Inside this issue:Letter from the President 3

PM Corner / Tyson’s Addition 4

October/November Top Performers 5-6

November Happenings 7

RELO/REO Updates 8

Marketing Minute 9

Teal for Good / Charitable Goodness10-11

Upcoming Events 11

My Predictions for 2015A Letter from the President | By Scott Avery

Happy HolidaysI truly enjoy the holiday season for a variety of reasons, as I’m sure all of you do. First and foremost, it gives us a chance to reflect upon what is most important in our lives; our family, friends and loved ones. I hope each of you set aside time to spend with the people who mean so much to you.

Secondly, I always take the time to reflect upon the year I have had: the many shared experiences, the joys, rewards and yes, even the tough times. Working within a great, team-oriented culture, I find very enriching, both in business and personal growth. I am very thankful for this. I take time to critique our company operation and find new ways to enhance growth, better serve the consumer and help our sales associates achieve a rewarding, successful career. What we do on a daily basis to help people accomplish their dreams and create memories to share for a lifetime is priceless. Learn to engage in new relationships each week, be there to help and support, and dreams will come true.

Finally, I work on the business plan for Avery-Hess, Realtors, spending time researching trends and reviewing changes that may impact our business. As our business becomes increasingly complex it behooves all of us to broaden our knowledge base and core competencies so we can provide additional value to the well-informed consumer of today.

Here is some food for thought on what I feel 2015 might bring:

• A growing economy, rising household formations, continued low interest rates and pent up demand is going to fuel the market in 2015. Trade up buyers who have delayed home purchases due to job insecurity will begin to be active in the marketplace. According to Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, “Job growth is quite strong. “Currently we are creating 225,000 jobs per month, or 2.75 million per year. That is double the pace necessary to reduce unemployment and under employment, which augers very, very well for housing demand and the housing market.”

• The 18-hour city or the revitalization of urban core areas continues to expand and increase influence of where we want to live. Augment our urban core areas with the growth of lesser towns’ core areas (think Leesburg, Falls Church, Fredericksburg and other older small towns throughout our market area) along with the major mixed use developments (think Mosaic District and Silver Spring) and what we see is a tangible effort to build these centers as live/work/play environments. This fits right into the desires of the Millennials and guess who else? The Baby Boomers. From the retirement golf type communities in the Sunbelt, trends now point towards more Boomers moving to city centers. Many Boomers are staying in the workforce; want to live near their children, and see a growth in both urban and suburban “urgent care” centers which should fulfill medical needs.

• The changing “AGE” game. The Millennials are an even bigger bloc than the Boomers and is growing through immigration. In the aftermath of the Great Recession, new household formations were severely depressed as the number of Millennials living with their parents or in group homes soared to 3 to 4 million above normal. With the improving economy certainly the older Millennials will begin to form their own households boosting demand on existing inventory.

• And what about prognostications on housing prices for 2015? NAHB 4.9%, Merrill Lynch 3.6%, Wells Fargo 3.2% and our fav Zillow 3.0%. Looks like a solid 3-5% from all the greatest minds.

My final thoughts. Housing seems to be putting the excesses of the bubble and the ensuing collapse behind it. I believe we’re now ready to return to the classic principles of supply and demand. Watch for any deviations from this equilibrium to cause a quick adjustment in your transaction volume and pricing. As this major segment of the economy returns to the basic fundamentals, confidence will rise. And that my friends is positive for us. Start the planning now and focus your marketing efforts on those areas you feel will give you the biggest payoff. Then work your plan!

So decorate your home, celebrate your holidays with loved ones, give thanks for your accomplishments in 2014, plan your successful 2015 and get ready for a banner year.

May God Bless and Happy Holidays to the entire Avery-Hess family! Scott

PM CORNER

Get acquainted with the PM Department’s newAdministrative Manager, Cara Schmidt!

Tell us a bit about what you were doing professionally before joining Avery-Hess? I started my career as a Store Manager for Anthropologie, a high-end women’s clothing retailer. I worked as a Store Manager for the past nine years, managing locations in Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, and Dallas. I love customer service, training and development, and collaborating with a team to increase sales. So many of those things translate to my work at Avery Hess in the Property Management Division. It has been a great transition and I look forward to learning all that I can to become an asset to the PM team.

What do you like to do for fun? I love being creative – painting, decorating, crafting, refinishing furniture. I love to go treasure hunting at estate sales. My husband and I spend a lot of our weekends exploring our neighborhood, Old Town Alexandria.

What’s your favorite part of being in your new role? Working with great people is such a big part of what I enjoy about this new role so far. I love getting to know the owners and tenants. I want to be a good support to PM and really enjoy learning from Katja. This is a completely new industry for me and I like the challenge

of learning something new every day.

Lisa Wan Joins the Tysons Office in the Very Crucial Role of AA!Tell us a bit about what you were doing professionally before joining Avery-Hess? I am originally from Seattle, WA. I’ve been in DC for over a year, and I was in the banking industry before joining Avery Hess.

