It's the little things we do.
Just as you pride yourself on doing the little things that make your house a home, focusing on the fine details is what distinguishes the ERA® professional.

ERA Real Estate has been in the business of fulfilling the dream of homeownership since 1972 as Electronic Realty Associates. Today, it is one of the world's leading residential franchise brokerage networks, with more than 28,000 brokers and sales associates.

For most people, buying or selling a home is one of the biggest financial commitments they will make in their lifetime. That's why ERA® professionals are committed to guiding customers through each step of the transaction and going beyond the basic responsibilities of a real estate broker or sales associate.

Through working with a member of the ERA® family, customers benefit from a variety of programs, services and methods created specifically to meet the demands and needs of people in every corner of the world. As a subsidiary of Cendant Corporation (NYSE:CD), the world's largest provider of hospitality, travel and real estate-related services, ERA Real Estate has the ability to offer special values on everything from mortgages and title insurance to car rentals and hotels.

The Web site you're viewing now is just the latest in a long legacy of ERA® efforts to apply the most up-to-date technologies for advancing the most essential of American dreams. The following paragraphs detail many of the benefits of doing business through ERA.com and ERA Real Estate's many other state-of-the-art resources.

Showcase your home to a worldwide audience. When you list your house with an ERA® office, your listing information becomes available to millions of buyers through ERA.com. We can showcase your home with up to eight color photographs, virtual tours and a detailed description of the home including amenities, special features, price and location. This value-added service costs you nothing. It's simply another reason ERA Real Estate makes a difference when selling your house.

Potential buyers visit frequently. The power of the Internet enables ERA.com to provide greater exposure for sellers to showcase their houses, and greater ability for buyers to find the homes of their dreams online. The site is updated daily with new listings and information about the buying, selling and financing process, as well as information about neighborhoods you are considering and much more.

Reach relocating families. In today's global marketplace, more and more homebuyers are from out of town. That makes ERA.com a time-saving tool for relocating families. ERA.com's relocation search takes the customer's search criteria and presents homes in the area they select the surrounding ones, exposing consumers to towns or homes they might not have found otherwise. This provides them with an easy way to preview homes thousands of miles away in preparation for their first house-hunting trip.

Once you have found your dream home, your thoughts turn to the moving process. And ERA.com is there to help you, with the ERA® Move Planner. This program helps by reminding you what you should be doing during the time leading up to your closing. With information on moving with your children or pets, tips on packing, and more, it helps take the stress out of moving.

Always There For You. Your ERA® professional can demonstrate how ERA.com can get you fast results when selling your house. Contact us and we'll tell you about all the other ways that ERA Real Estate is Always There For You®.

Shop Online, Anytime — ERA.com, an award-winning consumer Web site, provides buyers and sellers access to homes for sale around the world at any time of the day or night. The site provides a virtual open house for every listing, with up to eight photos, virtual tours and a full description. ERA.com allows customers to look through listings, by a variety of search criteria based on their needs, to find their dream home.

Phone In, Move In — ERA Mortgage offers home financing the easy way. By calling a toll-free number, ERA® customers receive free pre-approval, can follow a paperless application process, and get a money-back service guarantee.

Protection From Unexpected Home Repairs — ERA Real Estate was the first franchise of its type to offer a national home warranty plan. For more than two decades, the ERA® Home Protection Plan® has given millions of buyers and sellers peace of mind when they need it most. The Home Protection Plan covers many of the built-in appliances and systems in a house from the time the property is listed until an entire year after its sale.

We Will Sell Your House, or ERA Will Buy It!® — No other national real estate brand offers a program like the ERA Sellers Security® Plan, which combines an equity advance and a guaranteed sale plan. This provides qualified sellers with the comfort of knowing that their house will sell at a pre-agreed price - one less hassle when relocating.

One-Stop Shopping — ERA® Select Services is the one-stop resource available to consumers for the lifetime of homeownership. This program provides them with the benefits of convenient and cost-saving offers through a wide range of high-quality, professional providers - from mortgage services to satellite TV - nationally and locally.

Whether it's a move around the corner or around the globe, ERA Real Estate can help. Since establishing the first real estate franchise network outside North America in 1981 in Japan, ERA Real Estate has expanded its worldwide network in over 30 countries and territories. As a result of its global expansion, the company has helped take the real estate industry to new levels in many lands.

