Local Prudential Real Estate affiliate positioned for growth under new leadership

Local residents Tom and Beth Wilson, the only couple to win REALTOR® of the Year awards in their local association, today announced they are the new majority owners of Prudential Radford & Associates, REALTORS®. The new agency, Prudential Premier, REALTORS®, a Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services affiliate, will remain located in the McVitty Office Park at 2772 Electric Road, Suite 1, Roanoke, VA. Rounding out their executive leadership team are Fred Hall and Becky Fields who bring over a decade of real estate experience.

When Tom, who had worked for Radford & Associates eight years prior, returned two months ago as general manager, he saw a chance to revitalize the company and started to plan his strategy for growth. Prudential Premier, REALTORS® currently has 15 agents and is actively looking to connect with quality, experienced agents that may have an interest in the firm.

"I’ve worked for this agency for a number of years and when the opportunity presented itself to be able to build a legacy here we jumped at the thought,” said Tom Wilson, new majority Broker/Owner of Prudential Premier, REALTORS. "We also believed that we could build a company that we can all be proud of, where we enjoy working and one that ultimately provides our customers and clients with the best possible service.”

Prudential Premier, REALTORS® serves all segments of the residential real estate market in the Roanoke and New River Valleys, from entry-level and move-up properties to resort and luxury homes. The company also provides complete commercial and relocation services, and offers an extensive referral network within Prudential Real Estate.

"Tom is well-regarded in his market and it will be great to see his ownership vision come to life,” said Earl Lee, president of Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services.

"Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services will support Tom and his company with the latest suite of online resources and lead-generation tools to help them become more efficient and effective for their clients,” added Lee.

Tom and Beth Wilson have been in the real estate business for a combined 48 years. They have both served as President of the Roanoke Valley Association of REALTORS® and have both served on the Roanoke Regional Home Builders Board of Directors. Tom has also served as Director for the Virginia Association of REALTORS® and as Chairman of the Virginia Real Estate Education Foundation. Beth was named the Virginia Certified Residential Specialist of the year in 2009 and voted the 2010 "Best Real Estate Agent” by the readers of the Roanoke Times SWOCO Edition. Fred Hall and Becky Fields are also very involved in the Roanoke Valley Association of REALTORS®. Hall is a Green certified REALTOR®.

Prudential Real Estate provides franchises with business strategies using Operation Reviews as well as numerous benefits, including access to Prudential Real Estate’s Online Seller Advantage^® program designed to provide real-time information to sellers with the touch of a keystroke. Prudential Real Estate is one of the largest real estate brokerage franchise networks in North America, with 1,700 franchise offices and approximately 60,000 sales professionals in the franchise network as of June 30, 2010.

Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE: PRU), a financial services leader with approximately $690 billion of assets under management as of June 30, 2010, has operations in the United States, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Prudential’s diverse and talented employees are committed to helping individual and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth through a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds, investment management, and real estate services. In the U.S., Prudential’s iconic Rock symbol has stood for strength, stability, expertise and innovation for more than a century. For more information, please visit HUwww.news.prudential.comUH.