Chris Kelly Again Named Among Top Industry Execs

Chris Kelly, CEO of the Ebby Halliday Companies, has been named to the 2023 Swanepoel Power 200 list. The list is widely considered the most comprehensive compilation of influential CEOs, thought leaders and senior executives in the residential real estate brokerage business.

Kelly joins Gino Blefari, CEO of HomeServices of America (Ebby’s parent company) and chairman, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, and several other executives from across HomeServices’ brokerage and franchise companies who were also named to the 2023 Swanepoel Power 200 list. Blefari was named to the top spot on the 2023 Swanepoel Power 200 list.

In addition to serving as CEO of the Ebby Halliday Companies, Kelly was recently named Executive Vice President of HomeServices of America.  

Congratulations to Chris on another well-deserved honor!

To view the just-released Power 200 list, visit sp200.com

Chris Kelly Among Top Industry Execs

Chris Kelly, president & CEO of the Ebby Halliday Companies, has been named to the Power 200. The list is widely considered the most comprehensive compilation of influential CEOs, thought leaders and senior executives in the residential real estate brokerage business. To view the just-released Power 200 list, visit bit.ly/Power200ChrisKelly

The rankings are based on such criteria as personal influence, industry tenure, office held, decision-making power of said office, the financial resources of the company or organization, the company or organization’s significance and contribution to the industry, the company’s geographic reach, and the executive’s activities, growth and potential.

Congratulations to Chris Kelly on another honor very well deserved!

Chris Kelly is president and CEO of North Texas-based Ebby Halliday Companies, which includes three real estate brands, Ebby Halliday Realtors, Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate and Williams Trew, as well as affiliated mortgage, insurance and title companies. A graduate of Kansas State University and the University of Kansas Law School, Kelly is also a licensed real estate broker. He joined ReeceNichols, HomeServices of America’s Kansas City affiliate, in 2007, and served as corporate legal counsel before being promoted to chief administrative officer. Before joining the Ebby Halliday Companies, he served as senior counsel for HomeServices, where he supported the company’s acquisitions and technology initiatives. Chris and his wife, Melinda, have three children. He enjoys an active outdoor lifestyle, and has completed two Ironmans and five Half-Ironmans, as well as numerous marathons and other races. His other great passion is spending time with family.

Real Estate Icon’s Legacy of Service Carried Out Daily Across North Texas

Throughout 2020, the Ebby Halliday Companies are celebrating 75 years of serving the real estate needs of North Texans and those relocating to the region. It all began in 1945, when one bold woman parlayed her wisdom, generosity, business acumen and endurance into what is today the No. 1 residential real estate brokerage in Texas.

“Long life is a privilege not everyone – or every company – gets to enjoy,” says Ebby Halliday Companies President & CEO Chris Kelly. “During this anniversary year, we acknowledge this fact with a spirit of gratitude.”

The legacy of Ebby Halliday, who founded Ebby Halliday Realtors in 1945, is carried out daily in North Texas through 2,000-plus agents and staff across three real estate brands and in-house mortgage, insurance and title companies. It is now amplified by the Ebby Halliday Companies’ affiliation with Berkshire Hathaway affiliate HomeServices of America, the country’s No. 1 residential real estate company. 

Acquired by HomeServices in 2018, the Ebby Halliday Companies are modernizing homeownership services and are focused on ensuring that homeownership is available to everyone who wants to own a home in North Texas. Among the company’s primary business objectives in 2020 is furthering access to homeownership opportunities for historically marginalized communities. 

The Ebby Halliday Companies include real estate brands Ebby Halliday Realtors, Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate and Williams Trew and core-services companies Prosperity Mortgage, Home Team Insurance and Texas Premier Title. 

