San Francisco Realtors® Earn Top 1% Sales Honors
From Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Press Release
February 22, 2005

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – February 22, 2005 – San Francisco Realtors® Malin Giddings, Jim Laufenberg, David Bellings, Nina Hatvany, Betty Taisch, Monica Pauli, Christina Chung, Laurie Nierenberg, Carren Shagley, and Joan Gordon and have been ranked among the top 1 percent of all agents for sales in 2004 by Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in the Bay Area, Northern California’s largest real estate company.

“ These 10 outstanding sales associates are among the best in the business,” said Avram Goldman, president and chief operating officer of Coldwell Banker in the Bay Area. “Their professionalism, expertise and uncompromising dedication to their clients are what make them so successful. They’re a big reason why Coldwell Banker is the leading brokerage in Northern California.”

The San Francisco agents ranked in the top 1 percent out of more than 4,800 Coldwell Banker agents in 65 offices throughout Northern California from Monterey to Tahoe. To celebrate their honor, they have been extended an invitation to Coldwell Banker’s Top One Percent Retreat November 2-6 at the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai in Kona, Hawaii.

Giddings, a 26-year industry veteran from the San Francisco Van Ness office, has sold well over $2 billion in San Francisco properties and has consistently been one of the top agents in San Francisco and the nation. Her focus is high-end homes in the best locations. In addition to residential sales, Giddings has also been active as a developer and investor during her career, successfully completing numerous projects. She pioneered, with her partner Suzanne Brangham, developing one of the City's first bed and breakfast hotels (The Jackson Court). A native of Stockholm, Sweden and daughter of the former President of the Nobel Foundation, Giddings speaks many different languages fluently and attributes part of her success to her many international contacts. Because of her international experience, she has attracted many relocating executives and expatriates.

Laufenberg, a 12-year real estate veteran from the San Francisco Lakeside office, has been with Coldwell Banker since 1997 and has consistently been among the top agents in San Francisco and the nation. He has been the top agent in his 100-agent office since 1978, the No. 2 San Francisco agent since 2002, and among the top 10 agents in Northern California. Laufenberg has a family background in real estate, business and construction. A native of Berkeley, Laufenberg earned his bachelor’s degree in business and economics from St. Mary’s College in Moraga. While a member of the Christian Brothers religious order, he taught high school for two years in Oregon and Portland. Soon after, The Christian Brother’s Winery recruited Laufenberg to Napa Valley to manage their engineering and construction department. During his tenure with the winery, he earned his general contractor’s license and attained experience in public relations and marketing.

Bellings, who works in the Lombard Street office, is a real estate veteran with nearly 20 years experience. Over the years, Bellings has been one of the top-producing agents in the city of San Francisco and one of the most successful in the country. He joined Coldwell Banker last September after 10 years with McGuire Real Estate, where he was honored as the company’s number one agent company-wide year after year. A specialist in luxury real estate throughout San Francisco, Bellings is also an attorney and a Certified Public Accountant, which distinguishes him within the real estate community. He applies his experience and knowledge when representing either buyers or sellers in a transaction.

Hatvany, who works in the San Francisco Van Ness office, has consistently been one of the top-producing agents in San Francisco and the Bay Area over the years. She has been one of the top two agents in her office since 1994. A real estate veteran agent, Hatvany’s background included more than 20 years in real estate development, building townhouses in Palo Alto, refurbishing several Bay Area apartment buildings and, in particular, restoring and rehabilitating several homes in San Francisco itself. Along the way, she acquired both a contractor's license and a real estate salesperson's license. Before entering real estate, she was a professor at the Graduate School of Business at Columbia University and later the Graduate School of Business at Berkeley, California. She holds an MA and Ph.D. from Stanford in Psychology and is widely recognized as one of the best-trained negotiators in the business.

Taisch, who works in the San Francisco Lakeside office, is a 14-year veteran of the real estate industry, the past 10 years with Coldwell Banker. She has been one of the top producers since joining Coldwell Banker. She has been an International President's Premier agent every year since that category was established and has been among the top 100 agents in Northern California for Coldwell Banker. Taisch specializes in San Francisco real estate, but also handles Marin County and the upper Peninsula. She is also active in a number of professional organizations, including the California Association of Realtors, where she served as a director for eight years, and the Women’s Council of Realtors, in which she served as 2003 WCR state chapter president and the 2003 regional vice president.

