Two Richmond, Virginia-based real estate brokers have joined forces: A real estate group from the south will absorb Clocktower Real Estate Group. With this consolidation, One South will double in size, to 140 agents and employees.
Richmond Biz Sense reported that both companies are in the process of making this transition and that 50 of Clocktower’s 73 agents have already migrated to One South. Rhonda Carroll, Principal Broker at Clocktower, expects a retention rate of 90%.
Clocktower, launched by Carroll in 2017, consulted One South in the face of a slowing housing market and rising interest rates.
Carroll will serve as an additional management broker, alongside current One South management broker Laura Waite. In her new role, Carroll will assist agents with branding and strategies for tough rosters.
One South opened in 2008 and survived the recession at the time – one of the reasons Carroll sought advice.
Rick Jarvis, co-founder of One South, said the company wasn’t actively seeking a merger, but it ultimately made sense to leverage the benefits both companies bring to the table.
Although the company was not looking to bring another company into the fold, he said the combination with Clocktower made sense for both companies and brought benefits to both parties.
“The financial analysis was actually the easy part; the hardest part was making sure that culturally and philosophically we were aligned,” he said..
Together, the two companies have closed about 1,000 residential transactions so far in 2022.
“What we’re building is actually designed for an evolving market, and we’re excited about what the future holds,” Jarvis said.
Facing a volatile housing market, these mergers are on the rise. Package firm Houzzer, modeled around salaried real estate agents, fixed listing prices for sellers and high attach rates for ancillary services, acquired Trelora, a Denver-based brokerage firm, to “innovate, build and scale a transformational business serving clients during this seismic market shift.”
Earlier this month, the Bismarck-based brokerage Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Alliance Group merged with Watne, real estate agents based in Minot, ND to expand business growth in the upstate region.