Beverly Hills Greater Los Angeles Association of Realtors welcomes in the successful Certified Condominium Specialist^® Realtor^® designation class a second time this year for 8-hours of CalBRE Consumer Protection credit on October 2, 2014.

The guest speakers include Chris Curcuru from Color Me Sold Home Staging who will speak on "Effective Condo Staging for Top Dollar" and Bank of America Loan Officer Ken Riedel  who will give an overview of the latest news in condo financing including FHA guidelines:

Ken Riedel
Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS ID: 1088200
Bank of America
Glendale, CA  91203
Direct: 818.539.7059
Office: 818.254.0631
http://mortgage.bankofamerica.com/kenriedel 
 

Chris Curcuru
Color Me Sold Home Staging
323-559-7767
www.ColorMeSoldStaging.com

Certified Condominium Specialist^® and Condo Tiger^™  Zar Gharazian just celebrated her 5 years anniversary of being a Certified Condominium Specialist^®.  Zar also announced that she has joined John Hart^™ Real Estate in Glendale, CA and is look forward to increasing her condo sales in Southern California.  Zar said that she is happy with her new real estate brokerage and she is looking for condo referrals nationally from her fellow CCS designees to continue to increase her business.  Zar can be reached at (818) 370-6963 for Southern California condo referrals.

San Diego Association of Realtors® welcomes the Certified Condominium Specialist® Program into their SDAR Designation Program for Realtors®.

October 22, 2013 - Kimberly Heinrich, Educational Chairperson of the San Diego Association of Realtors®, announced this week that SDAR will feature the Certified Condominum Specialist® Course (CCS) as part of SDAR's elite association designation program.

The San Diego Association of Realtors® has sponsored the Certified Condominum Specialist® Course for a number of years, presenting it to Association members and non-members several times a year in SDAR's regular educational line up. The popular one-day course has resulted in Realtor-attendees' enthusiastic testimonials and increased educational and career success.

The Certified Condominium Specialist® is a national real estate agent designation course administered by Condo University® and the Council of Condominium Specialists®. The California Version is taught Statewide multiple times a year, and offers California Realtor-attendees 8-hours of California Bureau of Real Estate Consumer Protection credit.

The course disseminates to real estate agents and other industry-related people, the vital aspects of condo and common interest development law, case law updates, management, governance, financing, insurance, marketing, promotion, contractual and disclosure issues as well as discussing insightful condo and CID listing, selling and leasing tips and techniques for real estate agents that relate directly to Realtors' career and income expansion.

Through the rest of this year and next year, the course instructors will discuss the latest changes and updates to the Davis-Stirling Act, California's Condo/CID Legislative law, which will become effective starting January 1, 2014.

SDAR's next presentation of the Certified Condominum Specialist® Course will be on Wednesday, October 30, 2013 from 8:30AM to 5:00PM at SDAR's Kearny Mesa Center located at 4845 Ronson Court San Diego, CA 92111.

To register for the Certified Condominium Specialist® Course, call Kimberly at (858) 715-8000 or register online at SDAR.com in the educational calendar section.

Beverly Hills-Greater Los Angeles Association of Realtors Creates 10 more new CCS-Related Designees!

October 23, 2013 - BHGLAAR hosted another one day CAL BRE-accredited Certified Condominium Specialist® course for Realtors®, consisting of an information-packed educational and marketing program relating to Realtors® and their condo and planned development sales success.

Attendees ranged from investors and new agents to long-time successful luxury condominium sales agents who were interested in expanding their careers and reputations through the advanced knowledge and promotional ideas the course offers.

Upon completion of the course, BHGLAAR indicated they were scheduling at least 2 more CCS courses for their membership in 2014.

San Diego Association of Realtors hosts another Successful Certified Condominium Specialist^® Class!

May 29, 2013 - Students and new Certified Condominum Specialist^® Designees gave a special "Thank You!" to the SDAR staff for hosting the National Designation Course Certified Condominum Specialist^®.

This particular presentation of the course in San Diego was the Califoronia Version of the national designation course and a California Department of Real Estate Accredited Course with 8-hours of Department of Real Estate Consumer Protection credit.

The course was rated "Excellent" by the Realtor^® attendees, who ranged from newer agents to experienced brokers. The program offered lively discussions on the latest condo sales topics and indepth study of condo laws, governance, management, sales techniques and more.

Planning is underway for the next Certified Condominium Specialist^® designation class hosted by SDAR, which presents instructors from the Council of Condominium Specialists^®.

Boston Certified Condominium Specialist^® Collin Bray Chosen as Finalist in the "30 Under 30" Program!

March 2013 - Certified Condominium Specialist^® Collin Bray, of Century 21 Cityside in Boston, Massachusetts, has been chosen as one of the 2013 Finalists for the "30 Under 30" Realtors^® of the Year award!

