January 1, 2009 – KANSAS CITY, MO – Entrepreneur Magazine recently unveiled the 30^th Annual Franchise 500®, the world’s most comprehensive franchise ranking system designed to assist entrepreneurs in selecting the best franchise opportunities. United Country Real Estate has earned
a Top 100 ranking among the 2009 Franchise 500 report, which is featured in the January 2009 edition of Entrepreneur Magazine.

Capturing the No. 95 position in the 2009 Franchise 500, up from the No. 101 spot in 2008, United Country is the only franchise in the real estate category to move up in the new rankings. The company also achieved the No. 24 ranking in the Low-Cost Franchise category and was featured in the November 2008 issue of Entrepreneur Magazine in the article, 85 Franchises you can start for less than $25,000.

“The fact that United Country is the only real estate franchise to achieve upward growth in the rankings illustrates that despite the challenges in the real estate market, our infrastructure remains strong and we are poised for continued success in the future. During economic uncertainty, many companies choose to become static when it comes to investing in new initiatives. We chose to do the opposite.  We felt that there was no better time to refine our system and bring additional value to our franchise offering in areas including technology, marketing and strategic partnerships – all with the goal of propelling our franchisees ahead of the competition today and even more so as we see market correction in the years to come,”
said Dan Duffy, chief executive officer of United Country Real Estate.

Entrepreneur Magazine has been conducting the Franchise 500 study since 1980. All companies, regardless of size, are judged by the same criteria: objective, quantifiable measures of a franchise operation. The objective factors are plugged into the Franchise 500 formula, with each eligible company receiving a cumulative score. The franchises with the highest scores become the official Franchise 500.

About United Country

United Country Real Estate is the largest integrated real estate and auction company in the U.S. 
Based in Kansas City, Mo., the company has been an innovator in real estate marketing since 1925. United Country is the only national franchise specializing in country properties. The company supports nearly 675 offices nationwide with a unique, comprehensive marketing program that includes one of the largest portfolios of property marketing web sites (over 750 separate sites), publishes seven proprietary real estate catalogs with a cumulative distribution of 1.5 million, an extensive, current buyer database and national advertising of properties to more than 90 million potential buyer prospects a week. United Country has been recognized as a Top 25 Franchise by the Wall Street Journal and among Entrepreneur Magazine's Franchise 500®.

NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS
2820 NW Barry Road, Kansas City, MO 64154
816-420-6200  www.unitedcountry.com