What do you like to do for fun? I love to travel, explore new foods, and play tennis.

What’s your favorite part of being in your new role? I am excited to learn more about the fascinating real estate industry.

CONGRATULATIONS TO OCTOBER & NOVEMBER TOP PERFORMERS!

Top Listers: October

Top Producers: October

BJ Winar, Centreville OfficeAmy Cherry Taylor, Fredericksburg OfficeMarilyn King, Front Royal OfficeIngrid Myers, Lake Ridge OfficeLuz Coletta, Rockville OfficeReid Voss, Springfield OfficeDonna Henshaw, Tysons Office

Frances Irizarry, Centreville OfficeJami Harich, Fredericksburg OfficeSherri Embrey, Front Royal OfficeDavid Baker, Lake Ridge OfficeYour Minka Group, Rockville OfficeSusan Metcalf, Springfield OfficeDonna Henshaw, Tysons Office

Kim Neff, Centreville OfficeAmy Cherry Taylor, Fredericksburg OfficeDonna Anderson, Front Royal OfficeSam Mangrio, Lake Ridge OfficeClaudia Matus, Rockville OfficeLinda Fleischer, Springfield OfficeMary Grace Mandaro, Tysons Office

Leigh-Anne Vaughn, Centreville OfficeAmy Cherry Taylor, Fredericksburg OfficeConnie Smallwood, Front Royal OfficeIngrid Myers, Lake Ridge OfficeYour Minka Group, Rockville OfficeLinda Fleischer, Springfield OfficeSheila Carney, Tysons Office

Production Over $750,000: OctoberFrances Irizarry, BJ Winar, Centreville OfficeJami Harich, Fredericksburg OfficeYour Minka Group, Alex Saenger, Rockville OfficeSusan Metcalf, Diana Watson, Reid Voss, Springfield OfficeDonna Henshaw, Chris Brown, Mary Misleh, Ebony Bates, Tysons Office

Top Listers: November

Top Producers: November

Production Over $750,000: NovemberAmy Cherry Taylor, Fredericksburg OfficeIngrid Myers, Lake Ridge OfficeYour Minka Group, Rockville OfficeLinda Fleischer, Diana Walcher, Springfield OfficeSheila Carney, Judy Radvanyi, Tysons Office

PM Referrals: October & November

Mobility Title - October & November

Sheila Carney, Tysons (5)Amy Cherry Taylor, Fredericksburg (1)

John Flynn, Centreville (1)

BJ Winar (2), Kim Neff (1), Elizabeth Falcon (1), CentrevilleGina Schwartz (2), Gloria Adams (1), Liz Pierson (1), Rebecca Graf (1), Amy Cherry Taylor (2), Karen Janson (2), Natalie Seliquini (1), Nancy Mizzelle (1), FredericksburgRebecca Moorehead (1), Jennifer Vollmer (1), Mark Holyfield (1), Ingrid Myers (1), Robert Tallent (1), Lake RidgeReid Voss (2), Renee Mumford (1), Springfield Sheila Carney (3), Mary Misleh (2), Chris Brown (2), Nina Chen Landes (1), Kate Herzig (1), Susan Rogers (1), Tysons

CONGRATULATIONS TO OCTOBER & NOVEMBER TOP PERFORMERS! (cont.)

Our closing professionals come to your clients, providing them the personalized and convenient service they deserve.

We specialize in:• Residential Closings• HUD Home Closings (VA)• Commercial Closings

We’re conveniently located in the Tysons Regional Building:2301 Gallows Road, Suite 200A, Dunn Loring, VA 22027

Contact Daphne Flynn at 703.281.5012 or dflynn@mobilitytitle.com.

• Refinancing Loans• Short Sales • 1031 Exchanges

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NOVEMBER HAPPENINGSLake Ridge’s 3rd Annual Chili Cook-Off!The Lake Ridge Office’s 3rd Annual Chili Cook-Off on November 20th didn’t disappoint! Attendees arrived with bags of groceries to donate to the local food bank to help feed the hungry for Thanksgiving! The chili entries were beyond impressive, ranging from more traditional recipes to inventive cheese-based and veggie-filled ones. A good time was had by all!

The 4 Winners were:Angela Minlionica - Best Overall Chili

Danielle Jones - Spiciest Chili

Loretta Rossomondo - Sweetest Chili

Sam Mangrio - Most Unique Chili

Chris Brown & Donna Henshaw Sponsor the 2014 Vienna Turkey Trot!Chris Brown and Donna Henshaw of the Tysons Office were premium sponsors for this year’s Vienna Turkey Trot! During the race which Chris ran in, Judy Gamble handed out Avery-Hess promotional materials and branded cell phone wallets created especially for the event. What a great way to get out in the community and widen your sphere while getting some exercise!

