The Prudential Real Estate Affiliates Inc. today announced that closed 2000 real estate sales activity marked one of its Network's best sales years yet.

"We are extremely pleased with our accomplishments in 2000," said Earl Lee, president, The Prudential Real Estate Affiliates Inc. "We had a number of key indicators increase from the same period in 1999 including the number of new companies joining our Network from competing brands and the number of stellar large companies who decided to affiliate with the Prudential Real Estate brand. We worked with our brokers on several significant merger and acquisition transactions, increasing that activity by 27 percent over 1999. In addition, our Network's sales transaction activity and new company signings both increased by 24 percent compared to 1999."

The company saw a 42 percent increase in competitor brands choosing to join the Prudential Real Estate Network. "We attribute this activity to the stability and quality of both the Prudential Real Estate brand and our Network," said Ray Gronowski, vice president, Franchise Sales for The Prudential Real Estate Affiliates Inc. "We certainly received feedback that our commitment to quality and working with our brokers to help them grow were contributing factors to the decision to join our Network."

In a year of contract renewals for the Network, more than 90 percent of affiliates that met Prudential Real Estate's requirements renewed with the brand and 32 percent have renewed anywhere from one to two years prior to their existing franchise agreement expiring.

Several high profile merger/acquisition and signing activities took place in 2000, including Gary Greene REALTORS in Houston, MacPherson's Real Estate in Seattle, Dinning Beard in Wichita, First Properties in Syracuse, Prudential New Jersey Realty in New Jersey and Gertrude Gardner in Louisiana.

Gary Greene REALTORS is the number one real estate brokerage in the Houston marketplace, as well as one of the top 100 real estate brokers in the nation. The company has more than 900 sales professionals, 16 sales offices and a projected sales volume of $1.6 billion. Prudential MacPherson's Realty has three generations of family real estate practitioners, dating back to 1932. They have eight offices and more than 170 real estate professionals and a 1999 sales volume of more than $276 million as a result of more than 1,400 real estate transactions.

Among the numerous mergers in 2000, the top two account for 1,800 sales professionals and 61 offices. Gertrude Gardner, REALTORS, New Orleans' largest and oldest locally owned real estate company under the same family leadership, merged with Prudential Louisiana Properties to form Prudential Gardner, REALTORS. The combined entity creates metropolitan New Orleans' largest residential real estate company with 1,300 sales professionals, 35 offices and more than 30 percent market share. Together, both companies generated in excess of $1.3 billion in sales in 1999.

Prudential New Jersey Realty of East Brunswick, Prudential Pioneer Real Estate, based in the Martinsville section of Bridgewater, and Prudential Brown-Fowler Co. REALTORS(R) of New Providence merged to form Prudential New Jersey Properties. The combined entity creates the state's second largest independently owned residential Real Estate Company. Prudential New Jersey Properties has more than 500 sales associates and 26 offices servicing ten counties. With more than $1.4 billion in annual sales volume, Prudential New Jersey Properties ranks in the top 10 of all Prudential Real Estate affiliates nationwide.

Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services, a Prudential company, is a leading fully integrated real estate and relocation business and consists of two entities: The Prudential Real Estate Affiliates Inc. and Prudential Relocation.

The real estate group markets franchises primarily to existing real estate companies. As of Dec. 31, 2000, there were approximately 1,500 offices and 42,000 sales professionals in the franchise network. Prudential Real Estate's franchise agreements grant the franchisee the right to use the Prudential name and real estate service marks in return for royalty payments on gross commissions generated by the franchisees. The franchisees generally are independently owned and operated. The franchise group network has grown significantly since it began offering franchises in 1988 and is now one of the largest real estate brokerage franchise networks in North America.

Published: March 6, 2001

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