Real Estate, For Real

This week I'm joined by my son, Jase Daley, who is wrapping up his first year in real estate. Along with some delicious chocolate, coming on the podcast was his Father's Day present to me. We talk about growing up with Realtor for a parent, his expectations getting into the business, working with first-time buyers, what he'd do differently knowing what he knows now, and how to improve on a success...

This week is a solo episode. I give some insight on what the year has been like up to this point and share some stories from transactions that I've learned from. Trying to keep building and growing while fending off stress and burnout. I do my best to shed a little light on what a life in real estate is really like. 

On this episode I'm joined by Brian Moore to discuss the new Uniform Appraisal Dataset changes set to take place in November. We talk about the upcoming Break for Hot Topics event, featuring a panel of local appraisers who will fill us in on what the new format will entail. Brian and I cover what impact it may have on how Realtors do their job, the advantage of learning as much about this as we ca...

This week I welcome Lori Waggener. We talk about her 34 years in the business, the early days of The Real Estate Group, how our clients' expectations have changed over the years, winding down her career, working alongside her son, and the incredible patience it takes to be a Realtor's spouse. 

This week I'm joined by Brian Cisna with Guild Mortgage. We talk about moving back to Central IL from Texas, building relationships with local Realtors, the flexibility that Guild provides, how he met his wife and enjoying their opportunity to work together, communicating, open houses, and being one the fastest swimmers in the country.

This week I sit down with Janet Gogerty. We make a few major announcements, reflect on our high school days, learn how she got into, then out of, then back into the business, talk about how we help buyers and sellers in a competitive market, and go over some of our favorite real estate sayings.

This week I welcome Taylor Pierceall to the podcast. We talk about what brought her from Texas to Illinois, the importance of being active in the community, overcoming the fear of putting yourself out there on social media, keeping your word in a transaction, raising kids, and the types of cars that Realtors drive.

This week I'm joined by Josh Johnson from Hickory Point Bank, and Brady Schroeder from State Farm Insurance. We talk about the upcoming Break for Hot Topics, some of the changes in the insurance industry, and share some stories and experiences from each of our industries.

This week I'm joined by Jeremy Howard. Jeremy started selling real estate this past October. Before that, he was driving trucks, plus teaching dance and gymnastics. We talk about the fear that comes with switching careers, but using that as a motivator as well. We also discuss being comfortable enough to put yourself out there on social media, learning in a team setting, building a brand, and list...

It's another Realtor Roundtable episode! This week I'm joined by three fellow members of the 2014 rookie class, Sue Disco, Clay Yates, and Megan Pressnall. We talk about how we got to where we are in our careers, things we wish we would have done differently or sooner, finding ways to stand out in a competitive industry, and wearing shorts on the job.

Needing to sell a home before you buy a new one can present a lot of obstacles and challenges. On this episode I go over the strategies I've used to help people have success making that happen.

This week I'm joined by Mindy Pusch. We have a very open and real conversation about the stresses and pressures of this job, her role early in my career, being active and transparent on social media, sacrificing a social life, getting sober, and finding her faith. 

This week Marketing Officer with The Title Center, Diana Eldridge, joins me to talk about her work as chair of the Realtor Affiliates Committee, and the upcoming Mixers with Affiliates event. We go over her role at The Title Center, the importance of building relationships, starting her own podcast, and urging Realtors to attend this awesome event. 

Jane Hay joins me for a conversation this week. We talk about what she was doing before she got into real estate that helped her after she got licensed, construction on her new building, the importance of staging, throwing parties, being married to a football coach, keeping focus on clients while spinning several other plates, and cooking on a Blackstone. 

This week I welcome Mike Buscher back to the podcast. We talk about him stepping back from the day-to-day but not stepping away completely. Also, what he's looking to contribute moving forward, the impact he's had on shaping the careers and lives of so many agents, finding the balance between work and personal in a career with no set hours, and confirming that I personally didn't chase him out of...

This week I welcome Natalie Dodson from INB back to podcast. We look back at what she saw in the mortgage world in 2025, and what she's hoping to see in the coming year. We talk about the importance of focusing on the monthly payment, when the right time is to contact a lender, incentives for new buyers, and how we felt about the Stranger Things finale.

Celebrating the 50th episode by welcoming one of everyone's favorite guests, Ketki Arya. Once again, Ketki takes the reins and asks me all about my plans going into 2026. We talk about my plans to build a real estate team, and my involvement in a few committees with the association. Ketki shares her experiences both being part of a team, and as a team lead. We also reflect back on what I thought t...

My guest this week is Jane Locascio. We talk mainly about overcoming adversity. From her battle with cancer, a horrible accident that nearly cost her a leg, and chopping part of her finger, Jane has fought back and built a successful real estate career. We talk about how beneficial the Buffini program has been to her, and offer up advice to new agents.

This week I'm joined by Bev Brauer, President of Cornerstone Title Groupe. We of course learn about how she got into the business, some of the things that happen behind the scenes to make sure everyone gets to the closing table, what they're doing to help combat wire fraud in real estate transactions, the importance of everyone in and around the real estate industry keeping lines of communication...

It's all about commission on this episode as I welcome back Julie Davis. We talk about how to have those conversations with sellers, what has changed in our conversations since the NAR settlement, getting buyer agency agreements signed, and the importance of offering compensation to buyer agents. 

This week's episode features Dominic Campo. The conversation covers his start in the family business, being known as the Pawnee brokerage, Realtors being bad at math, his involvement in different committees, trying to understand how to pay taxes, getting along with agents from other brokerages, and the Campo family's 100 year history of local real estate.

This week Cody Huson stops by to talk about how he got into real estate, the challenges he faced starting off vs the challenges new agents face today, the benefits of working on a team, the importance of communication and human connection, changes to our contracts, and our go-to McDonald's orders.

Gina Wolter returns to the podcast this week. We talk about the importance of communication in our industry, and how easy it is for Realtors to slack off in that department. Then we shift to the topic of appraisals. We cover how they impact our transactions, and share ideas of how the process could be potentially be improved. 

It's another Grady Day on the podcast! Cindy and Missy return, but this time they bring their mom, Betty, and their brother, Dave. We learn how Grady Realtors began, and what it was like having the whole family working together. Betty shares what retirement is like, and how tough the decision was to merge the family business into The Real Estate Group. A really fun episode with a lot of great stor...

On this Realtor Roundtable episode I welcome Katelyn Rexroad, Maki Rose, and Zach Brewer. We talk about getting into the business at a young age, the obstacles facing younger agents, applying the same mentality they used as competitive athletes growing up to the competitive industry they work in now, the importance of having a social media presence, choosing work over the normal social life of peo...