“Simply put, we offer one ‘door’ to everything you need to buy or sell a home in North Texas,” says Kelly.“ Purchasing or selling in any other way would be like going back in time. Our complete offering of brokerage, mortgage, title and insurance homeownership services ensures you have the easiest and most secure real estate experience. In good times and most importantly, in challenging times, we have stood by North Texas and North Texans for over 75 years. It would be our honor to put our experience and strength to work for you.”

For more information about the Ebby Halliday Companies brokerage, mortgage, insurance and title services, visit ebby.com, daveperrymiller.com and williamstrew.com. 

Ebby Joins Exclusive Global Real Estate Community

Ebby Joins Exclusive Global Real Estate Community

 

The Ebby Halliday Companies, which includes Dallas-based Ebby Halliday Realtors and Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate and Fort Worth-based Williams Trew, has responded to the increased demands of international buyers attracted to living in North Texas by partnering with Mayfair International Realty of London.

 

“Over the past few years we have seen more international buyers than ever coming to the Dallas and Fort Worth area via London,” says Randall Graham, vice president and director of marketing for the Ebby Halliday Companies. Not just UK and European buyers, but buyers from across the world who use London as their international base. New North Texas residents are drawn by the exceptional opportunities offered by one of the largest concentrations of corporate headquarters in the United States. The vast range of cultural and educational facilities also excites many buyers – a number so significant it is affecting the way we market clients’ homes.

 

“Rather than waiting for buyers to come to us, we are reaching out to buyers,” Graham says. “It’s a positive move that has already brought significant success. Clients love the added coverage their homes receive and buyers love the easy access they have to the Dallas and Fort Worth market.”

 

Ebby’s Mayfair office is located in the heart of London’s West End. The Ebby team in London is highly experienced in international real estate and are experts in property marketing and real estate media. The Ebby Halliday London office also acts as a gateway to the world with real estate connections around the globe.

 

Of particular importance to the Ebby Halliday Companies and its clients is mayfairinternationalrealty.com, which offers properties exposure to the global market and uploads to other premier UK-based websites. The site provides a worldwide portal for luxury properties. Ebby Halliday enjoys the unique benefit of being the only North Texas brokerage whose properties are uploaded to the property search site of Country Life (countrylife.co.uk), regarded as the leading UK magazine for luxury real estate. Properties are also uploaded to the property search site of the Financial Times (ft.com), one of the most important financial publications worldwide.

 

The Ebby Halliday Companies is the largest residential real estate company in Texas and ranked 12th in the United States by sales volume, according to the 2018 REAL Trends 500 report. Founded in 1945, the company has approximately 1,800 agents and staff in 33 offices spanning 12,000 square miles of North Texas. In 2018, Ebby Halliday was acquired by HomeServices of America, a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate. HomeServices of America is the country’s-largest residential real estate company based on transaction sides, according to the 2018 REAL Trends 500. Visit the award-winning ebby.com.

 

PHOTO: Ebby Halliday Companies President & CEO Chris Kelly and Mayfair International Realty’s International Director Annette Reeve and Managing Director Nick Churton.

HomeServices CEO Visits Ebby Halliday Companies

 

HomeServices CEO Visits Ebby Halliday Companies

 

This week it was our honor at the Ebby Halliday Companies to host HomeServices of America CEO Gino Blefari. Gino met with Top Producers, leaders and employees from throughout the company during his Texas visit. He also shared words of wisdom gained during his remarkable career and his excitement about all the extraordinary things happening at HomeServices of America and the Ebby Halliday Companies.

 

Blefari has been CEO of HomeServices of America since January 2019. Prior to that he served as chief executive officer of HSF Affiliates. He is the founder of Intero Real Estate Services, based in California’s Silicon Valley, and served as its president and chief executive officer.

 

Blefari began his real estate career in 1982 and for the next 14 years was a top-producing agent averaging 61 homes sold per year. During this time, he not only excelled as a salesperson, but also as a manager and then chief operating officer of Intero. By 2000, he had the top five offices and seven of the top 11 offices within Century 21’s 6,300 worldwide offices.