ERA® offices are united in a commitment to professionalism and service no matter where their customers may be. ERA Real Estate combines its "Always There For You®" philosophy with the unique strengths of each country it expands to. The ERA® network is distinguished by expertise in individual markets and by strong cultural ties. In every corner of the world, the talents and tools that the ERA® brand offers forge cultural connections while they foster professional partnerships. Though "home" is said differently in every language, the ERA® system is something to which everyone can belong.

ERA Real Estate will be the company of choice for customers and agents because ERA® sales associates are ethical, forward-thinking and results-oriented professionals who take a proactive approach to real estate. Therefore, agents can be sure they'll have the best tools and training to accomplish any job.

Consumers will have total confidence that they are dealing with a consummate professional demonstrating the highest level of service and integrity.

State-of-the-art tools aiding time-honored success techniques

ERA.com. — This consumer site offers Internet exposure for marketing homes. In 2002, 75 percent of home seekers searched on the Internet before buying. Through ERA.com, ERA® listings provide potential buyers with details and photos of the home.

TeamERA.com — A constantly evolving Internet-based information center for brokers and sales associates that helps ERA® affiliates become more knowledgeable about the real estate industry and ERA® products and services.

MyTeamERA.com — MyTeamERA.com is a tool on the TeamERA.com Web site that automatically tailors its contents to each and every Web site user providing brokers and sales associates with a direct link to ERA products and services.

MyTeamERA.com provides one-stop access to the ERA tools and information that can help brokers and sales associates work smarter, faster and easier. At the core of MyTeamERA.com are the ERA technology program accounts.

ERA affiliates can also use resources such as:

• a weather forecast search
• a package tracker for Airborne, Federal Express and United Parcel Service
• ERA Real Estate and industry news
• coupons for national and local partner discounts
• ERA mortgage rates that refresh three times daily to provide the most current rate
• direct links to the ERA Mortgage, ERA Home Protection Plan, and ERA Referral Network programs

One-Click Away — "ERA® One-Click Away" is a new technology program designed to increase the exposure of listings on the Internet by feeding ERA listings directly to online search engines. In doing so, ERA® One-Click Away increases the frequency with which ERA listings appear in online searches and drives traffic to ERA.com.

This new technology will offer ERA Real Estate professionals a competitive advantage by enabling customers who list with an ERA brokerage to realize more page views of their property on the Internet.

ERA® One-Click Away modifies content code to allow Web search engines, such as AltaVista or Google^TM, to locate ERA listings as quickly as they find Web sites. As a result, consumers who use search engines will locate ERA listings with as little information as geographic location and the words, "real estate".

The Moving Experience & ERA Interactive Brochure — Business-card-shaped CDs that incorporate today's high technology with the marketing of ERA® services.

Electronic Newsletters — Professionally written electronic newsletters automatically emailed weekly.

Agent Profile Pages on ERA.com — Photos, personal profile, hobbies, specializations, awards/recognition, designations, and languages spoken, as well as links to the agent's email and personal Web site, can be posted on ERA.com.

Web-based Training Programs — ERA Real Estate provides its sales associates, brokers and other system members with a wide range of training opportunities via the Internet and eCampus. This state-of-the-art training platform allows our affiliates to continue their education in the real estate industry using the power of the Web.

@ERA.com email — An email box and forwarding system than gives an easy-to-remember email address @ERA.com.

ERA Property Flyer — The ERA® Property Flyer enables ERA® sales professionals to create quality flyers with just a couple of clicks. These full-color flyers can be used to market your home and be printed or sent in electronic format.

ERA® Move Planner — An email utility designed to help sales associates keep in touch with customers between contract and closing. The system provides customers with timely tips at each stage of the moving process.

ERA® Web Template — A pre-built customizable Web page for sales associates.

National TV, radio and print advertising campaigns are designed to promote the ERA® brand and give your home more exposure.

Special Programs for Special Markets

ERA International Collection
The ERA® International Collection program was launched in 1999 to help sales associates and brokers expand into the luxury home market and expose these properties to a worldwide audience.

