In 1908, the first real estate transaction that young Homer Wilson Guernsey ever made was the sale of a 15-acre farm three miles from his home in Poughkeepsie, and the selling price was $3,200. For the next 100 years, the name Guernsey has been synonymous with real estate in Dutchess County. What's more, H.W. Guernsey Realtors, Inc. is still owned and managed by another Homer Wilson Guernsey, the III, more familiarly known as Zipp Guernsey.

"We're celebrating our 100th anniversary in a couple of ways," comments Guernsey, "we've put it on our advertising, we've raised a glass in tribute to my father and grandfather, but mostly we're doing what we've always done: working hard to serve people's real estate needs." Finding new owners for some of the most beautiful properties in the Hudson Valley is the day to day business of Guernsey's full-time staff of real estate professionals who have worked as an expert team for many years.

Properties as remarkable as the Ogden Mills Estate (today the Staatsburg State Historic Site), the Franklin D. Roosevelt 500-acre "Dream House", a pristine former wildlife preserve belonging to Andrew Carnegie's daughter, and the magnificent land that was needed to build the Taconic State Parkway, have all been handled with discretion, astute judgment and skill in the delicate art of negotiation.

Noting that it can be a public misconception that the firm only handles large estates, Guernsey laughs "if we did, we'd never have lasted this long! A volatile industry like ours requires collaboration, acumen, and plenty of perseverance. Guernsey Realtors has survived because we give everyone who needs us the same level of attention."

Another key element in Guernsey's consistent success is the professionalism of the agents and staff. These days the team is equally adept at marketing and positioning properties as varied as environmentally sensitive land, equestrian estates and urban or suburban contemporary and classic homes. The firm's website: www.HWGuernsey.com has an enormous number of hits and Guernsey properties are sought after by a local, regional, national and international clientele.

Although some things have changed since the first Homer Wilson Guernsey set off on his new career in his trusty Model T, everyone at Guernsey Realtors today shares a pleasantly old fashioned commitment to customer satisfaction.