Each year, Realtor^® Magazine presents the 30 honorees who are elected by their piers, for the 30 Under 30, which is sponsored by the National Association of Realtors and HP, a REALTOR^® Benefits Partner. "This year’s group of young professionals exemplifies the ingenuity, dedication, and prowess that's raising the bar in real estate today," said a spokesperson for the program.

As a Certified Condominium Specialist^® designee, Collin uses his condo-selling knowledge and experience he has gained, to boost his sales and income production while he provides qualify service to his condominium and residential sales clients and customers.

Collin, who is 29, was chosen as a Guest Speaker for the October 2012 Certified Condominium Specialist^® Program that was held in Boston for Realtors^® who specialize in selling condos, townhomes and other forms of HOA-related properties. Collin led the Boston Condo Sales Round-table during the program, enlightening other local agents on the "ins and outs" of selling condos in Boston and the surrounding areas.

In 2012, Collin had an individual sales volume of $14.6 million and his individual sides were 23.

Collin can be reached for Boston condo and townhome sales and referrals at: 617-262-2600 or by email at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Beverly Hills and Los Angeles Real Estate Agents Come Together to Earn the National Certified Condominium Specialist® Designation for Greater Success in Condominium Sales
 

November 8, 2012, Beverly Hills - Beverly Hills-Greater Los Angeles Association of Realtors® (BHGLAAR) hosted another successful Certified Condominium Specialist® seminar on November 8th at their association for their new and experienced Realtor® members who are involved in actively listing and selling condominiums in Los Angeles, Century City and the surrounding areas. This is the second time the BHGLAAR hosted the Department of Real Estate-approved course this year.

Guest speakers included Annie Pinsker-Brown, Owner and Principal Designer of Stage to Sell, and the 2011 Professional Stager of the Year for North America by the Real Estate Staging Association (RESA). Ms. Pinsher-Brown gave the agent-attendees her insights into effective condo home-staging. Loan Officer Asha Bell, with Prospect Mortgage, also spoke at the seminar on current market condo financing guidelines and FHA updates for financing condo sales.

A surprise guest speaker who spoke at the seminar later in the afternoon, was Certified Condominium Specialist® and REO Broker Belinda Buchanan, Broker Associate of REALTY WORLD, Complete Services, who sells property in the Oakland, California real estate market. Ms. Buchanan is the Northern California, Regional Vice President of the Council of Condominium Specialists®. Ms. Buchanan advised the Realtor-attendees on how she has successfully used the Certified Condominium Specialist® designation in her marketing plan to REO Asset Managers to get more condo listings over other agents who have not yet earned the designation.

The Certified Condominium Specialist® program is offered throughout the United States by Council of Condominium Specialists® and Condo University and is the national designation program for Realtors® who want to expand their condo-selling business and knowledge, and to provide more quality service to buyers and sellers during the condo transaction.

CENTURY 21 Cityside, Collin Bray, is Guest Speaker at the Upcoming Condo Agent Designation Program in Boston in October

BOSTON -- Collin Bray, successful Boston condo sales agent, will be lead the Boston Condo Sales Success Round Table during the Certified Condominium Specialist Designation Class on October 15, 2012. Mr. Bray will be speaking about some of the latest concerns Boston condo agents should be aware of when listing and selling local condominiums.

Additional Boston News Updates:

Doug Bray, Broker-Owner and Managing Director of CENTURY 21 Cityside in downtown Boston, announced he has invited his condo-selling agents to attend the Certified Condominium Specialist® Designation Course given through Condo University and the National Council of Condominium Specialists® in mid-October.

"It is key for today’s real estate agent to stay on top of the latest educational tools and trends in the marketplace in order to deliver the superior service and customer satisfaction that our clients expect," said one local broker. "And condo sales are a big part of the downtown market in Boston. Selling a condominium takes additional agent knowledge, skill and a special kind of expertise and professionalism to do the right job for condo buyers and sellers."

The National Certified Condominium Specialist® Designation Course is an essential class for local agents to participate in to help them meet the demands required of agents working in the area of condominium sales. The program will give our agents an advantage with the very latest knowledge and understanding of the anatomy of condo sales that will result in them being more powerful in our local marketplace and in getting a bigger share of the market.

Besides the educational information the course offers, graduates of the one day program receive the Certified Condominium Specialist® designation for use in their marketing toolbox as well as membership in the Council of Condominium Specialists® and the Council’s National Condo Agent Referral Network. Two other sponsors include Brian Koss of the Mortgage Network who will speak about the latest conventional and FHA financing guidelines for condominium sales as well as Setting the Space, who will share special home-staging tips with attendees for more effective condo sales.

The designation class will take place on Monday, October 15th, from 8:30AM to 5:00PM in Boston at The Constitution Inn Meeting Room, 150 Third Ave., Boston, MA 02129.