The program is known not only for its special marketing tools, but also its "International Collection Specialist" certification program. The course provides a detailed overview of the program and outlines how to effectively market luxury properties and utilize specialized prospecting materials. Sales associates are required to pass a written test upon completion of the course to earn the ERA® International Collection Specialist designation.

The program has three categories, each featuring a customized marketing approach to meet the unique characteristics of that niche. The International Level spotlights homes and estates with a value of at least $1 million that have a global appeal. At the Premier Level, homes are in the top 10 percent of their market. This level includes properties that are considered distinctive in their local and regional markets. The final category highlights listings that have a historical significance. Historic Level properties are defined by their age (generally 50 years or older) and distinct characteristics.

ERA Historic Real Estate Program
The ERA® Historic Real Estate Program is a public-private educational program offered to the brand's sales associates through a partnership between the National Trust for Historic Preservation and ERA Franchise Systems, Inc.

The Historic Real Estate Program offers a comprehensive look at architectural styles from early Colonial through Art Deco. It also provides education on historic preservation legislation and ordinances, tax incentives and the requirements to include a property in the National Register of Historic Places.

After completing the one-day course, participants receive a six-month membership in the National Trust and a certificate of completion. ERA® affiliates are permitted to use the National Trust logo on their promotional materials upon completion of the course.

ERA® Resort Properties International
This program unites resort specialists from around the world through specialized marketing programs.

ERA Hispanic Marketing
Through a variety of Spanish-language materials and training programs, ERA® sales associates are well equipped to help serve the growing Latino market.

Looking for a rewarding career in Real Estate? Join the ERA family.

Through the ERA® standard of providing franchisees with state-of-the-art technology, marketing support, products and services, thousands of ERA® affiliates throughout the world are benefiting from being a part of a global leader. As members of the ERA® family, real estate professionals have access to:

• TeamERA.com — An Intranet site especially designed for ERA® affiliates. The internal network is a passport to online training programs, monthly awards updates and ERA® news. It also features information about products, programs and services available to ERA® members.

   

• Local Marketing Materials — ERA Real Estate offers affiliates customized marketing materials, including direct mail programs to help sales professionals generate activity in their own backyard.

   

• Incentive Programs — Through the company's Awards and Recognition Department, there are numerous opportunities for sales associates and brokers to receive recognition for their achievements. It's just one of the many ways ERA Real Estate supports the accomplishments of its affiliates.

   

• Global Brand Recognition — ERA Real Estate has a worldwide network of more than 28,000 brokers and sales associates.

   

• Historic Preservation — As a result of ERA Real Estate's relationship with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, affiliates have the opportunity to participate in marketing programs that protect properties of architectural and historical significance. ERA® sales professionals may participate in educational programs to join this niche market.

   

• ERA® eCampus — A suite of comprehensive training programs is available to the global ERA® system in a continuing effort to support the success of ERA® sales professionals in every corner of the world. In addition to classroom training, flexible Internet-based classes allow real estate professionals to participate from the comfort of their home or office 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

   

• Powerful Prospecting Tools — The Moving Experience and the ERA® Interactive Brochure — , business-card-sized CD-ROMs, each feature a professionally designed multimedia presentation. The ERA® Interactive Brochure is pitched to prospective ERA® customers who have not yet committed to listing or purchasing a home. The Moving Experience is designed to guide buyers through the moving process.

   

• Internal Communications — A range of resources helps keep you connected to the progress and vision of the ERA® system. ERAtv is a succinct video sales meeting with valuable business tips. TeamERA magazine features quarterly reports on the most crucial ERA® news, as does its monthly email supplement, the e-Update. Complementing these success tools for all sales professionals, brokers also benefit from the bi-monthly Broker e-bulletin.

The ERA Answers Line was formed in August 1996 to help answer questions from the membership regarding the transition of departments from Kansas City Headquarters to Parsippany, New Jersey. The department is now known as the Customer Service Team with our major focus on total customer service. The team assists nearly 1,050 inbound callers per month. The Customer Service Team Managers proactively contacted our members an average of 8 to 9 times during the year.

The Customer Service team serves as a proactive communications vehicle by making monthly outbound calls to offices to increase the awareness of new products, services or events. They are able to assist brokers and sales associates in any unresolved challenges with any departments in ERA.