Q&A with Kim Hoffman, our new Director of Relocation!Tell us a bit about what you were doing professionally before joining Avery-Hess? For the past year, I was working as a real estate agent with Real Living Reserve, Realtors in Fairfax, specializing in relocation. I started working there after leaving Allegiance Relocation Services. I had been with Allegiance for over 8 years, had done about every job there, and had helped build the company from 4 employees to nearly 50. When I left, I was the Director of Operations, overseeing the Guaranteed Home Sale, Property Management, Benefit Counseling and Referral departments.

What do you like to do for fun? I enjoy spending time with my family and drink-ing wine, not necessarily in that order, as well as skiing, golf and anything to do with horses. I also enjoy reading and watching movies.

What’s your favorite part of being in your new role? After spending the past year as an agent, I missed being in an office and interacting with my coworkers. I really enjoy everyone I have met so far and I am looking forward to helping the Relocation Department here at Avery Hess grow.

Congratulations Avery-Hess Agents - You DID Break the Company Record for Outbound Referrals with 25 Currently Closed in 2014!Pam O’Connor (President & CEO of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World), has got to be even prouder of Avery-Hess’s relocation efforts since her congratulatory video was released last week on a near company record for Outbound Referrals. This week we have done it. We have closed 25 referrals and beat the company record! Well done team!! What a fantastic accomplishment to mark the end of the year.

Anyone … Anywhere … Anytime!

RELO/REO UPDATE

MARKETING MINUTEListing Videos are Blowing Up Facebook!Avery-Hess’s latest marketing weapon, Onvedeo listing videos are creating a surge in views for agents’ properties! Facebook prioritizes video over any type of post (text, photo and link). Live videos activating automatically as followers scroll through their newsfeeds adds to increased views even more.

Consistencies in listing videos with high viewership: Videos with professionally shot photography and agents with high resolution, engaging headshots.

Do you want your listings made into live video tours? Subscribe from now through October 2015 for only $150! To learn more, contact Liz Sacks - ext. 1102 - lsacks@averyhess.com.

The Power of Facebook Sharing!A great thing about working for a team-oriented brokerage is that you have fellow agents willing and able to help you promote your listings. Sharing Facebook posts of listings, open houses, etc takes minutes of time and exponentially increases the amount of people seeing the post in their newsfeeds. Recently Lake Ridge agent, Barbara Bergeson asked agents in her office to all share a Facebook post of anactive listing. Two days of sharing helped the listing go under contract 2 days later!

Donation Totals:

Tysons: $1153Springfield: $740Fredericksburg: $467.50Lake Ridge: $450Rockville: $245Centreville: $225Front Royal: $40

Total Raised: $3,320.50

Teal for Good

Other Ways Offices are Supporting their Charities

Tysons Office: Tysons agents attended the Alternative House’s annual Beacon of Hope breakfast earlier this fall. It’s the organization’s main fundraiser of the year and included very touching testimonials from young adults whose lives were improved through their programs! At the event, the Tysons team very generously donated additional funds to AH, and Donna Henshaw was recognized for her especially generoussupport!

Rockville Office: In support of Stepping Stones Shelter,Angie Montgomery and Carmel Des Rosche created a “Giving Tree” on their office window with felt ornaments noting holiday gift items on the wishlist of a family in need. The Rockville agents will help in buying the gifts requested and donate funds to the family so they can have a wonderful holiday! A bravo to Serena Toro for coming up

with such a generous way to support the people of Stepping Stones!

Upcoming EventsJanuary 14th | MRIS Smart Charts | Lake Ridge Regional OfficeDuring this session, learn to create professional, impressive looking charts, graphs and reports utilizing MRIS’s Smart Charts tool. To learn more or RSVP,email Danielle at lakeridge@averyhess.com.

February 11th | Agent Safety | Tysons Regional OfficeLearn important safety tips and resources to keep yourself safe or help you prepare for unexpected situations. To learn more or RSVP, email Chris at cbrown@averyhess.com.

Did you miss November’s Star Session on Business Planning...or maybe,you were there and just want to view the highlights again. View the 19 short segments at your leisure on the Avery-Hess YouTube Channel!

Front Royal’s Holiday Season Warm Coat Drive!

The Front Royal Office is helping the local community stay warm this winter through a warm coat drive for the Congregational-Community Action Project (C-CAP) of Front Royal and Warren County. The volunteer, non-profit, tax-exempt corporation provides emergency food, clothing and limited financial aid to local families in need. So far, the office has accumulated 23 coats and counting. If you’d like to contribute, each coat donated gives you a raffle ticket for a chance to win dinner for 2 at Joe’s Steakhouse! Donations will be accepted through December 18th.

Learn more about C-CAP by visiting: http://ccap.moonfruit.com.

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Resources for you:

Event Newscareers.averyhess.com/events

Property Managementahrmanagement.com

Mobility Titlewww.mobilitytitle.com

Avery-Hess App Downloadapp.averyhess.com

Are you doing something special in the community? Do you have a great tech or strategic tip to share with other agents?

Email your stories to careers@averyhess.com! Chosen entries will be featured in an upcoming issue of MyLife!