Achieve Realty is proud to announce it was recently featured in the Pittsburgh Business Times List for the “Largest Pittsburgh-Area Residential Real Estate Firms.” For 2005, Achieve Realty ranked fifteenth on the list with 218 transaction sides. This achievement is noteworthy for several reasons: first, 2005 was Achieve Realty’s first full calendar year in business. Second, in terms of numbers of agents, Achieve placed twefth. Kristen Stokes, President of Achieve Realty, stated, “we’re honored to be included among the finest real estate brokerages in Greater Pittsburgh.”

February 12, 2006 (Pittsburgh, PA) Achieve Realty has announced its recruitment statistics for 2005. During the twelve-month period starting January 1, 2005 and ending December 31, 2005, Achieve Realty added 33 REALTORS(R) to its roster. “This number is phenomenal by anyone’s measure,” stated Kristen Stokes, President of Achieve Realty.

This statistic reflects a larger trend in the real estate business as well. Increasingly, real estate sales associates are moving into high commission concept companies. “There’s a reason why high commission concept companies are growing throughout the country,” stated Lawton Stokes, Vice-President of Achieve Realty. “Agents take home more money.”

Lawton Stokes added, “We’re the classic high-commission concept model except we cut out the middle man - an entire tier of costs that agents and brokers pay at most high commission concept companies - the franchisor.”

Typically, money is not the sole motivating force that causes a REALTORS(R) to change companies. “Our value-added is the full-time legal support,” said Kristen Stokes. “No other company puts such an emphasis on the availability of legal counsel to its agents,” she added.

The Achieve Realty philosophy has resonated with real estate agents and their clients. 25% of the agents joining Achieve Realty in 2005 came from Coldwell Banker. 50% of the agents joining Achieve Realty in 2005 came from RE/MAX or Keller Williams franchises. The remaining 25% of agents came from diverse brokerages, including Howard Hanna Real Estate.

Achieve Realty has already added 4 licensed real estate salespersons to its roster in 2006. “2006 is our year!” exclaimed Kristen Stokes.

If you’re looking for real estate in Greater Pittsburgh, our web site enables you to search for virtually every listing. And here’s a consumer-friendly bonus: you don’t have to log-in our share any information about yourself with us in order to do your search. It’s fast, it’s easy, it’s fun. So click here to start searching the West Penn Multi-List for virtually every listing in Greater Pittsburgh.

As of March 1, 2005—after only 11 months into business -Achieve Realty marks the 10 Realtor® milestone.

“I’m delighted with the pace of our growth,” stated Kristen Stokes, President of Achieve Realty.

One of the most interesting aspects of our growth so far has been the number of Realtors® choosing to work from home.

“We’re working with very independent people who look at their careers as their own small business. Home is where they can work uninterrupted,” said Vice-President Lawton Stokes.

Lawton also pointed out that by industry standards, 10 Realtors® recruited in one year is phenomenal.

As for future growth: “I expect our Wexford office to level off at 30 agents within 18 months,” Lawton said. That way, we’re retain our character as a boutique, yet accumulate a disproportionate share of the market in terms of sales volume.

Achieve Realty, Inc. is a residential real estate brokerage founded in the Spring of 2004 by husband-and-wife attorneys Kristen P. Stokes and D. Lawton Stokes. Both Stokes’ have extensive experience in the real estate field.

Kristen is the owner of Allegheny Settlement Company, Inc., a provider of title insurance and settlement services since 1993. She is a Pennsylvania-licensed Title Insurance Agent. During her 10-plus years in business, Kristen has conducted thousands of closings. Her business is comprised primarily of real estate purchases and refinances.

Lawton has worked at Allegheny Settlement Company since 1994. He has conducted thousands of closings. He manages the business aspects of the company, including human resources, technology, purchasing, accounting, web-site and marketing.

From 2000-2004, Lawton co-owned a real estate franchise with two local offices. Lawton managed various aspects of the company including human resources, technology, web-site, intranet, accounting and purchasing. In a legal capacity, Lawton reviewed contracts for the company, including real estate leases, equipment leases, non-compete agreements and employment contracts.

Furthermore, Lawton served as full-time in-house legal counsel for the company. In this role, Lawton acted as a legal resource for all of the real estate sales associates within the company. He was available to provide legal counsel 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In addition, he conducted many training classes for the sales associates.

In 2004, Lawton’s partners purchased his ownership interest in the real estate franchise. Subsequently, Lawton and Kristen decided to start their own real estate company, Achieve Realty, Incorporated.

One frequent question they receive is, “Why didn’t you purchase a franchise?” Lawton’s response: “From a consumer standpoint, franchises give name recognition to sales associates who don’t otherwise have name recognition. We work with Realtors® who already have name recognition—their own.

Furthermore, franchises charge their brokers and their sales associates advertising fees. This results in higher costs for buyers and sellers. National advertising is designed to bring business to the company. National advertising, however, will never get YOUR house sold or find you a house to buy.”

Beside its’ independent brokerage status, there are many other features that distinguish Achieve Realty:

Achieve Realty does not charge an “Administrative fee (aka Brokerage Fee, Technology Fee”). This is a flat fee that franchised real estate brokerages charge to buyers and sellers above and beyond the real estate commission. The cost ranges from $100 to $395. Thus, Achieve’s customers realize an immediate savings.

Achieve Realty does not hire brand new real estate sales associates. When a client calls, they are guaranteed to talk to a Realtor® who is a top producer and has many years of experience.

Achieve Realty is a one-stop-shop. Buyers can obtain a top notch Realtor®, title insurance, mortgage financing, home warranty and homeowners insurance by making one telephone call to the office.

Achieve Realty has full time in-house legal counsel who encourage Realtors® to ask questions and do not charge for their assistance. This translates into a better-educated, better-equipped sales force.

Achieve Realty is a subscriber to the West Penn Multi-List and its IDX system. This means every Achieve listing is visible on Realtor.com. It also means that virtually every listing on the West Penn Multi-List is available on AchieveRealty.net and vice-versa.

Every Achieve listing has a virtual tour. This gives online buyers the most comprehensive views of the inventory of homes for sale. There is no extra cost to home sellers for this important service.

Achieve Realty is at the top of page one on Google, the major internet search engine. This insures maximum exposure of our inventory to online home shoppers.

Achieve’s website does not require a password to enter. In other words, online home shoppers can view all the information available on the West Penn Multi-List without having to divulge their personal information. Achieve gets all the information to consumers faster.

Achieve does not require that its sales associates “push” or sell their brokerage’s ancillary services. Therefore, the customer is encouraged to find the best deals for themselves versus the best deal for the real estate brokerage.

Every sales associate at Achieve Realty practices real estate as a full-time career. Achieve Realty is a company that is dedicated to elevating the real estate profession and proving to you, the consumer, that Realtors® are worth every dollar of the commission that they earn.