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Real Estate Excellence

Real Estate Excellence

Real Estate Excellence isn't just a podcast — it's a front-row seat to the stories, strategies, and secrets of top real estate professionals in Northeast Florida and beyond.

Hosted by Tracy Hayes, a seasoned mortgage loan officer and trusted voice in the industry, the show brings you face-to-face with elite agents, brokers, coaches, lenders, inspectors, and experts setting the standard in today's market.

Whether you're a new agent hungry for guidance, an experienced pro looking to scale, or someone in any part of the real estate ecosystem — Real Estate Excellence delivers the unfiltered insights you need to grow, lead, and succeed.

🎙️ Tune in. Take notes. Level up.
📍 Northeast Florida — Relevant Everywhere.

Content is for informational purposes only. Views expressed are those of individual speakers and do not constitute mortgage or financial advice. Tracy Hayes NMLS #23368.

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Want to share your expertise with thousands of real estate professionals across Florida and beyond?

 

Real Estate Excellence features top agents, team leaders, lenders, and industry professionals who are doing the work and winning. If that's you — Tracy wants to hear your story.

 

👉 Apply to be a guest at tracyhayespodcast.com/guests/intake/

Recent Episodes

The Deed That Shouldn't Exist: Deed Fraud, Probate Reality, and Protecting Inherited Property | Tammy Legette
330
July 1, 2026

The Deed That Shouldn't Exist: Deed Fraud, Probate Reality, and Protecting Inherited Property | Tammy Legette

Tammy Legette is a Charlotte-based real estate broker licensed in NC, SC, and Ghana with 26 years of experience and 14 years in mortgage. She founded Inherited Property Navigator and holds the CIPN designation. Her entire platform was born from personal experience — not theory.**Her story:** After her mother died in 2015 leaving 15 properties, Tammy navigated every inherited property scenario firsthand — heir disputes, foreclosure, minor heirs, tenant complications, and a niece who refused t
From $38M Agent to Broker Owner: What Tanya Cosmini Learned the Hard Way | Ep. 329
329
June 24, 2026

From $38M Agent to Broker Owner: What Tanya Cosmini Learned the Hard Way | Ep. 329

**Tanya Cosmini | Ep. 329 | Realty ONE Group Elevate**Tanya Cosmini first joined Tracy on Episode 97 when she had just launched Realty ONE Group Elevate in St. Augustine. Four years later she's back — and the real education is what nobody told her was coming.Tanya breaks down what it actually takes to go from top-producing solo agent to broker-owner: the recruiting cycle that takes one to two years (not one meeting), why answering the phone is still the single biggest differentiator in b
The Trilingual Agent Closing Deals in Jacksonville's Buyer's Market | Claudia Hernandez, Ep. 328
328
June 17, 2026

The Trilingual Agent Closing Deals in Jacksonville's Buyer's Market | Claudia Hernandez, Ep. 328

Good — this is the cleaner formatted transcript. I have everything I need.---**PODPAGE SUMMARY — EPISODE 328 | CLAUDIA HERNANDEZ**Claudia Hernandez didn't take the traditional path into real estate. She came to Jacksonville from Cabo San Lucas, spent years exploring the city before she could legally work, passed her real estate exam on the fourth attempt, and built her business from zero — no local network, no college connections, no family pipeline. Today she's a producing agent at
Wire Fraud, Fake Payoffs & Stolen Titles: What's Really Happening at Closing with Megan Lopez
327
June 10, 2026

Wire Fraud, Fake Payoffs & Stolen Titles: What's Really Happening at Closing with Megan Lopez

Episode 327 | Megan Lopez | Fidelity National FinancialMost buyers walk away from closing thinking they're protected. They're not — at least not fully.In Episode 327 of the Real Estate Excellence Podcast, Tracy Hayes sits down with Megan Lopez, Agency Account Manager for Fidelity National Financial — the largest title insurance company in the United States. Megan grew up in the title industry, spent years as a licensed title agent in South Florida, and now works directly with title companies
Dominating Durbin Crossing, Building REMAX Welcome Home & Why She Bet on St. Johns County During the Rate Crisis | Laura Jean Ranneklev
326
June 3, 2026

