The Corcoran Group’s making good on its ambitions to franchise its branding and it’s starting in Silicon Valley.
The franchise affiliate will be called Corcoran Global Living and will be led by founder and CEO Michael Mahon, the New York City-based brokerage announced. Mahon has previously led independent brokerages HER Realtors of the Midwest and First Team Real Estate of Southern California. Inman first reported the news.
The new company consists of 450 agents and 13 offices that have previously conducted $2.6 billion in sales in a year. It was formed by the merger of Zephyr Real Estate, a boutique San Francisco firm, and Oliver Luxury Real Estate, which focuses on Lake Tahoe and Reno, Nevada.
Corcoran president and CEO Pam Liebman called the affiliate franchise a “powerhouse company” and called it a first step in franchising the Corcoran brand — a move that was first announced in 2018.
“With our deep experience in high-end, competitive East Coast markets, it is a natural move for Corcoran to head west with our first franchise affiliate,” she said in a statement.
Opening a Corcoran franchise costs between $153,350 and $518,000 and franchisees’ royalties to Corcoran will start at 6 percent, according to documents filed last year. They are also obligated to contribute between 1 to 0.5 percent of gross revenue for brand marketing.
Corcoran declined to disclose financials surrounding the startup costs and royalties for Corcoran Global Living.
Zephyr was in talks with Compass for the venture capital-backed company to acquire it in 2018, but the deal fell apart after Zephyr alleged Compass tried to recruit its managers and took out a restraining order against its would-be buyer.
The news of the West Coast firms’ merger and franchise affiliation comes amid a backdrop of consolidation and cost cutting for brokerages.
Write to Erin Hudson at ekh@therealdeal.com
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