Rick Davidson will move aside as CEO and president of Century 21 Real Estate (C21), a Realogy Franchise Group brand, after holding the position for seven years, effective April 21. C21 COO Greg Sexton will handle day-to-day operations in the interim.
“We are moving expediently, yet deliberately, to conduct a thorough search and evaluate candidates for the CEO position,” said John Peyton, president and COO of Realogy Franchise Group, in a statement.
“We thank Rick Davidson for his 11 years of outstanding leadership and service at Realogy, the last seven of which have enabled Century 21 to become a far stronger and healthier franchise network today than ever before,” Peyton continued.
Davidson will be transitioning to a new position as principal and president of the Everest Group, operator of Century 21 Everest-Troop Real Estate, a Salt Lake City-based firm with 17 offices in Utah and California, according to a press release.
“We are delighted that he will remain affiliated with the franchise system as he moves forward with this next stage of his career. There is no better validation for the C21 System than to have a leader of Rick’s caliber choose to affiliate with the franchise,” Peyton added.
Prior to joining Realogy Franchise Group, Davidson founded and served as President and CEO of Coldwell Banker Commercial Capitol Realty Services.
Davidson was named one of Inman’s Real Estate Influencers from 2011 to 2017 and has earned a spot on the Swanepoel Power 200 list since 2013.
“I am deeply proud of the growth and market positioning we have been able to accomplish together as a team at Century 21,” Davidson said in a statement. “I cherish the relationships I have built through the years, and I am excited to become a principal of a leading franchise affiliate brokerage firm within the C21 System.”
Approximately 7,330 independently owned and operated franchised broker offices and 110,000 independent sales professionals comprise C21, according to the company.
Inman has reached out to Davidson for comment and will update the story as additional information comes in.