 

In 2001, he became a senior vice president of NRT, where he began working on a national level. He has more than 25 years of experience in real estate sales, development and management, from local to national operations.

 

In 2014, Blefari was inducted into the Mike Ferry Organization’s Hall of Fame. Out of 5,000 mentors across the country, he was presented with the Mentor of the Year Award in 2012 by The Buffini Company. Additionally, he was honored with RISMedia’s National Homeownership Award for “outstanding achievements among residential real estate’s most influential and charismatic leaders.”

 

At the Ebby Halliday Companies and HomeServices of America we are blessed with extraordinary servant leaders. Thank you, Gino, for your visit to the Ebby Halliday Companies this week – we share in your excitement about our future together!

 

Click here to read Gino’s blog about his visit to the Ebby Halliday Companies and the power of “thinking small.”

 

PHOTO: Ebby Halliday Companies President & CEO Chris Kelly and HomeServices of America CEO Gino Blefari

 

 

 

 

HomeServices of America Named Country’s Largest Real Estate Company

 

 

HomeServices Named Country’s Largest Real Estate Company

 

The Ebby Halliday Companies are now part of the country’s largest residential real estate brokerage. Our parent company, HomeServices of America, a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate, has earned the title of the country’s largest residential brokerage in the newly released REAL TRENDS 500. The Ebby Halliday Companies include Dallas-based Ebby Halliday Realtors and Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate and Fort Worth-based Williams Trew.

 

In 2018, HomeServices’ sales associates closed 346,629 residential transactions reflecting a 5.6 percent increase over 2017. The REAL TRENDS ranking is based on 2018 closed transaction sides for the country’s top 500 brokerages.

 

“2018 was a year of incredible growth and strategic expansion and we couldn’t be more proud that we have achieved this No. 1 industry ranking,” said Ron Peltier, executive chairman of HomeServices. “This milestone is a testament to the commitment and hard work of thousands of employees and tens of thousands of talented agents and sales managers across HomeServices who deliver an exceptional real estate experience to their buyers and sellers.”

 

Added Chris Kelly, president and CEO of the Ebby Halliday Companies, “We are honored and proud to be part of the nation’s premier residential real estate brokerage, HomeServices of America. Ebby Halliday Companies agents and clients enjoy many advantages that are a direct result of our affiliation with the nation’s largest homeownership services company. Each and every day, our sales associates and employees put our valued clients first, ensuring the Ebby Halliday Companies remain No.  1 in North Texas and throughout our great state.”

 

In addition to the brokerage services offered by Ebby Halliday Realtors, Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate and Williams Trew, Ebby Halliday’s affiliated companies include Home Team Mortgage, Home Team Insurance and Texas Premier Title, offering buying and selling clients a convenient, one-stop residential real estate experience.

 

In addition to HomeServices being named No. 1 and the Ebby Halliday Companies’ status as the No. 1 residential real estate brokerage in Texas, Berkshire Hathaway was recently named the No. 3 most-admired company in the world by Fortune. It’s truly a great time to be part of the Ebby Halliday Family of Companies!

 

To view the complete list of REAL TRENDS rankings, click here.

HomeServices of America CEO is Industry’s Most Powerful Leader 

HomeServices of America CEO is Industry’s Most Powerful Leader

 

The Swanepoel Power 200, the definitive ranking of the residential real estate industry’s 200 most powerful and influential leaders, has named HomeServices of America Chairman and CEO Ron Peltier real estate’s most powerful person in 2019. HomeServices of America has been a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary since 1999. The annual ranking was released today.

 

“I am extremely honored and humbled for having received this recognition,” Peltier said. “The real estate industry is filled with talented and committed individuals and I am proud to be part of this amazing group. On behalf of HomeServices, congratulations to all of the HomeServices’ leaders who differentiated themselves by their influence within the real estate industry. Their contribution to HomeServices and our collective success is an ongoing source of pride for the entire organization.”

