Mike Travers, an agent at Jack Conway Realtors in Bridgewater, has been named 2008 Realtor of the Year by the Tri-County Board of Realtors.

Passkey International, a Boston-based company specializing in hotel reservation technology, has leased 20,317 square feet at the Watch Factory in Waltham from Boston-based Berkeley Investments, the property’s developer and manager.

Interest rates on commercial mortgage-backed securities are going to rise, loan delinquencies will go up and capital will diminish in the commercial market in the coming year, according to industry experts.

Buckingham Browne & Nichols, a coeducational day school, has leased 27,000 square feet for administrative and classroom space at 40 Belmont St. in Watertown.

National first-time unemployment insurance claims fell by 58,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted number of 346,000, a 14 percent drop compared to the prior week, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.