About William Raveis

Professional Association

In 1974, Bill Raveis borrowed $2000 from a bank and launched William Raveis Real Estate in an office above a grocery store. Within 10 years, he established a mortgage company, an insurance agency, and an award-winning relocation business. Today, William Raveis Real Estate is the No. 1 independent family-owned real estate company in the Northeast and Florida, according to REALTrends. Bill Raveis has earned national honors and respect because of his foresight, technological advancements, and innovative accomplishments. He was chosen Entrepreneur of the Year from Ernst & Young, was selected as one of The Most Admired Individuals by REAL Trends, and has been the recipient of numerous leadership honors and community awards. He received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Dayton

Education

1963 - Roger Ludlowe High School, Fairfield, CT

1967 - University of Dayton, Dayton, OH B.S.Business Administration

1970-71 - University of Bridgeport, Bridgeport, CT Fordham University, New York, NY - course work towards Masters of Business Administration

1974 - Graduate of the Realtors Institute (GRI)

1979 - Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) RNMI Charter Member

1984 - Certified Real Estate Brokerage Manager (CRB)

Experience

1968 - United Technology, Stratford, CT Systems Analyst

1970 - Westinghouse International, New York, NY Senior Systems Analyst

1972 - Westinghouse International, New York, NY Supervisor for system design and analysis. Responsible for computer systems and their worldwide operations.

1974 - Opened first real estate office

Professional Memberships and Awards

1988 Entrepreneur of the Year Award from the Ernst & Young company

National Speaker - PHH Homequity Convention, NAR Convention

Articles Published - Fortune Magazine, Forbes Magazine, Real Estate Today, Real Estate Business, Inc. Magazine

Co-Founder and Treasurer of Fairfield County MLS

Co-chairman of Connecticut Committee of the Regional Plan Association

Board of Directors - Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation

The Greenways Committee - Appointed by former Governor Lowell Weicker to a 25 member committee to develop Connecticut's recreational land

Funded Connecticut Audubon Society at the Coastal Center at Milford Point, Milford, CT (1986)

Advisory Board - Environment/2000 (Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection)

Board of Directors - Institute of American Entrepreneurs

Corporate Advisory Board. The Nature Conservancy, Connecticut Chapter

Chairman Environmental Committee, Fairfield County 2000

Board of Directors - Music Foundation for the Handicapped of Connecticut

Professional Memberships and Awards Cont..

Chairman - Advisory Council of PHH Homequity

Appointed Governor Rowland's Task Force on Open Space Land

National Association of Realtors Large Brokers Advisory Council

National Association of Realtors Strategic Planners Group

Board of Trustees - The Horace Bushnell Society

Honored by "Save The Sound" for leadership and inspiration in protecting Long Island Sound

Founding Member of the Realty Alliance

Chairman and Founder - Home-Link Services, Inc.

Founder - American Mortgage Services Company

Originator of Home-Link concept - US Government patent

Elected to the 2002 Hall of Fame, Junior Achievement of Western Connecticut

Designated by Real Trends (Industry Newsletter) as one of "The Most Admired Individuals for 2000"

Recipient of the "2003 Community Leadership Award" from The Children's Hospital at Montefiore and the Greenwich/Westchester Committee for Montefiore Medical Center for contributions to programs that promote the health and well-being of both children and adults in the metropolitan area.

Professional Memberships and Awards Cont..

Honored by Town of Guilford, CT (2006) with a plaque and proclamation in town hall as a token of appreciation for significant contributions made towards improving town residents' quality of life.

Honored by UCONN in 2006 as a CT Family Business of the Year

Honored in 2008 by the Health Center at UCONN for the support given to fight breast cancer by dedicating and establishing the William Raveis ACS Navigator Care Program

Recipient of a Connecticut Quality Improvement Award Innovation Prize (silver) for the RSS and widget innovations exhibited on raveis.com, 2009

Selected as The Best Place to Work in MA by the renowned Boston Business Journal's "Best Places to Work" 2010, 2011, and 2012

Recipient of the First Place Gold Award in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 for Commercial Record's "Best Residential Real Estate Firm in CT"

Recipient of the First Place Gold Award in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 for Banker & Tradesman’s “Best Residential Real Estate Firm in MA”

Honored with 1st place in the Fox News and Hartford Courant’s “Top Workplaces” in CT 2011 and 2012

Honored with 1st place in the Hearst CT Newspapers “Top Workplace in CT” 2013 and 2014

Winner of Inman News’ 2011 Innovator Award for “Most Innovative Brokerage in the Nation”

Recipient of Connecticut Quality Improvement Award for Agent Dashboard 2012

Contributor to blog.raveis.com nationally acclaimed by Inman News a source for real estate news and trends

Honored by Operation Hope of Fairfield, Inc. (2014) for meaningful contributions to the community

Professional Memberships and Awards Cont..

Real Estate Executive Magazine -Top 100 Most Influential Real Estate Executives in America

Recipient of the 2017 Family-Owned Business Award by the Westchester and Fairfield County Business Journals

Honored by Moffly Media / Light a Fire 2017 A Celebration of Giving / Dedicated Health Advocate Award

Recipient of Top Luxury Brokerage Award 2018 in U.S. by Leading Companies of the World

The largest footprint of any independently owned company in the Northeast and Florida

Honored by Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation (2019)

Recipient of the Realtor Emeritus Award 2019. This status is awarded in recognition of forty plus years of membership in the National Association of Realtors and in recognition of valuable and lasting contributions to the real estate profession

Former member of the Board of Directors (2020) for the Museum of American Revolution, Philadelphia, PA

Former member of the Board of Directors and the Marketing Committee (2016-2020) for the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation, New York City

No. 1 independent family-owned real estate company in the Northeast and Florida according to RealTrends

Nantucket Historical Association Presenting Sponsor, Nantucket by Design

Naples Botanical Garden Presenting Sponsor, Hats in the Garden

The Naples 100, Collier County's Most Influential Business Leaders Award

RISMedia 2023 Real Estate Newsmakers Hall of Fame Recipient

Winner Inman Top Brokerage 2023

Professional Memberships and Awards Cont..

Honored for 50 years in business by His Excellency Governor Ned Lamont with Connecticut State Proclamation (March 27, 2024)

Proclamation from the Town of Fairfield in recognition for 50 years in business (June 7, 2024)

Publications

Raveis, William M., Jr. (2015). The Way of the Entrepreneur: Lessons from the Journey to Build a Family-Owned Business Empire. Shelton, CT: Raveis House.

Raveis, William M., Jr. (2015). The Ten Noble Rules For Business and 53 Lessons for Entrepreneurs. Shelton, CT: Raveis House.

Raveis, William M., Jr. (2022). The Vision and The Passion: Continuing the Journey to Build a Family-Owned Business Empire. Shelton, CT: Raveis House.

Raveis, William M., Jr. (2022). The Ten Noble Rules of Compassionate Leadership: 62 Takeaways from The Vision and The Passion. Shelton, CT: Raveis house.