NRT Agrees to Buy New York City Realtor Corcoran Group
By: Motoko Rich
Published: 9/25/2001Source: The Wall Street JournalTuesday, September 25, 2001
NRT Agrees to Buy New York City Realtor Corcoran Group
New York - NRT Inc., an owner of real-estate brokerage firms around the country, agreed to buy Corcoran Group, one of the largest brokers here, for a sum that wasn't disclosed. The acquisition marks NRT's first foray into New York City, one of the fiercest and most insular markets in the country. NRT, which was formed in 1997 as a joint venture between real-estate and hotel franchiser Cendant Corp., of New York, and Apollo Management LP, usually merges the brokerage firms it buys into one of three Cendant real-estate brands: Coldwell Banker, Century 21 and ERA. In this case, Corcoran will remain an independent brand with no Cendant franchise. "New York is a special real-estate market, as is the Corcoran Group name," an NRT spokeswoman said.
Corcoran has 500 brokers and 200 support staff in 11 offices throughout the city. Last year the firm collected gross commissions on home sales of more than $105 billion, has bought more than 200 real-estate brokerage firms in 24 markets. Those brokerage firms have been rolled into one of 22 operating companies. Barbara Corcoran, 52 years old, founded the predecessor to Corcoran Group in 1973. "I wanted to grow aggressively," Ms. Corcoran says. "I saw more opportunity than my pocketbook could afford, and that became a source of frustration." Ms. Corcoran, who will remain as chairman, said the two parties had been negotiating the deal for several months. Since September 11, Ms. Corcoran said business has softened somewhat. During the week of the attacks, brokers helped buyers sign 39 contracts. During a normal week, Ms. Corcoran says, buyers sign between 65 and 70 contracts. During the past week, they signed 62.
NRT Agrees to Buy New York City Realtor Corcoran Group
New York - NRT Inc., an owner of real-estate brokerage firms around the country, agreed to buy Corcoran Group, one of the largest brokers here, for a sum that wasn't disclosed. The acquisition marks NRT's first foray into New York City, one of the fiercest and most insular markets in the country. NRT, which was formed in 1997 as a joint venture between real-estate and hotel franchiser Cendant Corp., of New York, and Apollo Management LP, usually merges the brokerage firms it buys into one of three Cendant real-estate brands: Coldwell Banker, Century 21 and ERA. In this case, Corcoran will remain an independent brand with no Cendant franchise. "New York is a special real-estate market, as is the Corcoran Group name," an NRT spokeswoman said.
Corcoran has 500 brokers and 200 support staff in 11 offices throughout the city. Last year the firm collected gross commissions on home sales of more than $105 billion, has bought more than 200 real-estate brokerage firms in 24 markets. Those brokerage firms have been rolled into one of 22 operating companies. Barbara Corcoran, 52 years old, founded the predecessor to Corcoran Group in 1973. "I wanted to grow aggressively," Ms. Corcoran says. "I saw more opportunity than my pocketbook could afford, and that became a source of frustration." Ms. Corcoran, who will remain as chairman, said the two parties had been negotiating the deal for several months. Since September 11, Ms. Corcoran said business has softened somewhat. During the week of the attacks, brokers helped buyers sign 39 contracts. During a normal week, Ms. Corcoran says, buyers sign between 65 and 70 contracts. During the past week, they signed 62.