ERA Real Estate & MDA: A Winning Team

Since ERA Franchise Systems, Inc. became the sole corporate sponsor from the real estate industry for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) in 1977, the ERA® network has raised millions of dollars to help fight neuromuscular diseases. ERA® companies nationwide host events throughout the year, including golf tournaments, walkathons and auctions, to raise funds for the nonprofit organization. Thanks to the generous support of Team ERA®, families affected by neuromuscular disease have access to clinics, ALS centers, support groups, wheelchair-purchase assistance programs, and summer camping experiences.

Spread the News

Our National public relations program helps build on ERA Real Estate's standing as a leading real estate authority.

National News Releases 2003

View News Releases From:

• 2003
• 2002
• 2001
• 2000
• 1999
• 1998 & 1997

View News Releases About:

• Diversity
• ERA Products & Services
• Charitable Initiatives
• Technology
• Marketing
• Training
• Special Events
• ERA Mortgage

About ERA Franchise Systems, Inc.

ERA Corporate Profile

ERA Corporate Management Team

Columns Authored by Brenda W. Casserly

ERA History Highlights

ERA: Historical Perspective

Corporate Sponsorship: The Muscular Dystrophy Association


Public Relations Contact
Public Relations Department
ERA Franchise Systems, Inc.
1 Campus Drive
Parsippany, NJ 07054
public.relations@ERA.com

Worldwide Headquarters
ERA Franchise Systems, Inc.
1 Campus Drive
Parsippany, NJ 07054

ERA Real Estate greets its 30th Anniversary year with a record of astonishing growth and a winning combination of unique products, affiliate support and entrepreneurial spirit. Looking back is unusual for a company defined by looking forward, but ERA Real Estate has as many accomplishments to take stock of as it has achievements ahead.

It all started with the ambition and imagination of a man named Jim Jackson, who saw the potential not only in selling property, but also in capitalizing on the fresh territory of technology. This was reflected in his new company's name, Electronic Realty Associates, Inc., which opened for business in 1972.

Long before the fax machine became a household word, ERA Real Estate was using it to sell homes. Known to ERA® customers as "The Moving Machine," it was an unprecedented national marketing resource, which could serve the burgeoning relocation market by transmitting listings from anywhere in the country to any ERA® location.

ERA Real Estate also broke new ground with the first nationwide home warranty program. Introduced as the Buyer Protection Plan and now called the Home Protection Plan, this program covers costly, unexpected repairs on a home's major working components-furnaces, wiring, plumbing and more-for a year after purchase of previously owned homes.

On such a forward-thinking foundation, the ERA® system's growth was dramatic, with member brokers in all 50 states by 1979. Shaping the course of real estate history by setting bold precedents, it was also around this time that the ERA® system introduced the Sellers Security® Plan, a unique program giving member brokers and sales associates a one-of-a-kind edge among national real estate networks. Assisting sellers whose current home needs to be sold to enable their next home purchase, the Plan advances the homeowner up to $100,000 equity for the new home, while guaranteeing that "We Will Sell Your House, or ERA Will Buy It!®"

ERA Real Estate has always prided itself on taking bold steps like these, which have included joining forces with other industry leaders. This began in 1981, when Commercial Credit Corp. (a subsidiary of Control Data Corp.) purchased ERA Real Estate, thus connecting it to the world of financial services and further establishing it in the technology industry.

The same year, the ERA® system went international, with the opening of ERA Japan. This was the first step in an ongoing expansion that currently embraces ERA® operations in over 30 countries and territories, where, as in Japan now, the ERA® franchise often rises to be the top real estate company.

The next great ERA® advance in the U.S. came in 1985, when ERA Real Estate was purchased by IMB Capital, further enhancing the stature of the brand. But landmark business achievements have never been the only way that the ERA® system measures success. Community has more than one meaning for ERA Real Estate. Just as the company has built its business from the local neighborhood to the global village, it has also built a reputation of being a good neighbor to those in need.

