Each year, Florida Realtors® endorses 15 Realtors® in the state who exemplify the highest level of professionalism and distinction as Board Certified Professionals. This year, four of the 15 endorsed are local Emerald Coast Realtors®.
Cathy Alley with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and The Cathy Alley Team in Niceville; Michele Bailey, founding agent of Compass 30A and Broker Associate Bailey Advisory Group in Santa Rosa Beach; Tula Tucker, Broker Associate with Beachy Beach Real Estate on 30A; and Mary Anne Windes, Broker with Real Estate Professionals of Destin have earned the endorsement of a Board Certified Professional from Florida Realtors®. Alley, Bailey, Tucker and Windes are part of the 2024 class of 15 Realtors® in Florida who now have the right to call themselves a Florida Realtors Board Certified Professional. “A Florida Realtors Board Certified Professional is a Realtor that has earned the distinction of high competence and professionalism through ongoing work in sales, volunteerism, advocacy and ethical treatment of the public, consumers and other Realtors,” says 2024 Florida Realtors President Gia Arvin, broker-owner with Matchmaker Realty in Gainesville.
A Florida Realtors’ advisory group on industry professionalism led to the development of the Board Certified Professional program. With so many new licensees entering the profession each year, certification was deemed necessary, not only to honor those working at the peak of their profession, but also to create a benchmark for new Realtors to work toward.
“Taking the time and effort to increase professionalism is not only the right thing to do, it strengthens the value of being a Realtor and a member of our local, state and national organizations,” Arvin says. “As one of the largest professions in our state, we need to promote Realtor members that work at the highest levels of professionalism – and we accomplish this with the Florida Realtors Board Certified Professional program. “We’re proud of Florida Realtors’ members like these for going above and beyond to demonstrate their professionalism and dedication to helping make the dream of home and property ownership come true.”
To see a complete overview of the program, including qualifications, costs and the application, go to Florida Realtors’ member website at: https://www.floridarealtors.org/membership/specialties/board-certified.
The Emerald Coast Association of Realtors® (ECAR) is one of 1,500 local chapters of the National Association of Realtors®. Officially, ECAR covers Okaloosa and Walton Counties and has more than 5,400 Realtor® members from across the Florida Panhandle. The term, Realtor®, is a trademark for use exclusively by members of the National Association of Realtors®, whose members subscribe to a strict Code of Ethics.
Florida Realtors® serves as the voice for real estate in Florida. It provides programs, services, continuing education, research and legislative representation to 238,000 members in 51 boards/associations. Florida Realtors® Newsroom website is available at http://floridarealtors.org/newsroom.
