The Berkshire County Board of REALTORS® is proud to announce Peter West co-owner of Bishop West Real Estate as the recipient of the 2026 Berkshire REALTOR® of the Year Award, the Association’s highest honor recognizing exceptional professionalism, leadership, service, and commitment to the REALTOR® organization. Here is his service to the association: (link to announcement)
Local Leadership & Service
For more than 40 years, Peter West has been an active supporter of the Berkshire County Board of REALTORS®, believing that a strong local association is the foundation of a strong profession. He regularly participates in Association events, fundraisers, educational programs, and professional development opportunities, while encouraging agents within his office to become involved in leadership and earn REALTOR® designations.
Over the past year, Peter has served on the Housing Advocacy & Outreach Committee, participated in community cleanup efforts alongside fellow REALTORS®, sponsored and participated in the REALTOR® Charity Golf Tournament, attended the Association’s Installation of Officers, and actively supports Board initiatives that strengthen both the profession and the communities REALTORS® serve. He has served on the Berkshire County Board of Realtors® Housing Trust since it’s inception, managing the disaster allocations for Berkshire families in need.
State Leadership & Professional Development
Peter’s greatest contribution to the Massachusetts Association of REALTORS® has been through education. For more than 31 years, he has taught GRI and numerous National Association of REALTORS® designation programs throughout Massachusetts, bringing advanced professional education directly to local REALTOR® members.
His decades of classroom instruction, participation in state programming, and commitment to professional development have helped educate generations of Massachusetts REALTORS®. Peter credits those experiences with keeping him closely connected to practitioners across the Commonwealth and reinforcing the value of the REALTOR® organization.
National Leadership & Industry Involvement
Peter’s service extends well beyond Massachusetts through extensive involvement with the National Association of REALTORS®. A certified NAR designation instructor for nearly three decades, he teaches ABR, GRI, SRES, RSPS, SFR, ePRO and other professional designation courses throughout the United States.
He has attended NAR Legislative Meetings and NAR NXT for many years, serving as both a speaker and panelist while advocating for private property rights and homeownership. Peter is a REALTOR® Party Major Donor supporting advocacy efforts at every level of government and has been endorsed for service on NAR’s Global Business & Alliance Committee and Professional Development Committee.
His commitment to advancing the profession also includes participation in international real estate trade missions and speaking engagements, including presenting at CIMI360 in São Paulo, Brazil, where he shared knowledge with real estate professionals from across the Americas.
Berkshire Community Service & Involvement
For the past five years Peter has run a very successful radio challenge, with business partner Corey Bishop, for Toys for Tots, resulting in over 15,000 toys and $15,000 in cash donations collected for children in our community. Together, they created the Music Bingo fundraiser for the Berkshire Humane Society, which has generated over $90,000 in total donations, in just 3 years, directly supporting the Humane Society’s mission, including a memorable social media campaign this year.
For the past few years, he has participated in the Northern Berkshire Giving Tree, helping teenagers, ages 13-18, in need at Christmas. In 2025, Peter was instrumental in taking over the program and creating a team at the Bishop West office to handle this undertaking. After doing that, he has expanded the program in 2026 throughout Central Berkshire County.
Peter remains an active member of Mass Landlords and proactively worked to raise public awareness of the negative ramifications of the proposed rent control bill in Massachusetts this past spring. Peter is also an active member of;
- 1 Berkshire Member
- Third Degree Knight with the Knights of Columbus.
- Board member of Community Broadband Radio.
- Sponsorship and support of youth organizations, including Pittsfield Little League and Adams Lassie League, to name just two.
In His Own Words: Business Accomplishments
As Broker/Co-Owner of Bishop West Real Estate, I have spent 42 years building a practice grounded in ethical conduct, professional competence, and trusted client counseling. Today, I serve buyers, sellers, investors, and property owners throughout Berkshire County, Massachusetts, New York, Vermont, and Southwest Florida.
Beyond brokerage, I have worked to expand housing opportunities in our region. Through Modular Building Systems, Inc., I have helped build more than 100 homes in Berkshire County and have completed numerous rehabilitation and redevelopment projects, working with municipalities to create additional attainable housing.
I founded the Bishop West School of Real Estate, providing pre-licensing and continuing education for real estate professionals, and continue to invest in residential real estate through a multi-state investment portfolio.
Education has always been central to my business philosophy. Whether teaching in the classroom, mentoring agents in my office, or counseling clients, I believe informed decisions create better outcomes for everyone involved.
I also created The Real Estate Guyz, a monthly radio program airing on three Berkshire County stations that educates consumers on topics including fair housing, market trends, inspections, tenant rights, and homeownership. What began as a public education initiative has evolved into one of the region’s most recognizable real estate marketing platforms, combining consumer education with a conversational approach that reflects how we do business every day.
REALTOR Spirit
“To me, Realtor® Spirit isn’t a slogan, it is the accumulation of thousands of small decisions made over a career. It’s the choice to stay in the room when a deal gets hard. It’s returning a call to a colleague on the other side even when you don’t have to. It’s mentoring a new agent or helping a fellow broker/owner with a complex problem or just talking through a situation.
I believe the Code of Ethics is a living document, not a compliance checkbox. I teach it that way. I have tried to practice it that way. And I have tried to pass that belief on to every agent who has come through our office or sat in one of my classrooms. Real estate is a people business. The Realtor® designation should mean something in your community: that you are a professional who knows your craft, tells the truth, and puts your client’s interests first. I have spent my career trying to live up to that standard, and I intend to keep doing so.”