 

Peltier ascends to No. 1 based on HomeServices of America’s tremendous, acquisition-fueled growth and its vast access to capital, the key driver in today’s rapidly changing residential real estate industry. With its blockbuster acquisitions of Long & Foster Real Estate, the Ebby Halliday Companies, which includes Dallas-based Ebby Halliday Realtors and Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate and Fort Worth-based Williams Trew, and BHHS Florida Real Estate the firm’s brokerage wing’s annual sales total over $125 billion.

 

The ranking, compiled by T3 Sixty, considers eight criteria in ranking leaders on the list: the office leaders hold, their tenure, the size of the company they lead, its financial resources, their significance and impact on the industry, their company’s activities in the previous year, other activities outside their own company and their personal power and influence.

 

“With the SP200, we aim to hold a mirror up to the industry, reflecting residential real estate back to itself by noting who wields the most power and influence (and in what order), whether by position, personal power, employee count, reputation and trajectory,” said T3 Sixty Chairman and CEO Stefan Swanepoel.

 

Congratulations to Ron Peltier on another honor well-deserved.

Ebby Halliday Companies Announces New CEO

Ebby Halliday Companies Announces New CEO

 

The Ebby Halliday Companies announced today that Chris Kelly has been named chief executive officer. Mary Frances Burleson, longtime president and CEO, will now focus on the Ebby Halliday Foundation, a nonprofit organization created to honor the legacy and philanthropic commitment of the company’s namesake, Ebby Halliday. Ebby Halliday Companies is owned by HomeServices of America, a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate and the nation’s second-largest residential real estate brokerage company.

Kelly joined ReeceNichols Real Estate, HomeServices’ wholly-owned company based in Kansas City, in 2007 and served as corporate legal counsel before being promoted to chief administrative officer of ReeceNichols Real Estate, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Kansas City Realty, Kansas City Title and its other affiliated businesses and services in 2013. In this role, Kelly was actively engaged in virtually all aspects of brokerage operations and as a licensed broker, Kelly provided guidance and direction to the company’s 2,600 licensed REALTORS®. In 2017, Kelly joined HomeServices as Senior Counsel where he supported the company’s acquisitions and technology initiatives.

 

As CEO of the Ebby Halliday Companies, Kelly will shape the company’s strategy and direct operations with a focus on driving future growth while preserving Ebby’s legacy of exceeding clients’ expectations. “Mary Frances and her exceptional leadership team set an incredible level of excellence for the company,” Kelly said. “I am thrilled to join this team of immensely talented agents, sales managers, employees and lending and title professionals. The opportunity to help lead this iconic company to its next level of growth and performance is both humbling and exciting.”

 

“I am pleased to welcome Chris as CEO of the Ebby Halliday Companies,” said Ron Peltier, chairman and CEO of HomeServices. “Chris understands the real estate business from all perspectives and is keenly aware of the opportunities and challenges faced every day in brokerage offices. He is the right leader to grow the company and help position the agents for even greater success.”

 

Mary Frances joined the Ebby Halliday Companies in 1958 and held numerous leadership positions before being named president and CEO in 1989. Throughout her career she has instilled the Ebby Halliday culture of delivering exceptional service through teamwork, market knowledge, empathy for others and integrity as she has set the strategy and led the company’s expansion and day-to-day operations for more than 1,700 sales associates.

 

“I am proud of everyone at Ebby Halliday and what we have achieved,” said Burleson. “Honoring Ebby’s legacy of service to the client, service to the industry and service to the communityhas always been a top priority for me. Chris has shown himself to be a leader with impeccable business ethics, personal sincerity and a deep understanding of the real estate business — all values that align with our heritage while pointing to an exciting future. I believe that Ebby would agree that with Chris at the helm, the future of Ebby Halliday couldn’t be brighter.”

