Sudler Sotheby's Buys C21 Sussex & Reilly

Crain’s Business Weekly's Andrew Schroedter reports that Sudler Sotheby's International Realty says it has acquired Century 21 Sussex & Reilly, a residential brokerage that specializes in North Side properties. Writes Schroedter:

The deal doubles the size of Sudler to about 500 residential brokers and gives it a total of 10 Chicago offices. Each of the firms sold about $600 million worth of residential real estate last year, says Janice Corley, president and CEO of Sudler Sotheby's.

"This deal makes good bottom-line sense because it gives Sudler a chance to add more agents without recruiting them," says James Kinney, president of Chicago-based rival Rubloff Residential Properties, which was not involved in the deal. "But they have to decide on their identity. That'll be the real challenge of this merger."

Corley says her firm hasn't decided if it will keep the Sussex & Reilly name or fold it into the Sudler Sotheby's brand. Sussex & Reilly has four Chicago offices and one in west suburban Wheaton.

Sudler plans to close the Wheaton branch, says Corley, adding that Sussex locations in the city could also be shuttered if they're found to overlap with existing Sudler offices.