Douglas Elliman, Manhattan’s largest residential brokerage, has officially dropped “Prudential” from its name, ushering in an image for the firm that recalls its 1911 origins as an independent company. The switch applies to all of the firm’s divisions, including new development marketing, title services, relocation services and property management, the firm said.
As early as February, Elliman CEO Dottie Herman had been mulling a decision to stop using “Prudential” in the firm’s name and leave the global real estate franchise, as The Real Deal reported.
Elliman had been the largest franchisee in the Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services network, which Prudential Financial sold to Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management in December for $110 million.
Herman and Elliman chairman Howard Lorber had been negotiating a new franchise agreement with Brookfield; the current agreement expires early next year.
At the time, Herman said she was reluctant to renew the agreement with Prudential because it put geographic constraints on the brokerage, citing her inability to open offices in Boca Raton and Palm Beach, Fla. But she was also weighing what Brookfield would bring to the table.
“We have a strong enough name, and we don’t need the Prudential name,” Herman said at the time. “We basically want to see what they have to offer. If they tell us we can’t grow, we are not going to stay with them, either.”
It was not immediately clear whether the new name indicates a departure from the Brookfield franchise agreement. The new branding is already in place on Elliman’s website and in marketing materials and advertising.
“A return to our historic Douglas Elliman identity further propels us to the top of the real estate industry,” Lorber said in a statement. [REW]—Leigh Kamping-Carder