In a merger that would bring together the largest and second-largest real estate brokerages in the United States, Compass Inc. announced on Monday that it had signed an agreement to acquire Anywhere Real Estate for around $1.6 billion.
Anywhere, based in Madison, N.J., is the parent company of some of the country’s best-known real estate brands including Century 21, Sotheby’s International Realty, Corcoran and Coldwell Banker. The merger with New York-based Compass — described in the announcement as a “monumental step” by Compass chief executive Robert Reffkin — has been approved by the boards of directors at both companies and is expected to close in the second half of 2026.
The agreement comes against the backdrop of a strained housing market, with 2024 marking the slowest year for home sales since 1995.
In recent months, numerous mergers have been announced across the industry, including Rocket’s purchase of the Redfin real estate brokerage and Compass’s earlier acquisitions of several smaller brokerages.
“We’ve seen a lot of mergers and acquisition of the biggest players in real estate of late,” said Lance Lambert, who co-founded the real estate research firm ResiClub. He pointed to the uncertainty in the market given that the buying and selling of homes is near the bottom of a multidecade bell curve. “There’s kind of been this rush to, you know, gain more pieces of the puzzle,” he said.
The marriage of Compass with Anywhere would expand Compass’s presence to all 50 states and grow its international footprint from 50 to around 120 countries, according to a presentation made to investors on Monday. The number of agents under the combined umbrella of the two companies would grow to 340,000, including 40,000 dedicated Compass agents and around 300,000 working for the various brands under Anywhere.
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The post Compass to Buy Top Rival, Further Condensing Brokerage Industry appeared first on New York Times.
