Published 6.23.2010   From D Magazine July 2012

HOW D DID IT: The D Magazine list of Best Real Estate Agents and Best Mortgage Broker Professionals in Dallas is produced in partnership with Crescendo Business Services, an independent research firm. Crescendo mailed nomination ballots to area residents who had recently purchased homes, subscribers, mortgage and title companies, and real estate agents. Recipients were asked to nominate only mortgage broker professionals and real estate agents whom they knew through personal experience and to evaluate them in several categories, including overall satisfaction and whether they would recommend them to a friend. Crescendo scored and screened each nominee with the Texas Real Estate Commission database to make certain that licenses were up to date and the agent had no disciplinary action. Then, before the list was finalized, those nominated were reviewed by a blue-ribbon panel of local industry experts. For real estate agents, the panel consisted of realty company executives, professional and trade association officers, and others directly involved in housing-related businesses. For mortgage broker professionals, the panel consisted of mortgage company executives, professional and trade association officers, and others directly involved in the mortgage businesses. Although panelists’ comments were incorporated into the final score, safeguards were built into the review process to reduce the ability of panel members to influence the list on the basis of company affiliation. The resulting list represents slightly less than 7 percent of mortgage broker professionals and slightly more than 2 percent of licensed real estate agents in the Dallas area. Finally, we turned the list over to our sales team. They cannot add to or subtract from the list, but they can sell ads to the winners. A special advertising section containing all the winners who purchased ads is then put together and displayed somewhere else in this magazine.