Greenwood Village, Co - 10 November, 2005 -

Announcing three new countries at once, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, RE/MAX International has now expanded its real estate franchising to a total of 61 countries. Eythor Edvardsson, a native of Iceland is the new regional director for the three Baltic countries which formerly were part of the Soviet Union. Edvardsson finished Commercial School in Iceland and has worked in real estate for a number of years and has been part owner of an independent Lithuanian real estate investment company. "Through the years, my holiday travels to USA more often ended up in my exploring the real estate market. There I first came in contact with RE/MAX," commented Edvardsson. "I learned about the atmosphere of this organization and it suited my personality well. I really love the active character throughout this international network. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are very active and attractive markets that are growing fast with the help of foreign investments. Knowing how creative, independent, educated and hard working Baltic people are, I am sure we can build a remarkable RE/MAX team." Edvardsson is also an accomplished singer, author and music events organizer and has served as chairman of the Fostbraedur choir since 1994. He was instrumental in organizing events and festivals in Denmark, Finland and Russia including a seasonal concert in Philharmonic Hall of St. Petersburg. "We are pleased to welcome Eythor Edvardsson to the RE/MAX family," said Peter Gilmour, RE/MAX senior vice president, international franchise sales and brokerage. "His background in real estate and knowledge of his region will certainly mean operations will be off and running quickly. His energy and experience will be most valuable to building a quality organization in these three countries." Estonia has a population of 1.3 million. It borders the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia. After centuries of Danish, Swedish, German, and Russian rule it attained independence in 1918. Forcibly incorporated into the USSR in 1940, it regained its freedom in 1991, with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since the last Russian troops left in 1994, Estonia has been free to promote economic and political ties with Western Europe. It joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. Latvia, which borders the Baltic Sea between Estonia and Lithuania, was annexed by the USSR in 1940 after a brief period of independence between the two World Wars. With a population of 2.3 million Latvia’s independence was reestablished in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union. Latvia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. Independent between the two World Wars, Lithuania borders the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Russia and was annexed by the USSR in 1940. On March 11, 1990, Lithuania became the first of the Soviet republics to declare its independence, but Moscow did not recognize this proclamation until September of 1991. Lithuania subsequently restructured its economy for integration into Western European institutions and joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. It has a population of 3.6 million.

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