Gregg Slapak is an associate broker with Baird & Warner in Wheaton/Glen Ellyn
What was your first job in the realty industry? Real estate sales at Koenig & Strey.
Where did you grow up? Wheaton.
What is your favorite free-time activity? Community activist, gay rights proponent and animal rescue.
What do you do to relax when you’re stressed? Walking, traveling and spending time with my best friend of the past 17 years – my cat, Tuxedo Bear.
Growing up, what did you want to be? An attorney and/or politician.
If you could have lunch with a well-known figure (living or not), who would it be? John F. Kennedy, Abraham Lincoln and Hillary Clinton.
Where is your favorite place to hang out? Home, on the lake in Wisconsin.
What do you love most about the industry? Client satisfaction, first-time homebuyers, marketing and negotiating a fair deal.
How do you distinguish yourself from the crowd of agents? I am a marketing specialist.
What is the most difficult aspect of your job? Dealing with irresponsible lenders and/or those who call themselves professional, but whose actions speak to the contrary.
Where do you go to network and meet new clients? Facebook, Veterans of Foreign Affairs and community organiztions.
What has been your greatest accomplishment? Having served on the campaign directors for a young man’s (at the time he was 29) first run for Congress. We won a four-way primary and the general election by 0.05 percent.
What was the last good movie you saw or book you read? “Lincoln” and “The Great Gatsby.”
What is your favorite restaurant? Gibsons, Hugo Frog, Ivy and Hawthorne’s Backyard.
Architecturally speaking, what is your favorite building in Chicago? Tribune Tower.
Smartphone or Paper? Smartphone.
What is your favorite city after Chicago? San Francisco, where I lived for nearly a decade.
In 10 words or less, what is your advice for someone new to the industry? If you have a true passion for the business, you should do well.
What’s your favorite Real Estate iPhone/ Blackberry app? Smarter Agent.