ERA The Norton Group is celebrating its 15th year with ERA Franchise Systems in 2005.  Started out as ERA Reid-Norton Realty in August of 1990, the company was then renamed in 1997 by its present owners - Donald F. Norton, Patricia R. Norton and their son, James A. Norton.  The office is located at 699 Broadway, Somerville Massachusetts 02144.  Somerville is one of the most densely populated cities in the country at just over 4 square miles in size, 80,000 plus people and 16,000 plus properties.

ERA The Norton Group has, at any given time, somewhere between 45 and 55 agents (including both part and full time).  The Norton’s also own the largest local newspaper – The Somerville News, a Mortgage Company – Able Funding, LLC and an appraisal company – New England Appraisal.  Combined, there are over 80 people who work with us as a “team” in the various businesses in Somerville.

Somerville itself is considered to be one of the most diversely populated cities in the country.  Aside from being a “Sanctuary City” and being referred to as the “Paris of the West”, there are dozens of different countries represented in the general population.  Speaking more than one language is a big help in this type of community.  Along with the heavy Italian, Irish, Latino, Haitian, Oriental and Portuguese/Brazilian year-round residents, there is also a yearly influx in the transient population due to the close proximity to very popular colleges including Harvard University, Tufts University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Lesley University and Radcliffe College are all less than 2 miles from Somerville.

Somerville is not without it’s history, either.  Prior to being incorporated in 1842, it was part of the City of Boston and was where the first flag of the United States (the Grand Union Flag) was flown by George Washington on New Year’s Day in 1776.  The city was an invaluable instrument in the American Revolution and has had numerous other historical events happen here over the past 250 years.

The Norton’s are lifelong residents of Somerville and have a unique way of running the real estate office – with no company manager or recruiter.  They would rather have newcomers to the business come to the door looking to start a new career than season veterans.  This type of ownership style lends itself to a “non-cookie cutter” environment, which allows for flexibility in the way operations are handled on a day-to-day basis.

ERA The Norton Group has its very roots in multi-cultural competency and diversity across a wide range of ethnic, religious and sexual backgrounds.  Just about every religious sect is represented, from Hinduism and Muslim to Catholic and Jewish and just about everything else in between.  Ethnic backgrounds include:  Irish, Russian, Haitian, Chinese, Italian, Greek, Portuguese, German, Armenian, Japanese, Jamaican, Brazilian and others.

Along with ethnic and religious representations across the board, there are several openly Gay agents who work in our office and thrive on business from that segment of the population, which is very prevalent in this area of the country. 

A Chinese agent in our office, John Zhang, was one of only four featured agents in a National Association of Realtors video this past year outlining minorities and diversity as a whole in the real estate industry and its impact on local communities.

Examples of languages spoken by agents who work for ERA The Norton Group are:  Italian, Greek, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Russian, Armenian, Lebanese, Yiddish, French Creole, Hindu, Punjabi, Japanese, Chinese (Mandarin and other dialects as well), Swahili, German

With our approach to managing the company, the diversity of the agents, our “team” attitude and our aggressive Business Plan for 2006, we hope to continue our success and overcome the many challenges that face our business in the year to come.  By creating a personable, family environment combined with education through a partnership with our agents, who will utilize their multi-cultural backgrounds, we will surely have the formula for success we want to flourish for not just the next year, but many more after that.  Working with what we have right now, having a fluid managerial style to adapt “on the fly” to the changing marketplace and utilizing the tools offered by ERA Franchise Systems will create the basis for the continued growth ahead.

Webster’s doesn’t quite make the grade when it comes to defining the word Diversity.  Sure, it has a literal definition, but there’s more to it than that.  It is an ideal, a philosophy, and a way of life.  Some choose it – others are chosen for it.  One thing is clear, without it we would be stuck in the early 20th Century to this day.

What Diversity means to us at ERA The Norton Group can be summarized by a very moving quote from Maya Angelou – “We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their color.”

We believe that ERA The Norton Group embodies everything that diversity represents by honoring standard practices that reach out to all types of clients, customers and consumers of the real estate industry with a solid plan of action and a track record of success!