Professional Profile: Bob Brooks - 1980

Name: Bob Brooks - 1980

Title: President

Company: HABS/ERA Realtors

Location: Bedford, NH

Birthplace: Manchester, NH

Robert Brooks 1980 Robert Brooks, 43, president of HABS/ERA Realtors of Bedford, founded his brokerage business back in 1968. Since that time his firm has been active in residential, commercial and industrial brokerage. They have also formed various limited partnerships in residential and industrial development and office buildings. His company is an innovative real estate agency that offers such services as a home-buyers warranty program, the unique sellers security plan and an electronic referral relocation service. The company is a member of the National and N.H. Home Buyers Assn. as well as the N.H. CID. Brooks’ primary role in the office is as a manager, but he will broker on the larger commercial and industrial deals. He also spends time keeping in close touch with the banks to make sure finances always come through. When asked about the industry today Brooks says, “the great American dream and personal pride of being a homeowner in the U.S. is a myth. The construction industry has become a scapegoat for the national government to supposedly balance the budget. It has taken 20 years to get us into this position and Washington expects to get out in one.” “Will the Washington politicians,” Brooks continues, “bail out the thousands of people in this related industry who are in trouble the way they did the Chrysler Corp.? Unfortunately their only outlook seems to be Chapter 11.” Brooks was born in Manchester and did all his schooling there. He worked for 11 years in the pressroom of the Union Leader Corp., during which time he moved to Bedford. He became unsatisfied with the newspaper job and took a night real estate course at the recommendation of one of the paper’s advertisements. Starting out as a part-time Realtor, he became so involved that he decided to make it his profession and open his own office. Brooks has stayed very active in the community where he has resided for 20 years. In that time he has served the following civic organizations: Board of Selectmen (12 yrs.); Budget Committee (5 yrs.); Planning Board (4 yrs.); Historic District Comm. (4 yrs.); Representative to the Southern N.H. Regional Planning Comm. (2 yrs.); Board of Parks and Recreation Comm. (4 yrs.). He was instrumental in reactivating the Parks and Recreation Commission, which resulted in the construction of the new Bedford recreation area. He also played a part in the creation of a centralized town government building and care facility in Bedford center. An active fund-raiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Assn. (MDA), Brooks will be sponsoring the Glenn Miller Orchestra on June 13^th at the Carosel Ballroom in Bedford. All proceeds will be donated to the MDA. ERA is a national corporate sponsor whose donation added up to over $1M in 1979. In his spare time, athletics have kept Brooks busy. He has coached and sponsored Little League and Babe Ruth baseball, junior hockey, girls’ softball and a junior tennis program. Brooks himself will be playing in an upcoming tennis tournament, which runs annually to help support the Park and Recreation Commission. The Brooks family consists of Bob, his wife Marlene, and their three children Robin (23), Greg (21) and the youngest Realtor in N.H. Scott (18).