konkol • Stephanie Francoeur • Soosan & Doug Robinett • Christe Roknich • Jennifer Blake • Erin Valovich • Rob Weiss • Dawn & Troy Bogert • Robert Rivera • Ari Mastorakis • Joel Spencer • Ann Tuler • Doug Hamilton • Tamzi Richardson • Jim Salem • Dee Messing • Pam Fecher • Sybil Miller • Michael Chu • Nolasco & Berta Blandon • Stephen A. Ambuehl • Veronica Encinas & Rosario Rodriguez • Edward Englehart • Jeff & Lorrie White • Kathy Samuel • Clay Kilbarger • Ashley Cooper • Alan Wignall • Darel & Evi Rosen • Kathy Kojac • Jo-An Hawley Verstraete • Lisa Anderson • Josh & Angelica Richardson • Kathy Leimkuhler • Meital Taub • Kathe Van Hoften • Lars Nordstrom • Sandi & John Barry • Steve Osborne
