Plainfield-area REALTOR® Eddie Ruettiger plans to put his 18 years of experience to good use as a first-time member of the Illinois REALTORS® Board of Directors. He’s one of six members slated for the 2021 board.

“I think working on the board will be an outstanding learning opportunity,” says Ruettiger, a broker for Baird & Warner in Plainfield. “It’s a big leadership role.”

Ruettiger, ABR, understands the different roles REALTORS® fill. He is a member of the NAR Federal Financing & Housing Policy Committee and the Housing Voucher Working Group. He’s served on numerous committees for Illinois REALTORS® over the last five years and was a member of the 2016 Leadership Development Class. He is the State Legislative Contact for State Sen. Pat McGuire of Joliet. Ruettiger also is the president-elect for the Three Rivers Association of REALTORS®.

“I became a REALTOR® because of my great aunt,” says Ruettiger. “She thought it would be a good fit. It dealt with law, marketing and negotiations – all things that sounded attractive to me.

“I enjoyed it right from the start,” says Ruettiger. “The longer I did it, the more I learned. It became a passion.”

Being raised by a single mother has helped Ruettiger empathize with customers in the same circumstances. Recently, he helped a repeat customer find a single-family home. Three years earlier, he helped lay the foundation for that single mother by convincing her to buy a condominium to build equity and save money for the purchase. The client put $50,000 down for the second purchase.

In addition to Ruettiger, five other members will be approved by the association’s board at its Sept.17 meeting.  The candidates are:

  • Ayn Bartok (returning), broker-owner of All in One Real Estate Company in Harrisburg,
  • Linda Dressler of RE/MAX Suburban in Schaumburg,
  • Tracey Royal, president and designated managing broker of Team Real Estate Services in Oak Park,
  • Matt Silver (returning), partner of Corcoran Urban Real Estate in Chicago and
  • Nancy Suvarnamani, president of Century 21 SGR in Chicago.