Colibri Real Estate alumni Colton Heffley was recently named a RISMedia Rookie of the Year award finalist. Heffley, a former professional hockey player, is a Nashville real estate agent who completed his self-paced pre-licensing coursework while traveling by bus to hockey games.
RISMedia’s Rookie of the Year Program
The Rookie of the Year program is designed to honor real estate agents who are new to the business yet already achieving extraordinary results. Nominees for the Real Estate Rookie of the Year award were considered based on their 2023 sales volume and transaction data, investment in professional education, technology prowess, and community involvement.
This is the program’s third year, and 25 regional finalists were named.
“We are delighted to again partner with RISMedia to recognize new agents who have demonstrated they are thriving in their careers and, as such, making a difference in their communities and in their profession,” said Jennifer Dixson Hoff, Colibri Real Estate’s General Manager, Professional Portfolio and Partnerships.
From Hockey Pro to Real Estate Agent
Heffley, originally from Canada, played for several hockey farm teams before deciding to retire from the sport. He decided to complete a career pivot into real estate.
“To me, it’s just such an important part of life. Everyone needs a house, and sometimes it can be a struggle for a lot of people because they don’t know how to start — especially first-time homebuyers,” Heffley said.
Heffley sees similarities between being a real estate agent and a hockey player.
“In both hockey and real estate, you put in what you get out. If you’re not working in hockey, you’re not getting better on the ice. And same is true in real estate. If you’re not getting better every day, you’re not going to do more deals.”
Heffley admits that a lot of hard work is required for both professions.
“As an athlete, it’s hard to get out of that mindset of working hard all the time. So it’s just nice to get into a field where you kind of have to keep always moving, and competition keeps you from getting stale,” Heffley said.
Heffley’s Experience with Colibri Real Estate School
Heffley and his wife decided to move to Nashville. A broker recruiter in Tennessee recommended that Heffley use Real Estate Express (now Colibri Real Estate School) for pre-licensing coursework.
“So, I started taking the course. I would do it while I was playing hockey still. And I loved it. When you play hockey, you travel a lot, so we’d be on a bus for eight hours a day sometimes. And I thought I might as well use this time wisely. So I would do a lot of quizzes on the bus, and I kind of knocked out my pre-licensing learning quickly that way,” Heffley said.
Heffley said Colibri’s courses were easy to navigate, and he could focus on the easily digestible content even while riding the bus to his next game.
“I liked being able to go at my own pace. Sometimes, I could only do 15 minutes at a time, so it was nice to just be able to get in and get out. I could just kind of digest the content at my own leisure, which was really nice,” Heffley said.
Heffley passed the Tennesee real estate licensing exam the first time he took it.
“I felt prepared. Without having the pre learning course, the test would have been impossible to do,” he said.
Colton Heffley is a real estate agent with RE/MAX Advantage in Nashville.
Start your real estate career with Colibri Real Estate School’s at-your-own-pace real estate courses. Colibri has trained over 500,000 real estate agents, including Heffley, and can help you earn your state’s real estate license in a matter of months. Get started today!
