Ten Illinois REALTORS® have been named to leadership positions for the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) for the 2021 governance year.

The announcements were made in advance of NAR’s annual business meetings scheduled for November.

Five will serve as committee chairs:

  • Michelle Mills Clement, Global Business Councils Forum. Clement, CAE, is CEO of the Chicago Association of REALTORS®. For NAR, she is a member of the Global Business and Alliances Committee, the AEC/Association Leadership Diversity Work Group and the Governance Game Changer PAG.
  • Matt Difanis, Professional Standards Committee. Difanis, ABR, CIPS, GRI, is a past president for Illinois REALTORS® and Broker-Owner, RE/MAX Realty Associates in Champaign. A member of the Illinois REALTORS® Board of Directors, he is chair of the Performance/Compensation Review Committee and vice chair of the Nominating Committee. Between 2019 and 2013, he chaired 10 committees for the state association. He is the State Legislative Contact for Sen. Scott Bennett of Champaign.
  • Moses Hall, Commercial Economic Issues and Trends Forum. Hall is CEO at MoHall Commercial & Urban Development in Chicago, and a former NAR 30 under 30 honoree. He is the State Legislative Contact for state Rep. Marcus Evans of Chicago and vice chair of the Illinois REALTORS® Global Business Council. For NAR, he is on its Board of Directors, its Commercial Committee and the Research Committee.
  • Maurice L. Hampton, Certified International Property Specialist (CIPS) Advisory Board. Hampton, CIPS, SRS, MRP is the managing broker and CEO of Centered International Realty in Chicago and president for the Chicago Association of REALTORS® (CAR). He is a member of the NAR Board of Directors, its Global Business and Alliances Committee and its CIPS faculty. Hampton is a member of the Illinois REALTORS® Board of Directors, the State Legislative Contact for LaShawn Ford of Chicago and 2019 chair of the Global Business Council.
  • Matt Silver, Federal Legislative and Political Forum. Silver, CRS, GRI, is a former Chicago Association of REALTORS® president and is a partner and broker with Urban Real Estate in Chicago. He is a member of the NAR Board of Directors for Large Boards and a member of its Public Policy Coordinating Committee. For Illinois REALTORS®, he is on its Board of Directors, chairman of the REALTORS® Political Involvement Working Group and vice chairman of the Professional Standards Committee. Also a member of the 2014 Leadership Development Program, he is the state association’s Consulate General Liaison to Israel, the State Legislative Contact for Illinois State Sen. Patricia Van Pelt of Chicago and the Federal Political Coordinator to Rep. Brad Schneider of Deerfield.

Five will serve as committee vice-chairs:

  • Patrick A. Dalessandro, Property Management Forum. Dalessandro, GRI, CRS, is the president, broker-owner and founder of Coachlight Realty in Niles. The 1997 Illinois REALTORS® president was the association’s 2008 REALTOR® of the Year, is a current member of its Board of Directors and State Legislative Contact to Sen. Ann Gillespie of Arlington Heights. During his 47-year career in real estate, he’s served in leadership positions on his local board and worked on multiple committees on the state and national levels.
  • Mabél Guzmán, Insurance Committee, is a broker for Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in the greater Chicago area. Guzmán is the NAR 202 vice president, association affairs. She is a past president for the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and served on the NAR workgroup for the 50th anniversary of RPAC. She’s been a Major Investor since 2008 and has been a member of the President’ Circle since 2015. In 2019, she was inducted into the RPAC Hall of Fame. She is the Illinois REALTORS® State Legislative Contact for Sen. Iris Martinez of Chicago.
  • Kim McCoy, AEC-REC Certification Advisory Board. McCoy is the Mainstreet Organization of REALTORS® vice president of member services, operations and RPAC fundraising. She is a member of the NAR AEC/Association HR Issues Work Group and a current member of the AEC-REC Certification Advisory Board.
  • Rebecca Thomson, Strategic Thinking Advisory Committee. Thomson is regional vice president at Coldwell Banker Residential and the principal for Thomson Realty in Chicago. She is a member of the Illinois REALTORS® Board of Directors and has served on numerous committees for the state association since 2014. She is the State Legislative Contact for state Rep. Ann Williams of Chicago. This year, she is a member of the NAR Board of Directors and its Executive Committee. The 2017 Chicago Association of REALTORS® (CAR) president is part of the 2020 CAR Board of Directors. An active member of the Women’s Council of REALTORS®, she was once its national director.
  • Sarah Ware, Smart Growth Advisory Board. Ware is the principal and managing broker for Ware Realty Group, LLC in Chicago. a member of the Illinois REALTORS Board of Directors and its State Legislative Contact for state Rep. Lamont Robinson of Chicago. In 2018, she was a member of the Illinois REALTORS® Leadership Development Program. She is a member of the CAR Board of Directors, the Illinois REALTORS Board of Directors and the NAR Board of Directors. She is the State Legislative Contact for state Rep. Lamont Robinson of Chicago.