Since 1977, ERA Real Estate has been a national sponsor of the Muscular Dystrophy Association, helping give new hope to adults and children living with neuromuscular disease. Recently celebrating its 25th anniversary as MDA's exclusive corporate sponsor from the real estate industry, the system reached a landmark of nearly $30 million in donations for the charity, with its commitment set to grow all the more in the coming years.

ERA Real Estate continues both its dedication to giving back and its consistent drive to improve its business. The 1990s marked the introduction of top training programs and ongoing awards for customer service, which help the company maintain the best-trained agents, the most satisfied customers, and the greatest business growth.

These programs include the ERA® Top Gun® Academy, a rigorous course designed to take basic sales skills to a higher level, as well as the Beyond Excellence and President's Circle conferences for top-producing sales associates and brokers, respectively. At these events, participants enjoy first-rate vacation destinations and unsurpassed networking and professional development opportunities.

Always advancing its legacy of embracing new opportunities by adopting new technology, ERA Real Estate's variety of training programs, including AccelERAtion and other courses, are available through classroom instruction, on video and online. To also serve customers through the pioneering medium of the Internet, in 1994 ERA Real Estate became the first company of its kind to post all listings online, through an alliance with listings publisher Homes & Land. It then launched its own Web site, ERAonline.com (now ERA.com, in 1995. That same year, the company launched TeamERA.com an information center focused on providing ERA® sales associates and brokers with timely data about the global franchise and the real estate industry. This Intranet site is home to training programs, customizable marketing materials and technology programs.

In 1996, ERA Real Estate was acquired by HFS Incorporated, and became ERA Franchise Systems, Inc. Keeping in step with change, the company welcomed Peter Burgdorff as its new President & CEO. Then in 1997, the company updated its image, while preserving its proven strategies and services, with a new logo and marketing look. In 1998, HFS became Cendant Corporation, offering the ERA® system an unparalleled potential for synergy and full service in Cendant's broad real estate, mortgage, financial and relocation operations, and other holdings.

The affiliation with Cendant also introduced an array of preferred alliances, now marketed through ERA® Select Services^SM. This program gives brokers and sales associates a competitive edge through the opportunity to offer value-added national services and local discount services to customers-from moving companies to neighborhood plumbers-for the lifetime of their homeownership. This represents the ERA® response to studies which show growing consumer demand for a "one-stop shopping" real estate transaction.

The ERA® system started the new century not just looking ahead, but observing essential American values. The future of America is in its heritage, both in culture and in years, as minorities become the fastest-growing segment of homebuyers and the population of mature Americans burgeons with the Baby Boom generation reaching retirement age. As this future arrives, ERA Real Estate is well prepared. The company's entrepreneurial spirit, having driven its expansion into over 30 countries and territories, positions it well to serve new markets, with tools such as its growing Hispanic marketing initiative and the ERA Sellers Security® Plan. The Plan helps put potential homebuyers at ease, and is tailor-made for the needs of seniors, who are interested in relocating to relatives' homes, smaller houses or retirement communities and need the confidence of a guaranteed sale for their previous home.

At the dawn of a new millennium, the ERA® system is an international neighbor, and to get to know its neighbors even better, the company launched the ERA® International Open Office weekend in 2000. Through this annual event, ERA® companies worldwide open their doors to their local communities, with civic-minded and fun activities that serve their areas and attract new customers.

In 2001 still more frontiers were crossed, as Brenda W. Casserly became ERA® President & COO, the first woman to lead a major real estate franchise network. The airwaves were alive with the ERA® message, as the system sponsored the popular nationally syndicated financial-advice radio show, "The Dolans." Services expanded into other crucial areas of the real estate transaction with the launch of ERA Mortgage. And ERA Real Estate achieved a 62 percent increase in core franchise sales for 2001, one of the most challenging years for both the nation and its businesses.

The year 2002 brought even further good news. The advantages of the ERA® brand identity were reaffirmed with the affiliation of Buffalo, NY-based Hunt Real Estate Corporation, one of the top 100 real estate companies in the U.S. The ERA® system changed its look again as it introduced sophisticated new marketing materials, and many other new tools designed to increase brokers' and sales associates' competitive edge.

A company that saw the future now enjoys a proud history. As more successes in the next 30 years and beyond beckon, ERA Real Estate is always growing, always evolving, Always There for You®.