New Zealand’s largest and Australia’s fastest growing real estate group, Harcourts International Ltd, is this month celebrating its first 10 years in Australia, since launching in Queensland in 1997.
Founded in New Zealand in 1888, Harcourts was expanded into Australia in 1997 by Mike and Irene Green, who moved with their family from Auckland where they had built up one of Harcourts’ most successful franchises of nine offices, Mike Green Real Estate.
As the only major Australasian real estate operation to have expanded from New Zealand into Australia, Harcourts’ Queensland operation began with four offices in Ashgrove, Surfers Paradise (still with the original owners), South Brisbane and Southport, and a State Support Office in Brisbane.
While new to Australia, Harcourts was established in Wellington in 1888 by John Bateman (JB) Harcourt with two sons, Gordon and Stanton, joining the real estate and auctioneering company in 1900. In 1985, a joint venture company, Harcourts Real Estate, was formed with Christchurch-based Collins Real Estate beginning an era of dynamic growth, culminating in the franchising of the operation in 1991.
In 1999, Executive Chairman, Stephen Collins handed over management of the organisation to Mike Green (Managing Director of Harcourts International, located in Queensland) and Paul Wright (Executive Director of Harcourts International, located in Christchurch). Both had been with Harcourts for over 20 years working through sales to management roles, and immediately turned their focus on international growth starting with a commitment to be in every state in Australia.
New South Wales was the second state to come on board in 2003 with close to 20 offices. In 2004 Harcourts formed a joint venture with boutique South Australian real estate company, Brock Real Estate, to become Brock Harcourts, of which there are currently 36 offices. In the same year, a joint venture with independent Tasmanian company, M & M Real Estate, was formed and Harcourts also took ownership of the Roy Weston Group of 61 offices in Western Australia, Northern Territory and Indonesia.
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