 

“Chris brings extensive industry knowledge to the Ebby Halliday Companies and the HomeServices executive team. I am confident that under his leadership, the Ebby Halliday Companies are well-positioned for future growth,” concluded Peltier. “Mary Frances helped guide Ebby Halliday to become one of the country’s foremost real estate companies. On behalf of HomeServices, we thank Mary Frances for her years of service and her vision and leadership, which helped the Ebby Halliday Companies achieve the market-leading position they enjoy today.”

 

Dallas-based Ebby Halliday, REALTORS® (ebby.com) is the largest residential real estate company in Texas by sales volume and ranked 12th in the United States, according to the 2017 REAL Trends 500report. Founded in 1945, the company has almost 2,000 agents and staff in 35 offices spanning 12,000 square miles of North Texas. In 2017, the company participated in over 18,800 transactions with a sales volume of more than $8 billion. The company acquired Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate (daveperrymiller.com) in 2007, and Williams Trew (williamstrew.com) in 2014. It also has affiliated mortgage and title businesses.

 

HomeServices of America is the country’s second-largest residential real estate brokerage company and, is through its operating companies, one of the country’s premier providers of homeownership services, including brokerage, mortgage, franchising, title, escrow, insurance, and relocation services. HomeServices of America is the owner of the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and Real Living Real Estate franchise networks. HomeServices is owned by Berkshire Hathaway Energy, a consolidated subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. HomeServices’ operating companies offer integrated real estate services, including brokerage services, mortgage originations, title and closing services, property and casualty insurance, home warranties, and other homeownership services. HomeServices Relocation, LLC, is the full-service relocation arm of HomeServices of America, which provides every aspect of domestic and international relocation to corporations around the world. Information about HomeServices is available at homeservices.com.

The Future is Bright for the Ebby Halliday Companies

Ebby Halliday Companies Intends to Join HomeServices of America, Inc.

 

Ebby Halliday Real Estate Inc. announced today at a companywide meeting that it intends to be acquired by HomeServices of America, Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate. The acquisition will include Ebby’s three real estate brands: Dallas-based Ebby Halliday Realtors and Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate and Fort Worth-based Williams Trew Real Estate, as well as the firm’s affiliated mortgage and title companies. The Ebby Halliday portfolio of companies brands will continue to operate under their current brand names. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

 

Serving the residential real estate needs of North Texas since 1945, Ebby Halliday is one of the most-respected real estate companies in the country. The firm, which participated in more than 18,800 transactions in 2017, with a sales volume of more than $8 billion, ranks 12th in the nation in sales volume.  Through membership in Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, Luxury Portfolio International, Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate, and numerous other national and international real estate industry networks, the Ebby Halliday Companies and its sales associates are ideally positioned to represent buyers and sellers across North Texas.

 

The Ebby Halliday Companies includes Dallas-based Ebby Halliday Realtors and Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate and Fort Worth-based Williams Trew Real Estate, as well as affiliated companies Home Team Mortgage and Texas Premier Title. For more information, visit ebby.com.

 

HomeServices of America is the country’s second-largest residential real estate brokerage company and, through its operating companies, is one of the largest providers of integrated real estate services. HomeServices of America is the owner of the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, Real Living Real Estate and Prudential Real Estate franchise networks. HomeServices is owned by Berkshire Hathaway Energy, a consolidated subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. HomeServices’ operating companies offer integrated real estate services, including brokerage services, mortgage originations, title and closing services, property and casualty insurance, home warranties, and other homeownership services. HomeServices Relocation, LLC, is the full-service relocation arm of HomeServices of America, which provides every aspect of domestic and international relocation to corporations around the world. Information about HomeServices is available at homeservices.com.

 

#TogetherWeWill

 

PHOTO: Ebby Halliday Companies CFO Ron Burgert, Ebby Halliday Companies President and CEO Mary Frances Burleson and Chairman and CEO of HomeServices of America Ron Peltier.