Champaign-area REALTOR® Matt Difanis received the President’s Special Recognition Award from the Dearborn REALTIST® Board in Chicago Thursday night.

The presentation came during the Dearborn REALTIST® Board’s “Unveiling the Mask of Homeownership” Gala. Dearborn REALTIST® President Courtney Q. Jones praised Difanis for lending his photographic talents to the organization, for their candid conversations and his interest in REALTIST® history. Their dialogue has led to a “lifelong” friendship between the two, said Jones.

Difanis is the broker-owner of RE/MAX Realty Associates, which has offices in Champaign, Mahomet and Monticello. A member of the Illinois REALTORS® Board of Directors, he is the chair of the Performance/Compensation Review Committee and a part of six other committees in 2020. He was the 2018 president of Illinois REALTORS®.

In 2019, he was inducted into the RPAC Hall of Fame, and he is the Illinois REALTORS® State Legislative Contact for Sen. Scott Bennett of Champaign.

After serving as a member on the National Association of REALTORS® Professional Standards Committee for a couple of years, he was named 2019 vice chair of NAR’s second largest committee and will serve as its 2020 chair.

On the local level, Difanis served as 2012 president of the Champaign County Association of REALTORS® and was its 2013 REALTOR® of the Year.

In 2018, the Chicago Association of REALTORS® gave Difanis the Titan Award for promoting diversity and understanding, while the Chicago Chapter of the Asian Real Estate Association of America presented him with its Member of the Year Award for his work to improve diversity and his commitment to building relationships with REALTOR® constituencies.

Read more about Difanis.

Photo of Courtney Q. Jones and Matt Difanis

Dearborn REALTIST® Board President Courtney Q. Jones presents the President’s Special Recognition Award to REALTOR® Matt Difanis Thursday night in Chicago.