Karen Hatcher Awarded REALTOR® of the Year by Atlanta REALTORS® Association

ATLANTA - Rezul -- Karen Hatcher, CPM®, CEO of Sovereign Realty + Management (http://www.sovereignrm.com), and the 2022 President of Atlanta REALTORS Association, has been recognized for her dedication and commitment to the real estate industry by being named "REALTOR of the Year" for 2022. She is the first African-American female and African-American-owned company to be awarded this prestigious award since it was established over 60 years ago.

The ARA created the distinguished award in 1960 to recognize the REALTOR® who contributed most to the Association in that calendar year. This recognition is given to those who embody the spirit of the REALTOR®, engage in exemplary civic activity, and show impressive business accomplishments.

Hatcher was the first Black woman to lead the ARA and dedicated her tenure to ensuring that it embraced intentional inclusion with a campaign called "Let's Dance." Coined from the phrase, 'Diversity is being invited to the party, Inclusion is being asked to dance.' Hatcher focused the organization this year on advancing their strategic plan through inclusion, prioritizing our voices being heard on important real estate industry issues, and working together with industry colleagues, so everyone has a fair chance of attaining The American Dream of home ownership. This would create more housing opportunities and allow future generations to build a legacy of wealth.

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In the first six months of Hatcher's presidency, ARA institution voting rights for local Multicultural Real Estate Affiliate Associations and reinstated that ARA members who actively participate in committees receive voting power.  The Multicultural Association representative on ARA's Board of Directors had their non-voting seats turned into voting seats, enabling the underrepresented constituents a true and full seat at the table on issues impacting communities right now, such as housing affordability, equity, and inclusion.  In addition, ARA provided a total of $20,000 to the Multicultural Partner Organizations.

REALTORS are community builders and much more than the transaction.  Envisioned by Hatcher in 2021, in 2022, the ARA Board formed the Atlanta REALTORS Impact Foundation (ARIF) to support the awarding of educational scholarships and community charitable giving and received tax-exempt status.  $135,000 in funds were donated by ARA to support the Community Excellence Scholarship program and to establish an ARA Care Fund.  This year, (10) ten $1,000 scholarships were awarded to local students, and (3) three ARA members in need received a total of $7,500 in Care Funds.

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This year marked a momentous occasion for the ARA as their task forces and committees achieved several firsts during Hatcher's appointment... The full release can be found here https://mailchi.mp/b85215884c1c/khreceivesrealtoroftheyear-14573047