San Antonio Board of REALTORS® Announces 2023 Real Estate Winners

Every year, the San Antonio Board of REALTORS® honors those who have gone above and beyond in the real estate industry, and this year is no exception. Winners were nominated by their colleagues, then chosen by a committee. Here’s who excelled in the busin

Ara Fesperman is the 2023 Salesperson of the Year. With over eighteen years of real estate experience, Fesperman combines comprehensive market perspective with real estate expertise to serve the best interests of her clients.

She is a founding member of M. Stagers Realty Partners, a boutique brokerage serving the San Antonio area. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in marketing from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Fesperman’s high level of service is matched by her patience, knowledge, and dependability. These strengths have driven her to help over 4,000 families since 2004 as a member of a topproducing team, creating $703 million in real estate sales.

Pedro Fuentes

Pedro Fuentes is the 2023 REALTOR® Rookie of the Year. Fuentes, born on May 30th,

1990, is honored to accept the

San Antonio Board of Realtors® Rookie of the Year Award for 2023, a testament to his dedication to the real estate industry. His journey from San Antonio to Lytle, coupled with his extensive volunteer work and recognition with the Presidential Volunteer Service Award, paints a portrait of a communityminded individual making a positive impact. As Fuentes continues to thrive in his career, his story serves as inspiration for aspiring real estate professionals, demonstrating that success is achieved through hard work, passion, and dedication to service.

Patricia Chavez

Patricia Chavez, CCIM, TACS, MRP, ABR is the 2023 Commercial Specialist of the Year. Chavez brings unparalleled expertise and industry knowledge to her role as director for KW Commercial at Keller Williams Heritage, where she has been consistently a top producer for the past twenty-one years. Most of Patricia’s clients come by word of mouth from clients and other REALTORS® who have benefited greatly from her style, experience, and ability to navigate through very difficult transactions. She prides herself on having an incredible work ethic and loves mentoring other agents who are learning-based and need assistance.

Jessica Goldberg

Jessica Goldberg is the 2023 Builder of the Year. Goldberg has spent over twenty years in marketing, doing what she loves in the San Antonio area, evolving and maintaining a growth mindset every step of the way as times and ways of life have changed. She’s spent the last five years with Meritage Homes and has taken on the mission to step up to engage more real estate agents in her marketing efforts. Meritage Homes believes a meaningful partnership between builders and real estate agents is key to success for both businesses. Jessica prides herself on helping foster some key core values of Meritage Homes like ‘Play to Win,’ ‘Think Strategically,’ and ‘Start with Heart’ in all she does both personally and professionally.

Chad Foster Jr.

Chad Foster Jr. is the 2023

Farm and Land Specialist of the Year. Continuing the 200-year tradition of Texas land ownership, Foster began brokering and selling Texas real estate more than fifteen years ago. Born and raised in South Texas, Foster earned a business degree from Texas A&M University and now lives in Uvalde with his wife Jill and son Tres. His knowledge of land development and market trends, in addition to his proficiency in ranch and wildlife management, is exceptional. Foster’s clients benefit from his experiences purchasing and selling both large and small tracts of recreational, investment, and development land. Foster’s process of cultivating legacies by bringing time-honored values to the table in every real estate transaction has earned a statewide reputation personifying trust, dedication, and success.

Susan Paulette Rodriguez

Susan Paulette Rodriguez is the 2023 Legislative Champion. Rodriguez is a legacy REALTOR® who took her mother’s business over in 2006 after a twentyfive year career as a litigation paralegal. Rodriguez recognized early on in real estate the importance of being an advocate for private property rights and homeownership not only for her specific clients but for all homeowners. She began her involvement with SABOR and Texas Realtors® by participating in the Texas Realtors® Leadership Program. From there, she served on the TREPAC and Governmental Affairs Committees.

Mindi Stange

Mindi Stange is the 2023 Manager of the Year. A member of SABOR since 2014, Stange works at All City Real Estate. She is not only a REALTOR® but also an interior designer. She has more than ten years of experience in interior design, with a focus on model home design, property staging, and residential remodels, with a focus on kitchens and bathrooms. This experience translates into her profession as a REALTOR®, where her expertise can help clients find the perfect home to fulfill their dreams or to prepare a property for sale that will become a buyer’s dream home. Mindi has served on multiple SABOR committees and is currently a director for SABOR.

Adam Acord

Adam Acord is the 2023 Property Management Specialist of the Year. Acord grew up working for the family’s business, Pyramis Company, from around age fourteen, but technology was his passion. He managed to avoid a career in real estate for nearly twenty years. Fast forward ten years, Acord holds a Texas real estate broker’s license, multiple residential property management designations, a commercial designation, the Texas Risk Reduction Specialist designation, has had several chair/vice-chair roles at SABOR, sits on several SABOR committees, works on multiple workgroups with the Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO), and consults on property management & rental housing issues for industry peers and attorneys involved with rental housing cases.

Cathy Heshmat

Cathy Heshmat is the 2023 Lifetime Distinguished Service Award winner. Heshmat boasts an extensive career as a licensed agent, commencing in 2004, and holds a notable array of designations. Demonstrating an enduring commitment to service, Cathy’s trajectory has been defined by active engagement. She has served on various committees at the state and local levels. Since 2015, she has played an integral part in the Women’s Council of REALTORS® serving in numerous local and state positions the most recent of which is the 2024 State President.

Jeff Garza

Jeff Garza is the 2023 REALTOR® Broker of the Year. Garza stands as an inspiration for entrepreneurial success and community leadership. As the Broker,

Founder, and CEO of Redbird Realty LLC, Jeff has steered his Texas-based independent brokerage to remarkable heights. In 2023, his company achieved significant recognition, underlining his exceptional business acumen and vision. Beyond Redbird

Realty, Jeff’s entrepreneurial spirit is reflected in his ownership of multiple businesses, including a property management company, among others. His approach combines strategic business leadership with a profound commitment to community development.

Hector Toledo

Hector Toledo is the 2023

Affiliate of the Year. Toledo is a civil engineer originally from Venezuela and is now a proud resident of San Antonio since

2013, when he undertook the challenge of revitalizing a market that had experienced three previous failures. Through his emphasis on fostering a team with high ethical standards and professionalism, coupled with his commitment to cultivating meaningful relationships with agents and clients, he ascended from a solo inspector to leading a team of twenty-five residential and commercial inspectors in the Alamo City. His influence extended to overseeing fifty-two inspectors in Texas and 104 inspectors across his entire region, servicing sixteen markets in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and the Carolinas.

Donna Franklin

Donna Franklin is the 2023

Good Neighbor Award recipient. Franklin has been a REALTOR® in San Antonio for sixteen years. She has been with Keller Williams heritage for that time. Franklin loves her clients and taking care of them. She feels that has been her strength in growing her business to six figures. Franklin is very passionate about helping feed the kids since she was hungry for her entire childhood, so she knows what it is like to not have food. She does not want any children to have to go hungry like she did. Communities In Schools has been amazing in helping her to achieve this goal.