The program includes essential information for real estate agents on Massachusetts condo law, community association governance and management, insurance issues, dispute resolution options, agent listing and sales and showing techniques, local market topic discussion and more, and is for real estate agents who wish to be at the top of their field and provide distinctive service to their condo sellers and buyers.

The cost of the Boston, MA condo designation program is $79.00 (with sponsor participation.) Breakfast and lunch, Boston Condo Sales Success Round Table and the guest speaker portion of the program are included in the program fee. Note: $18.00 parking fee additional - Parking at the Mass General Garage, 3rd and 13th Avenue)

For more information, call the Council of Condominium Specialists® at (818) 400-8485.

To register online: CertifiedCondoExpert.com

Nevada Department of Real Estate Awards NV DRE Accreditation to the Council of Condominium Specialists® for the Certified Condominium Specialist® Designation Program!

September 18, 2012 - Nevada Department of Real Estate announced this week that they have given Nevada DRE accreditation to the Council of Condominium Specialists to teach the live version of the Certified Condominium Specialists Course to Nevada real estate agents. The next Nevada RCCS course will be taught in the Spring of 2013 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Details to follow.

Congratulations to Agents Awarded National Condo Designation!

Minneapolis Condo Agent Bill Hirsch Earns the Certified Condominum Specialist® Designation

August 31, 2012 - Minnesota Realtor^® Bill Hirsch, of RE/Max Results in Edina, was recently welcomed into the Council of Condominium Specialists^® and awarded the Certified Condominium Specialist^® Designation after completing the RCCS Program.

Bill, a highly accomplished Minnesota real estate agent with over twenty five years of sales and marketing experience as a Realtor, ranks in the upper 14% of his peers at the 86th percentile in his sales area.

Bill sells condos and homes in the Edina, Minneapolis-St. Paul and Bloomington and the Lynnhurst and Armatage neighborhoods. His average sale price of $142K and he has closed transactions ranging from $77K to $236K in value.

Bill's impressive background includes a successful career managing and selling complex leasing solutions to major Fortune 500 companies. He later excelled in sales and marketing of financial services for American Express, First Union Bank, and Marsh and McClennan, where these experiences trained him to take a "solutions" approach to assist his real estate clients.

For current listing and sales information on condos and townhomes in the Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul area, or to make a client referral to Bill, contact Bill Hirsch of RE/Max Results at 612-743-7929, or by e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Atlanta Luxury Condo Agent Earns the Certified Condominum Specialist® Designation

June 21, 2012 -- Atlanta Realtor^® Yink Aikens, of The Luxe Life Group of Keller Williams Realty Atlanta Classic, has distinguishedherself in the field of luxury condominium sales in the Atlanta area by earning the prestigious national Certified Condominium Specialist^® designation. This designation is given to select real estate agents who have completed specialized education, and have demonstrated specific market knowledge and quality client service and experience, in effectively listing and selling condominiums, townhomes and other forms of HOA-related properties, with strong client satisfaction, in their area.

The certification program and designation are offered by the Council of Condominium Specialists^®, which is the national accrediting authority for real estate professionals to provide a more sophisticated level of service and superior market expertise to their condo buyers and sellers.

The designation indicates the recipient real estate agent has worked diligently to complete essential real estate training and has met specific performance standards to demonstrate quality sales leadership and a deeper understanding of their local condominium market.

“Real estate sales are more challenging in today’s market in general,” said Candy Peak, Director of the Council of Condominium Specialists^®. “But selling a property with a Homeowner Association is even more complex as it requires the real estate professional to provide their condo buyer or seller with “specialized” guidance throughout the transaction. The agent must be prepared to clearly communicate with the buyer and seller about all of the individual and shared ownership issues that always arise with HOA-related real estate transactions.”

Peak goes on to say, “It, therefore, requires real estate agents to have specialized real estate knowledge and expertise to professionally navigate a buyer or seller through the intricate path of HOA-related property sales and ownership so the experience is a satisfying and successful one for all involved.”

“I have a sincere commitment to providing outstanding service to my condo clients,” said Aikens. “And my Certified Condominium Specialist^® designation is evidence of my ability to meet the needs of condo and townhouse buyers and sellers in the Atlanta area. My membership in the Council of Condominium Specialists^® Agent Referral Network also provides me with the marketing tools and networking capabilities that bring added benefits to my clients.”

Aikens, who lives in the Atlanta area, holds both a Georgia and California real estate license and is also affiliated with Keller Williams Realty in Los Angeles, California.

For current listing and sales information on condos and townhomes in the Atlanta area, to receive a market evaluation of your property, or to make a client referral in the Atlanta area, contact condo-selling expert Yink Aikens at Keller Williams Realty at 404.503.8207 or by e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..