Leading a diverse team of 15 agents while balancing her own investment and residential clients, Sharon Kay Rizzo sells the dream, not just the real estate. As head of The Rizzo Group at Coldwell Banker Realty, Rizzo makes the process fun and easy while maintaining a high level of professionalism. “I want to guide the client and help them make a well-thought-out decision on their own,” she says, adding that she places prompt communication and overall accessibility at the forefront of her business strategy.

Focusing on properties around River North, Gold Coast, Streeterville and Lincoln Park, as well as near her home in Lake Forest, Rizzo specializes in investment real estate while her team handles buyers from a range of budgets and experience levels. During its first year in operation, The Rizzo Group won gold- and silver-level recognition in the Chicago Association of Realtors’ annual sales awards.

Prior to joining the real estate industry, Rizzo earned advanced degrees in speech, theater, speech pathology and audiology. While maintaining a part-time audiology practice, she was also a spokesperson and model, traveling over 100,000 miles per year for major corporations. During the same period, she was a radio broadcaster for NBC. “My varied background taught me how to be a compelling and inspiring speaker and helps me present opportunities to clients effectively,” she explains. Rizzo continues to harness these skills as a sought-after workshop host, leading “Building Wealth Through Real Estate” seminars around the country with her husband.

Earning CAR’s Golden Eagle Award in 2003, Rizzo has since received multiple platinum and gold awards for volume and units sold. In addition to her CAR membership, the 38-year industry veteran is a member of the Chicago Real Estate Investors Association and supports PAWS Chicago, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame, where her father was recently inducted.