Compass
An entrepreneurial spirit and love for the city inspired Caryl Dillon to become a Realtor. Everyone needs a place to call home — it was a natural calling.
As a Top Producer of the Chicago Association of Realtors since 2012, Dillon was recruited to Compass as a founding member of its Chicago expansion. Hitting the ground running, she added seasoned brokers Annie Lukachik and Meghan Leiter to form Caryl & Company. “Having a team is a wonderful collaboration of ideas and expertise,” Dillon says.
Prior to joining Compass, Dillon led the sales team at the Elysian Hotel and Private Residences (now the Waldorf), a true expression of luxury in residential real estate. “Early buyers bought from plans and brought their architects and designers in to create extraordinary custom homes,” she says. “It was amazing to see a two-dimensional vision blossom into a very personalized lifestyle.”
Dillon’s business is not all at the upper end, she says. “There is something deeply satisfying about guiding a first-time homebuyer through the process and working with them again as their lives evolve. Closing the deal is really just the beginning of a lasting friendship.”
Dillon gives kudos to Compass for providing her team with cutting-edge technology that helps identify buyers for a particular property. Knowing that buying and selling real estate is the biggest financial transaction of most people’s lives, she makes sure clients feel confident every step of the way. “A very personal connection is made with all of my clients, whether they are buying or selling,” she says.
Prior to becoming a licensed Realtor, Dillon was executive director of Parkways Foundation, a public-private partnership with the Chicago Park District. Before that, she saw the world as regional director of sales for Sonesta International Hotels.
A tennis player and golfer, Dillon also enjoys cooking with ingredients from her urban garden. “Being outside in summer is the best part of living in Chicago,” she says. Dillon has supported Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital for 25 years as a member of the Service Board.
