Press Release

Weichert Real Estate Affiliates Named One of the Top Ten New Franchises by Entrepreneur Magazine

MORRIS PLAINS, N.J. -- Weichert Real Estate Affiliates, Inc., has risen to the ranks of the nation’s top franchise opportunities.

Entrepreneur magazine recently listed Weichert Real Estate Affiliates, the franchising company of Weichert, Realtors®, in its 26th Annual Franchise 500, a prestigious survey that spotlights the top 500 franchises in the U.S. and Canada for 2005.

The Weichert company scored high in two major categories. In the category of new franchises, the annual survey ranked Weichert Real Estate Affiliates as #10 in its list of the 50 top new franchises started up within the past five years. The company also placed high as one of the fastest growing franchises, coming in at #79.

Noting that this year marked Weichert Real Estate Affiliates’ first time on Entrepreneur’s much anticipated list, Marty Rueter, president, said, “Gaining this recognition is a wonderful milestone for us. Our rankings in Entrepreneur are a real testament to the strength of the Weichert brand and systems, which are so centrally focused on providing the customer with an unmatched real estate experience. As we talk to independent real estate brokers in different parts of the country, we’re finding tremendous interest in the opportunity to partner with Weichert and adopt our proven management and marketing systems.”

Launched in September of 2001, Weichert Real Estate Affiliates is extending the geographic reach of Weichert services across the U.S., as quality real estate brokers in key markets sign on. Affiliated Weichert offices already open now stand at “108 and growing,” Rueter said, and cover 16 states, stretching up and down the East Coast from Massachusetts to Florida and reaching as far west as Texas.

Entrepreneur magazine’s annual ranking evaluates franchise operations that submitted full Uniform Franchise Offering Circulars and whose information Entrepreneur was able to verify. Among the important criteria considered were financial strength and stability, growth rate, and system size.

Weichert, based in Morris Plains, N.J., has more than 14,300 sales associates in nearly 320 company-owned and franchised sales offices in key markets throughout the U.S. A family of full-service real estate and financial services companies, Weichert helps customers buy and sell both residential and commercial real estate, and streamlines the delivery of mortgages and home and title insurance. For more information, call Weichert's customer service center at 1-800-USA SOLD or visit Weichert's Web site, www.weichert.com. Each Weichert franchised office is independently owned and operated.