Quad City Area REALTOR® Association Receives Fair Housing Award

CLIVE, IA (11/22/2010)(readMedia)-- The Iowa Association of REALTORS® (IAR) presented the 2010 Fair Housing Recognition Award to the Quad City Area REALTOR® Association (QCARA) at the IAR Annual Awards Luncheon held this fall.

"The Quad City Area REALTOR® Association received the award for its outstanding achievement this year, sponsoring many different fair housing projects," says Kurt Schade, president of the IAR.

In 2010, construction was completed on the eleventh home through the Student Built Home Program. The program is sponsored by the Quad City Area REALTOR® Association in cooperation with the Quad Cities Home Builders Association, Scott Community College, local high schools, and local lenders, business leaders, vendors and media. Since 1999, hundreds of high school students have participated in the extremely successful program, which provides instruction and training throughout the school year on the process of building a house from start to finish. Scholarships are awarded to students at the end of the year to further their careers.

This year QCARA also helped sponsor homes and raise $10,000 for Quad Cities Habitat for Humanity. In addition, eight local schools participated in the association's second fair housing poster contest, "Won't You Be My Neighbor." QCARA also provided Fair Housing Education to new association members in cooperation with the Davenport Civil Rights Commission.

"Our goal as an area association is to not only help people find a home, but to do it in a fair, respectful way," said Dick Koestner, president of the Quad City Area REALTOR® Association.

The National Association of REALTORS® and the Iowa Association of REALTORS® join with local boards across the nation to promote Fair Housing to all individuals. The Fair Housing Recognition Award is designed to recognize a local board for the best innovative idea for promoting equal opportunity in housing in their community in April and throughout the year.

The Iowa Association of REALTORS® is the state's largest real estate professional organization, representing more than 6,700 members and affiliates. The term REALTOR® is a registered and protected trademark. A REALTOR® is a member of the National Association of REALTORS®, the State Association of REALTORS® and their local Board of REALTORS®. By joining the REALTOR® organization, a real estate professional has to adhere to a strict Code of Ethics and its standards of professionalism, integrity and competence.