BusinessWeek writer wins top real estate writing award

Mara Der Hovanesian of Business Week has won the Robert F. Brennan Award from the National Association of Real Estate Editors for the best overall entry in its annual reporting contest.

The judges said Der Hovanesian’s entry “managed to uncover and get people to talk about the sleazy underbelly of the mortgage business.  People obviously open up to her, and her article shows it.  Her article serves as a model for traditional investigative reporting.” It also won in the magazine category.

The best freelance award went to Sharon Stangenes, whose work appears in the Chicago Tribune, while the best residential real estate report in a daily newspaper went to Jennifer Hiller of the San Antonio Express-News.

Eric Pryne of the Seattle Times won the best commercial real estate report award.

Other winners include Charlotte Sutton of the St. Petersburg Times for best home design feature, Amy Jeter for best report or feature in a daily with less than 250,000 circulation, and Jonathan O’Connell of the Washington Business Journal for best report or feature in a weekly business paper.

See all of the winners here.