Last Updated on October 10, 2025
Howard Hanna Allen Tate Real Estate Chairman Pat Riley and Founder H. Allen Tate Jr.are among the 100 most influential leaders who helped define the Charlotte region’s transformation over the past 25 years.
Power 100: 25 Years of Progress, published by the Charlotte Business Journal, recognizes visionaries in business, government, philanthropy and beyond whose decisions, investments and foresight.
Riley has led Howard Hanna Allen Tate from three offices in the greater Charlotte region to a national real estate powerhouse with 81 locations in North, South Carolina and Georgia. In 2018, he led efforts to form a joint venture with Howard Hanna Real Estate, creating a template for future partnerships between independent real estate companies across the country. Riley has been chief architect of nearly 40 acquisitions of other family-owned real estate companies.
In August, Allen Tate rebranded as Howard Howard Allen Tate Real Estate, completing the partnership formed in 2018 with a new visual identity and moving forward as one unified brand.
During his tenure as president, CEO and currently chairman, Riley has not only grown Howard Hanna Allen Tate, but has also helped grow and nurture the Charlotte community, through leadership and service with multiple organizations, boards and initiatives. Riley has chaired local boards, including Charlotte Center City Partners, Arts & Science Council, Charlotte Chamber and Greater Charlotte Cultural Trust. He was a founding member of the Charlotte Executive Leadership Council and championed numerous education initiatives, including the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Schools Foundation, Best NC and MeckEd. In 1999, Riley created the Howard Hanna Allen Tate FUNday, which has raised more than $2.8 million for public education.
Riley has received accolades including the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, the state’s highest civilian honor and the Old North State Award. He is a multi-year recipient of the CBJ Most Admired CEO Award and received the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022. He has been named to the Business NC Power 100 list four times.
A leading voice for Charlotte real estate and economic development, Tate founded Allen Tate Companies (now Howard Hanna Allen Tate) in 1957 and grew it to become part of the No. 1 independent, family-owned company in the nation, Howard Hanna. He helped develop more than 30 residential neighborhoods in the Charlotte SouthPark area, including Foxcroft, Kingswood and Montibello. Tate died in 2015.
Tate served as chairman of the Charlotte Chamber, president of the Jaycees, chairman of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Commission and chairman of the Charlotte Chamber’s Regional Roads Committee. He was honored for his transportation work when the final section of I-485 was named the H. Allen Tate Jr. Highway. The Allen Tate Tower on the main campus of Central Piedmont Community College recognizes Tate’s commitment to education and the achievements of students and staff.
Tate’s many honors and awards include Carolinas’ Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, Order of the Long Leaf Pine, NC Business Hall of Fame, NC Housing Hall of Fame, and Paul Harris Rotary Fellow.
“We honor and celebrate the contributions of both of these great men, who built the company that I am proud to lead today, as well as the greater Charlotte community and the Carolinas,” said Gary Scott, president, Howard Hanna Allen Tate.
Howard Hanna Allen Tate Real Estate is the #1 real estate company in the Carolinas, with more than 75 offices and 1,800 agents serving communities across North and South Carolina. As part of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services, the largest family-owned and operated real estate company in the United States, Howard Hanna Allen Tate offers a full suite of real estate services, including mortgage, insurance, title and relocation. For more information, visit www.howardhannatate.com.
