Leslie Rouda Smith (ABR®, AHWD, C2EX, CIPS, CRB, CRS®, e-PRO®, PMN), a REALTOR® for 37 years from Plano, Texas, is the 2023 Immediate Past President of the National Association of REALTORS®.
Leslie is a broker-associate at Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate in Dallas, where she specializes in residential, ranch, and country real estate along with her husband Brian and their children, Kristin and Austin, all of whom are REALTORS®.
At the national level, Leslie has been a member of NAR’s Board of Directors since 2009 and has served several years on the Executive Committee. In 2017, she was the vice president for Region 10, comprised of Louisiana and Texas, and she chaired the “Future of the REALTOR® Party” PAG. In 2013, she served on the NAR Leadership Team as vice president.
As NAR’s 2022 President, she led the association’s post-pandemic evolution and elevated sustainability to be a key strategic priority and operational driver for NAR; her ground-breaking tree-planting initiative will plant over 1.5 million trees, one for every member.
In 2009 and 2011, she served as a liaison for two NAR past presidents. Also in 2011, she chaired the Leadership Academy Advisory Board, served as the political fundraising liaison, and served on Presidential Advisory Groups for political survival as well as National Flood Insurance Program implementation. In 2008, Leslie chaired the Professional Development Committee.
Leslie is very active in REALTOR® Party activities. She has been a member of the RPR, LLC Board of Directors, and was a longtime Regent for REALTOR® University. She has experience serving on numerous NAR committees, including Finance, Strategic Thinking, Communications, and Research.
At the state level, Leslie was the 2016 Chairman of the Board of Texas REALTORS®. She has served on their Board of Directors for multiple terms. She was named their 2018 REALTOR® of the Year and received the Texas REALTORS® Distinguished Service Award in 2014. She was the founder of the Texas REALTORS® State YPN Network.
Leslie is a past recipient of the Salesperson of the Year award from a local association. She received REALTOR® of the Year from her local board, the Collin County Association of REALTORS® in Plano, Texas. She served as president of the Dallas network of the Women’s Council of REALTORS® in 1998, and in 2014, she was named Entrepreneur of the Year for the Texas Women’s Council of REALTORS® Network.
Active in her community, Leslie has volunteered on behalf of affordable housing programs, neighborhood revitalization, and housing opportunity initiatives. She has a bachelor’s degree in communications from the Ohio State University, where she was named an Outstanding Young Alumni.