At an annual awards dinner, the Greater Boston Assoc. of Realtors' (GBAR) honored several Boston-area Realtors for their service in the industry.

John Ranco, a broker for Hammond Residential Real Estate in Boston's Back Bay was named the GBAR 2010 Realtor of the Year.

Ranco has been a member of GBAR for the past decade, according to a statement. The award honors members for their volunteerism and industry work over the past 18 months in three specific areas: participation and service to the Realtor organization on the local, state and national levels; community involvement, including volunteerism in community service projects and membership and support of civic and charitable organizations; and outstanding business and real estate industry accomplishments.

"Over the past decade, John has distinguished himself as one of the most knowledgeable, fair and hard-working members of our association and has led by example in connecting Realtors with the communities they serve," said John Dulczewski, GBAR executive director.

Ranco is the immediate past president of GBAR. Currently, he is the chairman of the nominating committee and sits on the board of directors for GBAR, the Greater Boston Real Estate Board (GBREB), and the Massachusetts Assoc. of Realtors, according to a statement.

Laurie Cadigan, broker and owner of Barrett and Co. in Concord, was presented with the Andrew F. Hickey distinguished service award.

The Andrew F. Hickey distinguished service award is presented annually to one local Realtor for his or her lengthy and dedicated service to GBAR and the GBREB, according to a statement.

"Laurie is a natural-born leader who has enthusiastically supported the mission and goals of the Realtor organization and Greater Boston Real Estate Board for more than a dozen years," said GBAR Executive Director John Dulczewski. "She has earned the respect of her peers for her honesty, optimism and activist nature, as well a unique ability to build consensus on association governance matters and industry issues of political ...

New York City’s luxury real estate leader Jacky Teplitzky of Prudential Douglas Elliman was recently featured on Univision.com discussing the residences of the rich and famous. The Univision website receives over 460,000 visits per day, US and globally (source: Quantcast.com).

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Courtesy of John Butzko of Michael Saunders & Company

Beyond the crystalline waters, world-class beaches and swaying palm trees lies a rarely discovered world involving historical significance, cultural importance and natural exploration. It is among these unique charms that one truly discovers what our area is all about, and why those of us who live here are fortunate to call this slice of paradise home.

Walk above the trees at the Myakka Canopy. Photo courtesy of 511enews.com.

Here are the top 10 fun facts and places off the beaten path here in the Sarasota area:

1. Burns Court – Nestled away in downtown Sarasota, in the middle of historic Burns Square, is a small raspberry-colored theater that many people consider a landmark of the surrounding area. After opening its doors in 1993, Burns Court Cinemas has continually proven to be the best place around to find first-run, hand-picked foreign language, independent, and art films. Fun fact: Money Magazine has called Sarasota the best small city in the U.S., and has named Burns Court one of the best places to live in Sarasota. Click HERE to see what’s playing today.

2. Myakka Canopy – One of only about a dozen worldwide where you can walk along the treetops, the Myakka Canopy Walkway puts you 25 feet above the ground and extends 85 feet through the tree tops above the Myakka floor. Fun fact: Completed in June of 2000, it is the only one in the world in a subtropical forest. Click HERE for more information.

3. Paul Rudolph Houses - Take a rare look into one of Florida’s most influential architects and view the early residential works of Paul Rudolph, which were widely published at the time of conception and played a significant role in the culture of mid-twentieth century American design. Fun fact: Rudolph’s Sarasota time is now part of the period labeled Sarasota Modern in his career. ...

Courtesty of Whistlerheather of seatoskynation.com

Now we completely expected the market in Whistler to cool during the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic period of February and March. We also expected that January would be slow due to infrastructure that still needed to be realized; and of course April to start cleaning up after the party… May and June are known as the shoulder months so a slight slow down was also expected during this period. That would bring us right through to the third quarter 2010.

However looking at the number of sales year to date we can clearly surmise that January – May & June have been consistant in terms of sales. By the end of June it appeared Whistler was well on its way to a great summer in real estate. Then July finished and our balloon had a slow leak… No pun in tended. Trying to figure out why was not hard…

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Courtesy of Meghan Barry of Luxuryrealestate.com

LuxuryRealEstate.com member J.P. King will be auctioning Vendovi Island, located among the San Juan Islands. Members of the LuxuryRealEstate.com staff will attend the auction event in Seattle on September 30^th.

Vendovi Island is a private 216 +/- acre island in the San Juan archipelago which lies across Samish Bay from mainland Skagit County and seven miles north of Anacortes, Washington. Boasting 13,000+/- feet of shoreline with six beaches, the island is one of the premier private islands in the area and has numerous dramatic vistas as well as gorgeous natural scenery. Long used as a seasonal residence, the island includes a caretaker/owner’s home as well as various outbuildings and structures. 

The cozy home is complimented by picnic and fireplace structures, garage, workshop, wood shed, oil shed, generator building with 400-gallon fuel tank, sawmill building, and treehouse. Accessible by private boat or floatplane, Vendovi Island has a protected harbor with a rock breakwater and a 52’x8’ pier with a 40’x4’ metal ramp and an 84’x7.5’ floating dock. The San Juan Islands has long been a tourist destination with sea kayaking and Orca whale watching as primary attractions. The serenity, beauty, and lifestyle associated with these islands continually draw many looking to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life. For more information on the property or the auction being held on September 30^th, please visit the property listing on LuxuryRealEstate.com.