Dominating Durbin Crossing, Building REMAX Welcome Home & Why She Bet on St. Johns County During the Rate Crisis | Laura Jean Ranneklev

Episode 326: Laura Jean Ranneklev**When tens of thousands of agents walked away from real estate during the 2023-2025 rate crisis, Laura Jean Ranneklev did the opposite. She opened her own brokerage — REMAX Welcome Home in St. Johns County — and went on to sell the six highest-priced homes in Durbin Crossing history.In Episode 326 of the Real Estate Excellence Podcast, host Tracy Hayes sits down with Laura — a marketer, designer, and broker-owner who has spent nearly 20 years building on
25 Years of Jacksonville Real Estate: Laila Hassan on Luxury, Grit, and Getting Sellers More Money
325
May 27, 2026

25 Years of Jacksonville Real Estate: Laila Hassan on Luxury, Grit, and Getting Sellers More Money

**EPISODE 325 — LAILA HASSAN | PODPAGE SUMMARY**---Laila Hassan has been selling real estate in Jacksonville for 25 years — and she was born and raised here. That combination of deep roots and decades of experience puts her in a category very few agents can claim. In this episode, Laila gets candid about how she built her business from scratch, survived the 2008 crash, pivoted from lending to real estate, and ultimately became one of Jacksonville's most respected luxury agents and top ne

Recent Blog Posts

How a Trilingual Jacksonville Realtor Built a Thriving Business by Serving the Buyers Most Agents Can't Reach
June 26, 2026

How a Trilingual Jacksonville Realtor Built a Thriving Business by Serving the Buyers Most Agents Can't Reach

How a Trilingual Jacksonville Realtor Built a Thriving Business by Serving the Buyers Most Agents Can't ReachIn a real estate market flooded with agents chasing the same leads, Claudia Hernandez built her business by going somewhere most of her …
What Tanya Cosmini Learned Running Realty ONE Group Elevate for Four Years
June 26, 2026

What Tanya Cosmini Learned Running Realty ONE Group Elevate for Four Years

From Solo Producer to Brokerage Owner: What Tanya Cosmini Learned Running Realty ONE Group Elevate for Four YearsWhen Tanya Cosmini launched Realty ONE Group Elevate in the St. Johns County corridor of Northeast Florida, she came in with a clear…
How Laura Jean Ranneklev Sold the 6 Most Expensive Homes in Durban Crossing History
June 4, 2026

How Laura Jean Ranneklev Sold the 6 Most Expensive Homes in Durban Crossing History

How Laura Jean Ranneklev Sold the 6 Most Expensive Homes in Durban Crossing History — And What Every Agent Can Learn From ItFeaturing Laura Jean Ranneklev · REMAX Welcome Home · Real Estate Excellence × ReadTomatoWhen…

About the Host

Tracy Hayes Profile Photo
Tracy Hayes

Host of Real Estate Excellence | Mortgage Loan Officer NMLS #23368

Tracy Hayes is the host of Real Estate Excellence, a podcast dedicated to bringing you real conversations with top-performing real estate professionals across Florida and beyond.

A mortgage loan officer with nearly two decades of industry experience (NMLS #23368), Tracy brings a unique perspective to every interview — combining deep lending expertise with a genuine passion for the people and stories that shape the real estate industry.

Based in Northeast Florida, Tracy has spent years building relationships with the agents, brokers, team leaders, lenders, and coaches who are setting the standard in today's market. Real Estate Excellence is his platform for sharing their unfiltered insights with agents and real estate professionals who want to grow, lead, and succeed.

Real Estate Excellence is a listener-supported podcast. No sponsors. No fluff. Just real conversations with the real estate professionals doing the work.

 

If the show has helped your business, the best way to say thanks is simple: share it with a colleague, leave a review, or take our listener survey at tracyhayespodcast.com/survey.

 

Your feedback shapes what Tracy covers next. Every response is read.