100 Years And Counting For Coldwell Banker®

Company Announces Initiatives to Celebrate the Brand's Centennial

PARSIPPANY, N.J (Thursday, January 12, 2006) - The Coldwell Banker® network will mark an important milestone in 2006: the 100th anniversary of the brand’s founding. The oldest national real estate organization in the country, Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation was foundedby San Francisco native Colbert Coldwell from the ashes of the 1906 earthquake. After Benjamin Banker joined as a partner, they helped rebuild San Francisco by attracting businesses and families to the city through the professional, honest real estate transactions they guided. Now, a century later, the Coldwell Banker system boasts more than 3,900 residential and commercial real estate offices and 126,000 sales associates in 29 countries and territories around the globe.


“Marking 100 years in business is an incredible milestone; it is certainly an achievement of which everyone in the Coldwell Banker system can be very proud,” says Jim Gillespie, president and chief executive officer, Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. “It is truly satisfying to know that for all these years, Coldwell Banker professionals have been helping families buy and sell homes, and establishing a foundation for security, stability and growth. We like to think we have been helping them achieve the American dream, and hope for another hundred years of similar success.”


Gillespie also points out that Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation enters its 100th year on the upswing. In the past 10 years, the Coldwell Banker network has added more than 70,000 sales associates and more than 1,500 offices.


To celebrate this milestone, Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation has launched a series of events that will take place over the course of the year. They include continued involvement with Habitat for Humanity, its corporate national charity of choice since 1993, along with events surrounding the annual Coldwell Banker International Business Conference and other marketing initiatives.


Habitat for Humanity Initiatives


• “100 Homes By Our 100th Anniversary”: Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation and its affiliated companies are in the midst of an aggressive fundraising program that will raise approximately $5 million to sponsor 100 local Habitat for Humanity home builds across the country. To date, the Coldwell Banker system has pledged to sponsor 111 homes.


• Habitat for Humanity Home Build in San Francisco: San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom is scheduled to participate in a Habitat for Humanity home build on Feb. 16. He will be joined at the build by Jim Gillespie, president and chief executive officer of Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. The home, sponsored by Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage of Northern California, is part of the “100 Homes” initiative.



• “Housewarming for Habitat Celebrity Auction”: Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation will launch an online celebrity auction on Feb. 20 on the eBay marketplace. The “Housewarming for Habitat” celebrity auction will benefit the Habitat for Humanity Hurricane Katrina Fund with 100 percent of the proceeds going toward rebuilding Habitat homes for the neediest families in the affected Gulf Coast region. Personal, autographed items from entertainment and sports celebrities, props from movies and television shows, and opportunities for one-on-one VIP experiences with a select group will be on the auction block. The auction includes items from such celebrities as Mia Hamm, Donald Trump, Dr. Phil McGraw, Charlie Sheen and Michael Douglas.


San Francisco Events



• Coldwell Banker International Business Conference: The Coldwell Banker® organization returns to its San Francisco roots for the annual Coldwell Banker International Business Conference that runs Feb. 16-19. More than 10,000 Coldwell Banker professionals are expected to attend the convention at the Moscone Center.


• San Francisco Rising: Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation will be a participating sponsor of “San Francisco Rising,” the city’s commemoration of the 1906 earthquake. A series of events across the city from April 18 to April 21 will mark the centennial and celebrate San Francisco’s triumphant rebirth.



Other Events and Sponsorships


• “My Home: The American Dream” Contest: Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation joined with Scholastic Professional Magazines’ Custom Media Group for the Coldwell Banker “My Home: The American Dream Contest.” Nearly 1,000 entries were received from students in grades K-8 who explained, through images or words, what makes their house, apartment or condo a home. Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation will announce 30 finalists in late January and then three grand-prize winners in mid-February. These grand prize-winning students will receive $2,000 scholarships, while their teachers will receive a new digital camera for their classrooms.

• New York Stock Exchange Closing Bell: Jim Gillespie, president and chief executive officer of Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation, is scheduled to lead a Coldwell Banker contingent in ringing the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange on Aug. 21. The brand officially turns 100 on Aug. 27, 2006.








About Coldwell Banker®
Since 1906, the Coldwell Banker® organization has been a premier provider of full-service real estate. In 2005, Franchise Times magazine's prestigious Top 200 issue ranked the Coldwell Banker system number one in real estate and number nine among all franchisors. The Coldwell Banker System has more than 3,900 residential and commercial real estate offices and 126,000 Sales Associates in 29 countries and territories. The Coldwell Banker System is a leader in the industry in residential real estate, and in niche markets such as resort, new homes and luxury properties through its Coldwell Banker Previews International® division. It is a pioneer in consumer services with its Coldwell Banker Concierge® Service Program and award-winning Web site, www.coldwellbanker.com. Coldwell Banker Mortgage is one of the largest telephone/web based lenders in the country and the Coldwell Banker Commercial® network is an industry leader in providing commercial real estate solutions that serve the needs of tenants, landlords, sellers and buyers in the leasing, acquisition, disposition and management of all property types. Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation is a subsidiary of Cendant Corporation (NYSE: CD). © 2006 Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation Coldwell Banker® licensed to Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. Each office is independently owned and operated except for offices owned and operated by NRT Incorporated.

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