WCI's Prudential-Brand Unit Buys Vance Brokerage

ORLANDO-After 10 years as the metro area’s fastest-growing independent residential and commercial real estate brokerage, Vance Realty Group has been sold to Prudential Florida WCI Realty. The buyer is an affiliate of 60-year-old, publicly traded WCI Communities Inc. of Bonita Springs.

Buyer and seller representatives declined to disclose the transaction price or terms of the deal. However, area brokers specializing in business-to-business sales tell GlobeSt.com the price could be in the $20-million to $25-million range. The estimate is primarily based on Vance’s strong sales over the past two years.

The company did $214.3 million in closed volume on 522 transactions in 2005. The volume represented increases of 59% and 10% respectively over 2004, John H. Jolinsky, an Orlando residential marketer who tracks the local industry, tells GlobeSt.com.

Sharon Backe, managing broker of Prudential Florida WCI Realty’s Windermere office in south Orlando, will head the company’s new offices in the MetroWest community in southwest Orlando and Poinciana in Osceola County. Barbara Vance, who founded Vance Realty in 1996, will be a paid consultant to the Prudential unit. Arnold Matyas, a Vance Realty principal, will continue to lead the commercial division.

In acquiring Vance Realty, the Prudential-brand firm grows its organization to 50 Florida office and more than 2,000 sales associates, according to Rei Mesa, president and chief operating officer of the company. “We continue to identify and acquire strong local operators with excellent market positioning and who are focused on customer service to assist us in our growth,” Mesa says.

Barbara Vance says she did the deal because she “felt that our boutique firm would work well within Prudential Florida WCI’s environment.”

WCI Communities Inc. common is trading on the New York Stock Exchange in the $24- to $26-per-share range. The company’s fourth-quarter 2005 earnings fell to $54.6 million or $1.20 per share, down 7% from the year-ago quarter’s profit of $58.9 million, WCI previously reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission.