YPN Blogger Bios

Young Professionals Network Meet Our Bloggers:						Young Professionals Network If you’d like to become one of our featured bloggers, send an e-mail to Melissa Dittmann Tracey, associate editor of REALTOR® Magazine Online. Please include your name, company, contact information, and why you’d make a good YPN blogger. Hope to hear from you! Go to YPN Main Page

Richard Barbee, a native of East Tennessee, works with Realty Executives Associates in Landoak, Tenn., and specializes in new construction marketing. With a master’s degree in education and extensive real estate training, Barbee enjoys writing to encourage and instruct other practitioners, home sellers, and buyers. Barbee believes strongly in acting consistently, thinking creatively, and relating authentically. Visit his Web site: www.richardbarbee.com

Toby Boyce, MBA, is a real estate practitioner with Keller Williams Consultants Realty in Westerville, Ohio. He is the 2007 Delaware Board of REALTORS® Rookie of the Year. Prior to real estate, he spent a decade as a professional writer and photographer. Visit his Web site: www.delawareohrealestate.com

Travis Broadwater with Kennen & Kennen REALTORS® in West Virginia strives to use the latest technology and marketing tools to achieve the best level of service for his clients. As a young professional, Broadwater is dedicated to working hard to prove his expertise in a field traditionally dominated by older agents. Visit his Web site: www.TravisBroadwater.com

Julie Cain Cwynar is a full-time REALTOR® with Howard Hanna Real Estate Services in Pittsburgh, Pa. She began her career in real estate after spending almost 10 years as a management consultant for Fortune 500 companies.

Dee Copeland (DeeinAustin™) is principal of the Copeland Group at Keller Williams Realty, specializing in new construction, second homes, relocations and investments. Known as the “Mobile Marketing Diva,” Copeland has been featured in national spotlights on Inman News, REALTOR.com, GeekEstateBlog.com, and Realtown Blogs. To access her blog, visit www.TexasRealtyBlog.com.


Darrin Friedman, branch vice president of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Chevy Chase, Md., is the youngest manager in the NRT owned Coldwell Banker Residential Mid-Atlantic company. Friedman not only led the entire company in recruiting for 2007, but also has turned his office into a profit making operation in less than a year. He has been recognized for creating a business-focused, innovation-first culture, one which helped dramatically turn a long time suffering office into a highly touted regional success. Friedman lives in the Washington, D.C., area with his wife and daughter. Visit his Web site: www.darrinfriedman.com


Maura Gebhardt, ABR®, MA, began in real estate in 2001 as an unlicensed assistant who was mainly in charge of marketing and advertising for a top producer. She is now the marketing and advertising director for The Gebhardt Group, RE/MAX Greater Atlanta, as well as a buyer specialist. She enjoys maintaining her team’s blog (www.GebhardtGroupBlog.com), as well as leading the team’s various charity events throughout the year.


Dru Lee, ABR®, GRI, transferred with the U.S. Navy to Corpus Christi, Texas, nearly seven years ago. He served eight years Active Duty and two years in the Reserves as a paralegal. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in social psychology in 2003 and received his real estate license in 2004. Since then, he has sold more than $15 million in residential property. Lee is also a Home Staging Professional REALTOR®. In November 2006, Lee assisted with the launch of Keller Williams Realty in the Corpus Christi area. Visit his Web site: www.drulee.com


Howard McAuliffe is a licensed agent and investor in St. Louis. As an agent for Premier Realty Exclusive, he works with real estate investors in addition to home buyers. McAuliffe is pursuing a master's degree in Urban Planning and Real Estate Development at St. Louis University. Visit his Web site: www.stldevelops.com

Courtland McPherson is a 27-year-old REALTOR®, movie buff, cocktail aficionado, gym rat, and most importantly, seeker of all that life has to offer. His motto: Life is about opportunity so create it! McPherson works with The McPherson Group, Prudential Gammons Realty, in Exeter, R.I. Prior to joining real estate in 2004, he had worked as a former energy auditor, home inspector, and small business owner. Visit his Web site: www.McPhersonGroupRI.com

Mia Orantes ("The Real Estate Geek") is principal of Real Estate Geeks, a consulting firm offering Real Estate 2.0 marketing and virtual assistance to agents and brokers. After receiving a degree in International Economic Policy from American University, she obtained several management-related certificates from the American Management Association, in addition to a residential salesperson license and loan origination license. Orantes is an enthusiastic student of all things Web 2.0 and enjoys spending her free time traveling, cooking, learning new languages, and seeking new adventures. Visit her Web site: www.RealEstateGeeksOnline.com

Melvin and Tiffany Pigee, of Keller Williams Realty, in Augusta, Ga., have built their successful real estate sales and consulting business through award-winning client service, skilled negotiation, extensive market knowledge, and trailblazing marketing strategies. As a young power couple, they strive to find balance in their hectic lifestyle to raise a family and expand their business opportunities. Visit their Web site: www.melvinandtiffany.com


Dave Robison, known as “Utah Dave,” is the creator/coach of "The All the Right Steps for your Success Experience." As a REALTOR®/Broker of Robison & Company Real Estate he went from $20k in gross commissions a year to more than $1.25 million in approximately three years. Visit his Web site: www.utahdave.com


Ulises Romo is a REALTOR® for PRO-formance Realty Concepts in Phoenix. He has several years of sales and customer service experience. To help better serve his clients, he is fluent in English and Spanish. Visit his Web site: http://ulisesromo.point2agent.com.


Amy Steele is a full-time REALTOR® with Bibby Realty in Crestline, Calif., where she says living and selling real estate is all about being above the clouds but down to earth. Steele says the market in Crestline is still going strong since the resort community attracts buyers looking for vacation or first-time homes and it’s one of the few “affordable” places left in Southern California to own a home. Visit her Web site: www.CrestlineHomeForSale.com.


Dina Takai, GRI, ABR®, SRES, CIPS, TRC, is a broker associate with Park Bench Realty in Arlington Heights, Ill. Takai specializes in residential real estate in the northwest suburbs of Chicagoland, helping clients purchase, sell, and invest in real estate. Her mission statement is two words: “Exceed Expectations!” Takai is also bilingual in English and Japanese. Visit her Web site: www.AskDinaNow.com


Hugo Torres is an agent coach, mentor, and guide to real estate practitioners at Century 21 Adams & Barnes in Monrovia, Calif. With more than seven years of real estate experience, Torres has worked with several top producers and views realty sales and marketing as the melting of “old-fashioned” customer service with state-of-the-art techniques and technologies. Visit his Web site: www.hugotorres.com.


Eric Walowitz is a 22-year-old commercial associate with Coldwell Banker in Chicago. Walowitz grew up in Northbrook, Ill., and then attended Arizona State University. He later returned to Chicago and passed his real estate exam. He now works with his mentor, Jim Hodur, and his father, Stewart Walowitz, who is a residential agent in Scottsdale, Ariz.


Brenda Yun spent five years as a middle- and high- school English teacher in Boulder, Honolulu, Boston, and San Francisco, prior to becoming a real estate sales associate for her mother’s brokerage, Hawaii Rainbow Realty in 2007. Based in Honolulu, she is also developing a Web site for the brokerage.