The nation’s largest brokerage, NRT LLC, has just expanded by 60 offices and 2,000 agents across Texas, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina.
NRT LLC acquired the massive regional firm Coldwell Banker United Realtors. NRT and Coldwell Banker United, Realtors, already shared a relationship with Realogy, which owns NRT as well as the Coldwell Banker Real Estate brand. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Coldwell Banker United, Realtors Founder Richard Smith (no relation to Realogy’s chairman, CEO and president, Richard Smith) and the regional management team at the firm will stay on board.
With 23,417 transaction sides and $5.8 billion in sales volume in 2014, Coldwell Banker United Realtors was one of the largest firms in the country and has been Coldwell Banker’s largest independent affiliate by transaction sides since 2002.
The firm ranked No. 7 and No. 11 in the nation by transaction sides and sales volume, respectively, in 2014.
“This announcement marks NRT’s entrance into important new markets and positions us to build on the success of Coldwell Banker United, Realtors’ strong leadership team and the quality of its affiliated sales associates and employees,” said Bruce Zipf, president and CEO of NRT, in a statement.
With the acquisition, NRT is gaining new offices in several key Texas markets, including 19 offices in Houston, 11 in Austin and three in the Dallas, Fort Worth, region.
Coldwell Banker United Realtors’ 16 offices in the Carolinas gives NRT a contiguous presence down the Eastern Seaboard. NRT is also expanding into 11 offices in Florida.
“This announcement positions the No. 1 Coldwell Banker independent affiliate to be part of the No. 1 residential real estate brokerage in the nation, and I personally take great pride in that,” Smith said.
Map of NRT’s markets. Note: Map hasn’t been updated to reflect the Coldwell Bankers United, Realtors acquisition. Source: NRT LLC
With the acquisition, NRT now owns and operates brokerages in 45 large U.S. markets with a total of approximately 795 offices and approximately 47,000 agents. The firm operates across its footprint under the following brand names: Coldwell Banker, Corcoran Group, Sotheby’s International Realty, ZipRealty and Citi Habitats.
In October, NRT acquired the 360-agent, 11-office Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, firm Coldwell Banker Select Professionals.
NRT’s biggest competitor, the second largest brokerage in the U.S., HomeServices of America Inc., has been on the acquisition hunt, too.
In 2014, HomeServices marched into California’s Silicon Valley by acquiring Cupertino-based Intero Real Estate Services. In 2013, it snapped up Philadelphia-based Prudential Fox & Roach Realtors and Chicago’s Prudential Rubloff Properties.
HomeServices, like NRT, is in the brand game now, too, with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices. HomeServices is a majority owner in HSF Affiliates Inc., which runs the BHHS, Prudential Real Estate and Real Living brands.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated.