Two years after ending its affiliation with RE/MAX, the Scottsdale, Arizona-based Platinum Living Realty announced Wednesday it’s affiliating with Corcoran. Corcoran Platinum Living is the ninth franchisee for the New York City-founded brand, which has been franchising for less than a year.
Jay Macklin | Photo credit: Corcoran Platinum Living
“We did a really good job with our growth as an independent luxury company, but as the markets shift and things change, we noticed that a partnership with a company that already had a strategic footprint within the market was important,” Corcoran Platinum Living co-founder and broker Jay Macklin told Inman.
“Looking at what is already a crowded, competitive market when it comes to luxury, we knew that to align ourselves with a brand like Corcoran, not only from a value and brand standpoint, but from a strategic alliance in the luxury part of it, was really important,” Macklin added.
Macklin, who co-owns the brokerage with his wife Michelle, told Inman that he was happy with the company’s growth as an indie brokerage and wasn’t necessarily looking for a new affiliation after he left the RE/MAX brand. The brokerage has expanded to 187 agents — from around 120 in 2018 — and its luxury sales are up 128 percent in 2020, year over year. It currently has five offices.
It was actually Corcoran that reached out to Platinum Living Realty to make its pitch to Macklin. Macklin said he was impressed with the brand’s culture, systems, leadership — including Corcoran CEO Pam Liebman — and the tools it could provide his agents.
He was also particularly interested in Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group, the new development arm of the Corcoran brand. Phoenix has always been a sprawling city, but in recent times, there’s been some upward development with new high rise buildings. New development is one of the areas Macklin hopes to grow his business.
“For the lack of a better term, they eat people’s lunch in New York City,” Macklin said. “Hopefully that happens here.”
COVID-19 is leading to companies condensing, which makes the affiliation with a well-known brand even more important, according to Macklin. It will also help him as he aims to grow the company through mergers and acquisitions.
“I really felt that going forward, particularly in the Phoenix and Scottsdale market, as companies are condensing, the trust equity in the brand will be very important,” Macklin said.
He added, “You can only do so much as a small independent company. If you really want to grow and get a bigger footprint and gain market share, you have to have strategic alliances.”
Corcoran Platinum Living brings the Corcoran franchise brand to its eighth state, less than one year after the brand opened its first franchise. The company was founded as a real estate brokerage in New York City, before ultimately being acquired by Realogy in 2001. Realogy began selling Corcoran franchises in October 2018.
“The focused and dedicated growth plans we have in the western U.S. — particularly in urban and resort markets — are undeniable, and I can’t wait to see the Corcoran Platinum Living team shine as they grow in this next chapter,” Liebman said, in a statement.