Pauli, who works in the San Francisco Van Ness office, has been a real estate professional for four years, all with Coldwell Banker. She has been recognized as a top producer, including being honored for International President’s Premier in 2003, President’s Elite in 2002, and the top producer in her office from 2002-2004. She was also named “rookie of the year” in 2001. Pauli specializes in San Francisco real estate. Pauli is an active Junior League of San Francisco member and is on the board for City of Hope Cancer Research Foundation. She and her husband, David, had their first daughter, Sabrina, in March of 2004.

Chung, who works in the San Francisco Lakeside office, has been in the real estate industry for the past 26 years, including being the owner and broker of her own firm, S&C Realty, for 12 years. A six-year veteran of Coldwell Banker, Chung has been one of the top 1 percent of agents for the past three years, the No. 1 agent for Coldwell Banker’s Lakeside office in 2002 for an individual practitioner, and has regularly been a member of the President's Premier category of leading agents. She specializes in selling real estate in San Francisco, Daly City, South San Francisco, and San Mateo, as well as surrounding Bay Area cities. Chung holds a number of professional designations, including CRS, GRI, SRES, ePro, and Preview Property Specialist. She also speaks Cantonese and Mandarin. Chung has been active in professional organizations, including being president-elect for 2005 for the Women’s Council of Realtors, and a senior director of the Chinese Real Estate Association of America.

Nierenberg, who works in the San Francisco Van Ness office, began her real estate career in 1981 and has been with Coldwell Banker since 1997. She has consistently been a top producer, including being recognized for International President's Premier-Top 1 Percent since its inception. She has regularly been among the top four agents in the Van Ness Office and one of the top 50 in Northern California. Nierenberg is a Broker Associate and a Previews Properties Specialist. She specializes in San Francisco luxury homes, condos, co-ops, and multi-unit dwellings. Her team, the Nierenberg Group, includes business partner Bruce Lyon and assistant Emily Dunn. The team approach enables her to further extend first rate attention to all client needs resulting in an impressive rate of repeat business and client and agent referrals. The Nierenberg group is highly respected throughout the real estate industry.

Shagley, who works in the Lombard Street office, graduated in psychology from the University of California at Berkeley in 1972, turning to computers in the early 1980s, and winding up in real estate in 1983. She and her husband, Earl, formed a partnership in 1990, expanding into a team in 1999. Shagley heads a group called The Shagley Team that consists of her husband, Jennifer Burden (their daughter), John Burke (an associate) and My Pham (an administrative assistant). Shagley has been one of the top two agents in the Lombard Street office since 1997 and has consistently won top honors since coming to real estate in 1983. She specializes in San Francisco, all neighborhoods and all price ranges. She and team hold a number of designations: GRI, CRS, SRES, and Associate Broker, showing her continuing quest for knowledge, perseverance in completing projects, and experience in well more than 600 transactions over the past 22 years.

Gordon, who works in the San Francisco Van Ness office, is a 37-year real estate veteran. She has been with Coldwell Banker since it acquired TRI. A licensed broker, she is consistently among the top-producing agents in the Bay Area. She has been ranked in the top 100 in Northern California and always is in the top 10 in her office.

Coldwell Banker’s Lakeside office is located at 2633 Ocean Avenue and can be reached by calling 415.334.1880. The Lombard office is located at 1801 Lombard Street and can be reached by calling 415.447.8800. And the San Francisco Van Ness office is located at 1699 Van Ness Avenue and can be reached by calling 415.474.1750.

About Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, the largest residential real estate brokerage in Northern California, serves the markets of Sacramento/Tahoe, San Francisco Bay Area and Silicon Valley. The company has 65 office locations and more than 4,800 sales associates throughout Northern California. Through its internationally renowned Coldwell Banker Previews® program, the company is widely recognized for its expertise in the luxury housing market. Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage is a member of the NRT family of companies. NRT Incorporated, the nation's leading residential brokerage company, is a subsidiary of Cendant Corporation (NYSE: Cendant), one of the world's foremost providers of travel and residential real estate services.

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