Royal LePage COO Karen Yolevski On Her Move To Join Carson Dunlop

Sometimes, it makes sense to make a professional pivot when you’re at the height of your career. And that’s exactly what Karen Yolevski is set to do. The current Royal LePage COO – a regular STOREYS commentator – will assume the role of CEO at Carson Dunlop Home Inspections come January.

During the past four years Yolevski has spent at Royal LePage, she oversaw the operations of the company’s corporately-owned brokerages while also serving as a key member of the Royal LePage executive team. Her leadership is celebrated for leading to increased operational efficiency, improved service delivery through technological integration, and a stronger position as an industry leader. (As you may recall, a natural choice, Yolevski was named as one of STOREYS Most Influential Real Estate Leaders in 2023.)

So, what's behind the move?

“The decision to take on the role was driven by the excitement of a new challenge in a company that’s doing some really interesting things in the space,” says Yolevski. She highlights that Carson Dunlop is best known for home inspections, but the company actually provides a number of services and products to the industry, including education and commercial inspections. A counterpart south of the border also provides home inspections. “They’re also a franchised network in the early days of franchising,” she adds.

Another draw, says Yolevski, was that the Co-operators Group acquired Carson Dunlop earlier this year as a key driver of the company’s home services division. “The Co-operators Group is taking steps to improve the financial resilience of Canadians by entering the home services space,” says Yolevski. “This acquisition was a key component of that strategy.”

So, inevitably, was the hire of top talent like Yolevski. “Karen’s thought leadership in home services aligns perfectly with Co-operators vision of providing trusted advice to homeowners, activating a proactive approach to maintenance and problem prevention, to support homeowners being more resilient and financially secure,” says Steve Phillips, EVP, Emerging and Adjacent Business Models, The Co-operators Group.

While she may praise her new company, Yolevski says she’ll miss her Royal LePage colleagues and remember her time with the company fondly. “Our realtor community and from there, those that are in the broker space – the network of broker owners at Royal LePage space are a fantastic group – and, of course, my colleagues,” says Yolevski. “We work with wonderful people at the company; Phil Soper is the most known of that group, but there’s a large number of people that make Royal LePage an incredibly special and impactful company in the industry and I feel very lucky that I had those years to work side-by-side with the individuals who drive Royal LePage in the real estate industry.”

Yolevski’s career highlights at Royal LePage are numerous. “We completed a number of significant acquisitions of brokerages during my time that expanded our footprint of the corporately-owned stores,” says Yolevski. “It’s personally gratifying to complete acquisitions as they’re challenging, exciting, and they supercharge growth, which is an important facet of the industry. I would say also improving and innovating the service offering available to realtors is something I’m quite proud of as well. We made a number of strides in terms of marketing by digitizing a number of the agent service offerings. Finally, I’m really proud of building and leading a cohesive team of people who are driven and passionate about the industry.”

Yolevsk says she’s most looking forward to driving growth in her next role. “Carson Dunlop is a company that has an impeccable reputation in the industry for providing top quality service,” says Yolevski. “To be able to build upon Alan Carson’s legacy and drive the company to continue to grow is very exciting. To also help drive the Co-Operators’ vision for home service is also very exciting and something that’s just beginning – we’re just scratching the surface on that. There will be some tremendous opportunities and great opportunities that we can really sink our teeth into to create some innovation and differentiated service offerings for the real estate industry.”

So, while she may no longer be operating one of Canada’s largest real estate companies, Yolevski is by no means leaving the real estate space. “I look forward to being an industry partner to realtors in this role,” she says.

Industry

Royal LePage COO Karen Yolevski On Her Move To Join Carson Dunlop As CEO

​Karen Yolevski will assume the role of CEO at Carson Dunlop Home Inspections come January.

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Karen Yolevski will assume the role of CEO at Carson Dunlop Home Inspections come January.

Insolvencies have been both a predominant and underlying theme across the real estate industry this year.

The site of the City of Vancouver's proposed towers is 1402-1460 Burrard Street, 900 Pacific Street, and 1401-1461 Hornby Street near the Burrard Street Bridge.

The policy recommendations come a year after the City of Calgary initiated a study of short-term rentals.

Lonsdale Square is 113-unit rental building located at 126 E 21st Street in North Vancouver that Minto Apartments developed with Darwin Construction.

This estate has everything. And by everything, we mean a private theatre, a wine cellar, an indoor basketball court, a climbing wall, equestrian trails, and more.