LuxuryRealEstate.com Holds Conference: Brokers Descend on Chicago

Membership, including Board of Regents, meet four times each year, nationally and internationally
Membership, including Board of Regents, meet four times each year, nationally and internationally

RISMEDIA, October 17, 2006?Many of the country?s highest end and luxury brokers gathered recently for the 11th Annual Luxury Real Estate Membership Conference held Sunday, October 8th to Tuesday, October 10th, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Chicago. The Keynote Speaker was Stedman Graham, Chairman and CEO of S. Graham and Associates, a management consulting firm in Chicago.

The Conference was hosted by John Brian Losh, Chairman and CEO of Luxury Real Estate, (LuxuryRealEstate.com and Who’s Who of Luxury Real Estate), a membership-driven luxury brokerage assemblage based in Seattle, Washington. The membership, including the highest end luxury brokers as well as those who constitute the Board of Regents, meet four times each year, nationally and internationally.

The recent conference in Chicago covered multiple topics of great interest to those who serve the high net-worth demographic. An ongoing theme, covered in each of the conferences, dealt with the state of the luxury market around the world. Cora Bett Thomas of Cora Bett Thomas Realty in Savannah, GA, Donald Pearson of Kurfiss Real Estate in Philadelphia, PA, Frederick Peters, of Warburg Realty Partnership in New York, John Daugherty of John Daugherty Realtors in Houston and Patricia Choi of Choi International in Honolulu, all discussed market trends in their respective areas, highlighting growth and slowing dimensions, the influence of media on these trends, and projections for 2007.

The educational sessions for this conference offered a variety of relevant topics for luxury brokers, from understanding the nuances and effects of the 1031 exchange, Web site analysis, and understanding the destination club model and how luxury brokers can derive business from it. Of great interest also was learning the latest innovations for the Luxury Real Estate network ? especially regarding new membership components, technological additions, a new magazine design, and a new Web site rollout ? www.michaelsaunders.com, a site created by the Luxury Real Estate Technology Team. Also discussed were upcoming events for 2007, including the Luxury Real Estate European Conference in Geneva, in January.

The breakout sessions, more informal than the education sessions of the day before, still offered a greater exploration of topics relevant to the high end broker. Sessions on the psychology of motivation, strategies for luxury marketing in a slowing market, how to win the listing at the full brokerage fee, aspects of international marketing and tapping into the $2 billion+ shared residence market, all allowed for lively discussion and greater education.

The conference was once again combined the best education with the best experience, including a formal dinner at the Chicago Yacht Club for the Board of Regents, elegant dinners and receptions at the Four Seasons and two high end property tours, one in downtown Chicago, and the other on the North Shore, through Evanston, Wilmette, Lake Forest, and other area towns. On both tours, the brokers explored and learned about the many multi-million dollar properties of Chicago and its suburbs.

On the last night, Annual Awards were presented for:

Best Brand Integration

Turnquist Partners, Austin, Texas

Best Overall Marketing Package

Slifer Smith & Frampton Real Estate, Vail, Colorado

Most Innovative Marketing Technique

Real Living, Ohio

Best Web Site

Bahamas Realty Ltd., The Bahamas

Most Outbound Referrals

Eleanor Farnsworth, New Orleans, Louisiana

Best Magazine Participation

Washington Fine Properties LLC, Washington D.C.

Luxury Real Estate Board of Regents Member Tim Murray, President and CEO of Pacific Union GMAC Brokerage in San Francisco, summed up the feelings of many delegates and participants: ?This conference expanded the knowledge and overall awareness of the luxury broker. I have been to many Luxury Real Estate conferences, both nationally and internationally, and they just get better and better. The sessions, breakout topics and speakers are always educationally relevant and the property tours are greatly helpful in seeing what is out there in the over 5 -10 million plus category. I truly look forward to next year.

To learn more about Luxury Real Estate, visit www.LuxuryRealEstate.com.