GVA Advantis' Kevin Wattenbarger Receives CCIM Designation

PANAMA CITY BEACH, FL. – (Sept. 15, 2008) – GVA Advantis is pleased to announce Kevin L. Wattenbarger (top right photo) has received the Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) designation by the CCIM Institute. Wattenbarger is an associate in GVA Advantis’ Panama City office where he specializes in investment sales and analysis in addition to retail and industrial brokerage.

“The attainment of this designation is evidence of Kevin’s commitment to establishing himself as one of the top real estate professionals in the Panama City market and a reflection of his dedication to the highest level of customer service,” says Managing Director Lucas Hewett. (top left photo)

Wattenbarger currently serves as co-chair of the sponsorship committee for the Florida Chapter of CCIM. He is a member of the Greater Panama City Beaches Chamber of Commerce and a graduate of Leadership Bay, a community leadership development program sponsored by the Bay County Chamber of Commerce. Additional industry affiliations include the National Association of Realtors and the Bay County Affordable Housing Advisory Committee.

Prior to joining GVA Advantis, Wattenbarger served as an Infantryman in the United States Army. He is a veteran of two combat tours in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. While serving in Iraq, Wattenbarger was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge and the Army Commendation Medal. Wattenbarger was honorably discharged from the Florida Army National Guard and is currently a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW). He also volunteers for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

A life-long resident of Northwest Florida, Wattenbarger is a graduate of Florida State University. He holds Bachelor of Science degrees in both Real Estate and Finance with a minor in Urban and Regional Planning and is a licensed real estate broker in the state of Florida.

A Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) is a recognized expert in the disciplines of commercial and investment real estate. Based in Chicago, the CCIM Institute confers the Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) designation to commercial real estate professionals through an extensive curriculum of 200 classroom hours, in addition to professional experiential requirements.

Currently, there are only 9,500 CCIMs in 1,000 markets worldwide. CCIM designees include professionals who work in brokerage, investment and development, the corporate environment, property management, appraisal and related segments of commercial real estate. For more information, visit http://www.ccim.com/.

Media Contact: Lisa Hyde, GVA Advantis, 813.342.4752. 3000, Bayport Drive, Suite 100, Tampa, FL 33607 LHyde@gvaadvantis.com