Rich La Rue

Rich La Rue is the Designated Broker for HomeSmart Professionals based in Palm Desert, California. Mr. La Rue has more than 31 years of experience in real estate sales and management, ranging from real estate offices to regional and national operations. HomeSmart Professionals has quickly grown to three offices and over 250 agents. HomeSmart is the largest company in the Southwest, the 5th largest company in the nation, and the fastest-growing company in the Coachella Valley.

Prior to joining HomeSmart, Mr. La Rue owned and operated several Realty Executives offices in the Palm Springs and Desert Cities area. From 2006 to 2010 – a time that most people consider the worst real estate market in recent history – Mr. La Rue proved his exceptional abilities by growing the operation while many competitors' offices closed. In 2010, Mr. La Rue increased the offices by a net 59.4 percent. Also, during this time, Mr. La Rue was recognized nationally by receiving the Circle of Excellence Award every year. This award is given to less than 4 percent of the offices worldwide.

Mr. La Rue began his career in real estate in 1983 in Phoenix, Arizona, as a sales associate and joined Realty Executives in 1984. In 1986, he earned his Arizona Real Estate Broker's License. Mr. La Rue holds a California Real Estate Broker's license, GRI (Graduate REALTOR® Institute), CRS (Certified Residential Specialist), and CRB (Certified Residential Broker) designations, as well as the e-PRO and the SFR (Sale & Foreclosure Resource) certifications.

In 1998, Mr. La Rue sold his real estate practice and joined Realty Executives International, a franchise of residential and commercial real estate brokerage offices, where he served as Director of Franchise Relations for six years. In 2004, La Rue became President of Realty Executives Southern California Region, where he led the company in franchise sales nationally by awarding 50 franchises in a two-and-a-half-year period.

Mr. La Rue is involved in the communities where he lives and works. In 2009, Mr. La Rue Co-Founded Semper Fi Air 29, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing private air travel for our military personnel to and from nearby military bases. Specifically, this involved organizing a private Air Force of more than 35 pilots and their airplanes to transport active-duty Marines to and from 29 Palms Marine Base at no charge to the soldiers.

Also, La Rue serves as a Director on the California Desert Association of Realtors Board of Directors for 2014-2015 and the Local Candidate Recommendation Committee. Previously, he has served on the CDAR MLS (Multiple Listing Service) Committee and on the BOD for CARETS. La Rue is also involved with local Boy Scout Troop 131 and currently serves as Committee Chair.

Mr. La Rue graduated from the University of Phoenix with honors, earning a bachelor's degree in business/marketing and a master's in business administration.

In addition to his real estate experience, Mr. La Rue, a Baby Boomer with a Generation-X attitude, founded The Intergenerational Training Institute, also known as Generwise, in 2003. Generwise is a venture dedicated to understanding the tendencies of the four generations in today's workplace and how they affect and apply them to workplace processes. For the real estate industry, The Intergenerational Training Institute focuses on recruiting and retention across the generations, selling across the generations, and improving business results by applying generational understanding.