RE/MAX Comes To Morrison As Independent Illinois Real Estate Office Joins Top Real Estate Network In Northern

The RE/MAX network will arrive in Morrison, Illinois on May 9 when Smith & Associates Real Estate, 300 W. Main St., becomes RE/MAX Property Associates. Located 17 miles west of Sterling, Illinois, Morrison is a community of 4,600.

Office broker/owner Louise Clark, as well as agents Jackie Woodman and Sandy Prescott, look forward to being part of Northern Illinois’ leading real estate organization.

Clark spoke about the benefits of joining the RE/MAX Northern Illinois real estate network. “Affiliating with the RE/MAX real estate network brings a lot of pluses to our office,” said Clark. “It gives us a brand name that has worldwide recognition and respect, plus a new level of technological sophistication and enhanced training opportunities that will benefit each of our agents and all of our customers.”

Clark, who lives in rural Morrison with her husband, John, and three children, first entered the real estate industry in 2001. She became a broker in 2003 and purchased Smith & Associates in 2005.

“We feel that being part of the RE/MAX network will give us the opportunity to increase our market share in what has been an extremely active real estate market,” said Clark. “Last year’s real estate activity was the best we’ve had here for a long time. We had a 37 percent increase in transactions in 2007 when compared to 2006, and through the first quarter of this year, we are well ahead of last year’s pace.”

One of Clark’s goals is to add more agents who serve the western portion of Whiteside County, especially those licensed in both Illinois and Iowa. Clark plans to earn an Iowa real estate license because it will enable her office to serve customers in the west end of the county.

“We frequently serve clients who either want to move to the Clinton, Iowa, area or who are moving to Morrison and wonder if we can sell their house in Iowa,” Clark said.

“Our affiliation with RE/MAX should allow us to more effectively serve a broader geographic area, both because of the name recognition that RE/MAX brings and the technological capabilities that the RE/MAX network will allow us to access,” she said.