Martin Edwards, Jr. Scholarship Established August 5, 2005


Martin Edwards Jr., CCIM, of Memphis, Tennessee began his real estate career in 1965 and became the first commercial practitioner in the Memphis area to earn the CCIM designation in 1975. He was a founding member of the Memphis Metro CCIM Chapter.
Martin has been involved in the Memphis real estate market in numerous investment brokerage, management and developments that include apartments, land, office, industrial, and commercial mortgage banking for 40 years. He is retired from Edwards Investments, Realtors and is licensed broker in Tennessee, Mississippi and North Carolina.
Martin was a CCIM instructor for the CCIM Institute many years and served the CCIM Institute as President in 1989. He also served the National Associations of Realtors as Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer in 1996 and 1997, and as President in 2002. He is an Honorary Trustee for the MAAR Education Foundation.
As NAR’s President, Edwards championed a renewed commitment by NAR to housing opportunities for all Americans and adopted the theme, “The Power of One,” as a watchword for members that they can make a difference in the issues that face the real estate industry by their participation. As President and President-elect, he led the legislative lobbying effort on Capitol Hill against big banks in real estate. Becoming president just after the September 11th attacks, Edwards helped to establish the REALTORS® Housing Relief Fund, now known as the REALTOR® Relief Foundation.
Active in the community as well, Edwards has chaired the Memphis Health, Education and Housing Facility Board. He has served as a trustee for the University of Memphis Foundation and has been an approved instructor for the Mortgage Bankers Association of America and the American Institute of Real Estate Appraisers.
In 2022, the Memphis Metro CCIM Chapter awarded him the first Memphis Metro CCIM Chapter Life Membership Award.
Scholarship Value: $1,000 Scholarship Used Toward: CCIM Core Course (CI 101-104)
Past Recipients:
Mary McCall – 2006
Ed Thomas – 2007
Ed Thomas – 2008
Connie Kjellin – 2009
Bill Caller Jr. – 2010
Robert Sloan – 2011
William Mallory IV – 2012
William Mallory IV – 2013
Bambi Kirk - 2016
Robert Cartwright - 2017
J.C. McKinnon - 2018
James McCraw - 2019
Henry Stratton III - 2021
Kitzy Carr - 2021