RE/MAX 10 Continues Expanding in Chicago Real Estate Market Through Merger With RE/MAX Select

Sept. 30, 2010 - PRLog -- Many real estate firms are struggling in today’s challenging economy, but RE/MAX 10, with offices in Chicago, Palos Park and Oak Lawn, Ill., as well as in Chesterton, Ind., continues to grow in the metropolitan Chicago real estate market.  Earlier this year it opened its first city office at 5601 S. Pulaski Road in West Elsdon, and in September the brokerage expanded further in Chicago by merging with RE/MAX Select, an established office on the city’s Southwest Side.

The move, according to all parties involved, was a natural one.  Julie Anderson has sold homes for 25 years, joined RE/MAX in 1991 and along with partner Barb Gembala has operated RE/MAX Select for 12 years.  In all that time, however, she never has seen a residential real estate market like today’s.

Like all talented real estate professionals, Anderson knew it was time to adapt, and the merger with RE/MAX 10 was a key element in doing that.  By joining forces with RE/MAX 10, agents from both offices will be better poised to succeed in today’s challenging Chicago-area housing market.

“It made more sense to have everyone under one roof,” Anderson said, “and you have to make the moves that make the most sense.”

The RE/MAX Select agents have moved either to the RE/MAX 10 office on Pulaski Road or its facility at 9909 Southwest Hwy. in Oak Lawn, Ill.  The merger brings the number of agents now working at RE/MAX 10 to approximately 100.

Anderson said RE/MAX 10 was the right fit for the merger for several reasons but especially because its agents continue to notch steady sales despite the slower pace of the housing market.     “This was the best move for us,” Anderson said.  “Their geographic location, of course, was perfect.  RE/MAX 10 is a large company with a lot of talented agents. They have a lot of stability.  They’ve taken the RE/MAX model and run with it so well.  It’s a successful office. There’s a comfort level when you move to an office that’s already doing well.”

According to Val Hatzelis, general manger of RE/MAX 10, the merger will make the brokerage even stronger.  Consolidating talent, a task this merger accomplishes, is one way to battle a difficult real estate market.

“In today’s market, we can work much stronger if we stick together,” Hatzelis said.  “The agents who came here from RE/MAX Select are excellent, and we are very pleased to have the owners join our company and merge with us.  A team working together always achieves more.  This will be a good move for everyone.”

Hatzelis added that the agents coming to RE/MAX 10 from RE/MAX Select already have track records of adapting to changing markets, skills that will help RE/MAX 10 continue its steady growth.

“Our agents are holding their own even today because they have worked hard to adapt to the type of business we now have. They’re working on the short sales, foreclosures and distressed properties,” Hatzelis said. “They’ve embraced it.  They are generating outstanding results for their clients.”

# # #

RE/MAX is the leader in northern Illinois real estate sales, and has ranked number-one in the metropolitan Chicago real estate market since 1989.

The RE/MAX Northern Illinois network includes 2,500 associates and more than 100 individually owned and operated RE/MAX offices. These offices provide residential, relocation and commercial real estate services throughout the northern one-third of Illinois. The network’s Web site, http://www.illinoisproperty.com, remains a top destination for buyers and sellers in the Northern Illinois region, while http://www.remax.com ranks as one of the most popular real estate Web sites in the nation according to rankings from online intelligence services Compete.com, Comscore and Hitwise.

RE/MAX Northern Illinois is part of RE/MAX International, a global real estate organization with 6,500 independently owned offices and 93,000 member sales associates in 78 nations.