Date: Fri 01-Oct-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: JAN

Quick Words:

realtor-of-the-year-Kostecki

Full Text:

Newtown's Realtor Of The Year

(with photo)

BY JAN HOWARD

Doreen Kostecki is being honored as Realtor of the Year for 1999 by the

Newtown Board of Realtors.

Mrs Kostecki, a member of the 120-member board and treasurer of its Board of

Directors, has been a resident of Newtown for 19 years. She grew up in South

Windsor.

She learned of her selection as Realtor of the Year at the September 16

meeting of the Board of Realtors. She will be recognized with other state

Realtor of the Year honorees during a luncheon at the Connecticut Association

of Realtors convention next week. The local Board of Realtors will honor her

at its meeting in December.

She was recognized for her outstanding service to the board as treasurer and

for her involvement in the community.

"I feel quite honored. It's always great to be recognized by your peers," Mrs

Kostecki said September 28. "I've worked hard, and I've had the love and

support of my family.

"My mom's a realtor and has been one for over 30 years," Mrs Kostecki said.

"She taught me how to balance a career and family. And real estate has

blossomed into a wonderful career."

She said the real estate market has been active during 1999.

"It's up for me," she said, noting that during the past year she has closed

over $10 million in listings in Newtown, up from $7 million last year.

"I had a very good year. It's wonderful getting people into a house they want.

It's a very rewarding as well as demanding career," she said.

She said she believes new housing starts are down from the past because the

availability of land is shrinking. However, she said there have been a lot of

corporate transferees moving to Newtown and local people upgrading.

"The mortgage rates keep the market strong," Mrs Kostecki said.

Newtown has a wide range of housing choices, she said, though its rental

market is low, with few apartments or condominiums available.

"I don't know if that's a bad thing because of the concerns for the school

system," Mrs Kostecki said. "The rest of the housing is balanced." While home

prices have gone up, there are still many homes in the lower price ranges, she

said, for young families or empty nesters.

New construction, however, can be priced anywhere from $400,000 to $700,000,

mostly because of land prices and costs to prepare more marginal sites, she

said.

Mrs Kostecki has been a realtor for 16 years. She holds the designations of

Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) and Graduate, Realtors Institute (GRI).

Cathy Masi, who headed up a three-member committee for the Realtor of the Year

designation, said any member of the Board of Realtors has the right to make a

nomination.

"We had several fine candidates," she said. "We decided that Doreen was very

deserving of the award because of her service as treasurer and for her

community involvement."

Mrs Kostecki, who joined Bob Tendler Real Estate in 1988, has served as

treasurer of the realtors Board of Directors for the past five years. She was

presented with the President's Award in 1998, and was named "Young Career

Woman" by the Newtown Business and Professional Women's club.

She earned a bachelors of science degree in accounting and a minor in

economics from Central Connecticut State University. Prior to her real estate

career, she worked in corporate accounting and banking.

She has been a volunteer with the Family Counseling Center, Tag-A-Gift

Program, Junior Woman's Club, PTA, and is a member of the Board of Directors

of the Newtown Fund. She is chairing the Newtown Fund's Holiday Basket Fund

this year. She also took part in Tendler's Van for Whitney fund raising

efforts.

Mrs Kostecki has seen many changes in Newtown during her years of living and

working here.

"The town of Newtown is obviously growing, and there is a lot of new

construction," she said. However, she noted, the town does a good job of

monitoring its growth through its regulations.

One of the reasons people want to move to Newtown is its school system, she

said. "Newtown is a nice place to bring up your children."

She said people also decide to buy a home in Newtown because of its "nice

community spirit. There are lots of activities for children here. It's a

family-oriented town."

She said the Tendler agency is a "great office to work with," and because it

specializes in Newtown, it is "selling a way of life, a community you can get

involved in. We sell the town as well as a home, and it seems to work."

She said that people like having their realtor live in town. "With three kids

in the schools, I can speak to them from experience about the schools and the

community."

Mrs Kostecki and her husband, Dan, who have been married for 21 years, are the

parents of Erin, 16; John, 14; and Jason, 8. "I cover all the schools," she

said, laughing.

Mrs Kostecki said she enjoys being a realtor because it allows her to balance

her career and family. "I have flexible hours so I have time with the kids. I

have a very supportive husband and a supportive office."

She added, smiling, "Many real estate transactions have been transacted at a

ball field."