Stephen Israel launched the Buyer's Edge in 1991, creating the first real estate firm in the Washington, DC Metropolitan area to exclusively represent home buyers. The idea grew out of conversations with his family and friends who were buying their first homes about the shocking lack of representation for buyers in home buying transactions. He founded the Buyer's Edge to provide a consumer-oriented approach to home buying, eliminating the implicit conflict of interest when two agents from the same firm are representing the buyer and seller in the same transaction. A licensed broker in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, DC, Steve has spent the past 27 years in the real estate and construction industries. Prior to founding the Buyer's Edge, Steve spent ten years working in the commercial construction business as a project manager and then running a small company that specialized in shopping center construction and high-end office remodeling. Born and raised in Washington, DC, Steve grew up in a real estate household where his father was an appraiser. He currently lives in Bethesda with his wife and two children.