Shane Dawson

Shane was born and raised in the Northwestern suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. He moved out West to attend Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona. Wanting to get back to the four seasons and milder climate, he transferred to Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff and completed his business degree.
For years after college, Shane worked for one of the largest private landowners in the United States, managing the operations for two of the company’s largest resort operations in Arizona and Texas.

During that time, there were multiple opportunities to develop skill sets in real estate, through complex land swaps with the National Forest Service, and Master Plan approval for the rezoning and use of one of the resort complexes. During his time in Arizona, Shane lived on one of the owners private ranches and started to develop a taste for the ranching way of life.

Upon moving to the Durango area, Shane paired up with the region’s largest private land developers. He worked as both a superintendent on projects, as well as a broker on sales transactions. From there, he was invited to join a small boutique real estate firm that specialized in high-end homes and ranches. This company was the exclusive Christie’s Great Estates affiliate and handled some of the largest real estate transactions in the area. Shane had the opportunity to train as a Christie’s broker during his 6 year tenure.

Having an ownership interest and “capturing your destiny” lead Shane to open Elevation Real Estate Company, where he specializes in personalized and ethical representation of buyers and sellers of real estate in the Durango and Southwest Colorado markets.

General Studies

• Graduated from Northern Arizona University with a BS in Business

Real Estate Specific

• Accredited Buyers Agent designation (ABR)
• Resort & Second Home Specalist designation (RSPS)
• E-Pro designation (E-Pro)

• Ethics and Professional Practices
• Master of Real Estate – Water Law II
• Master of Real Estate – Foreclosures
• Master of Real Estate – Land Surveying & Subdivision Platting
• Master of Real Estate – Insurance in Real Estate
• Master of Real Estate – Real Estate and Related Investments in IRA & 401K
• RLI – Land Investment Analysis
• RLI – Tax Deferred 1031 Exchanges
• RLI – Agricultural Land Brokerage and Marketing
• Mineral Rights – Gas and Oil Lease Basics
• Water 101
• The Power of Investment Analysis
• The Art of Pricing
• NAR Resort & Second Home Markets
• Real Estate Short Selling
• CRS 201 – Listings
• e-Pro Internet Professional
• e-Buyer

Experience

• Operations Manager for 300 + acre Western style resort complex outside of Flagstaff, AZ. Oversaw a staff of 100, with 9 department heads. Participated in boundary adjustment with Coconino National Forest and Land Swap with Kaibab National Forest. Rezoned portions of the 300 acres to Resort Commercial, added employee housing, a full service RV Park, 75% new lodging facilities, restaurant expansion and mobile food catering business for forest fire operations.
• Operations Manager for National Park property in Texas. Oversaw lodges, motels, service stations, employee housing project, restaurants, retail outlets, catering facilities, RV Parks, campgrounds and 135 employees. Repurposed existing employee housing units. Completed the retrofitting of 4 cottages built by the CCC group in the 1920′s within historical guidelines.
• Superintendent for regional ranch developer in La Plata County, Colorado. Oversaw the infrastructure of three ranch projects, including survey, covenants/legal review, roadways, advertising and sales.
• Sales Associate for same regional ranch developer. Participated in sales of ranch projects from Telluride to Pagosa Springs, and multiple projects in and around the Durango area.
• Broker Associate with exclusive Christie’s Great Estates firm in Durango area. Received training in marketing, affluent buyer protocols, pricing luxury properties, and global marketing avenues. Participated in several of the largest transactions in the area, including an 1,800 acre ranch operation, highest priced downtown luxury condo sale, top priced luxury ranch sale, and many other milestones in the top-end of the local area real estate market.
• Owner/Broker of boutique real estate firm, Elevation Real Estate Company.

Why Durango?

We moved to Durango for its beauty, sense of community, and the conveniences it offers without being a “big city”. The experience has been nothing but fantastic and is a great place to raise our son.

Family

In addition to our son, my wife and I have a toy poodle (he barks) and a golden retriever (he doesn’t). We enjoy living close to the schools, downtown and the river for the conveniences they offer at this time in our life, but plan to have a small ranch as we move into other phases of our life. We have family in the Durango and Denver areas, as well as the Midwest.

Outdoor Activities

Skiing, snowshoeing, mountain biking , hiking, backpacking, fly-fishing, scuba, playing in the river.

Other Interests

I love to cook really good food, which often includes fresh herbs & vegetables, local meats, and rich sauces. You can’t be a calorie counter in my kitchen.

When we are not focused on our businesses, my wife and I enjoy traveling. We’ve been to most of the 50 United States, but have also spent time in Europe, Central America, Canada and Mexico. Two special places are Bonaire, with its stellar mid reef diving, and Rome where my wife and I were married.

We read every night. My side of the bed is filled with business books, Entrepreneur magazines, and a good joke book.

Real Estate

• Farm and Ranch Brokerage
• High-end, Luxury Residential
• Vacant and Transitional Land
• Resort & Second Home Properties
• Investment Properties
• Development

Business

• Planning
• Strategy
• Communication

Marketing

• Photography & Videography*
• Online Presence
• Innovative & Creative Solutions
• Smart Target Marketing

*Desert Dolphin, Inc. does all our Videography. They are exceptional!

Memberships

• Durango Area Association of Realtors
• Colorado Association of Realtors
• National Association of Realtors
• Realtors Land Institute
• REBAC
• Young Professionals of Durango
• Durango Chamber of Commerce
• Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate