July 2019 – Page 3 – Mazor'sEdge

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Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, part of the HSF Affiliates LLC family of real estate brokerage franchise networks, today announced that four of its franchise network members have merged the offices of Tarbell, Realtors® into their respective organizations.

The transaction includes 20 Tarbell, Realtors® offices operating in Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

“Our primary objective at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices is to help our network members grow,” said Gino Blefari, chairman of the network. “We are delighted to announce this transaction as Tarbell, Realtors® has a strong and distinguished legacy in the marketplace and has always attracted top real estate professionals. These professionals will further strengthen our brand and add significant value to the brokerages involved.”

“We’re excited to have found a real estate network that shares the same passion for the business that my family has had for generations,” said Ron Tarbell, CEO of Tarbell, Realtors®. “Our company’s standards of integrity, professionalism and service to the communities we serve are perfectly aligned with those of the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices brand.”

Tarbell, Realtors® offices generated more than $1.1 billion in real estate sales volume in 2018. They join these Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices network members effective immediately:

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties/Nevada Properties/Arizona Properties (Las Vegas) – Tarbell, Realtors’® Anaheim Hills, French
Valley/Murrieta, Lake Elsinore, La Quinta, Menifee, Oasis Country Club, Palm Desert, Palm Springs, Temecula, Upland and Yorba Linda offices.

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties (San Diego) – Anaheim/State College, Irvine, Laguna Hills, San Clemente and Santa Ana/Tustin offices.

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Perrie Mundy Realty Group (Redlands) – Corona, Redlands and Riverside offices.

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties (Cerritos) – Chino office.

“We are thrilled to welcome the Tarbell sales executives and staff into our company,” said Mark Stark, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties/Nevada Properties/Arizona Properties, whose brokerage ranked No. 3 in the network in 2018. “It’s unusual to find two organizations so committed to their people and to sustaining a quality culture. We look forward to sharing all our support in helping these professionals further grow their businesses while adding even more value and service to their clients.”

“It’s an honor to work with the longstanding and respected Tarbell, Realtors® organization,” said Mary Lee Blaylock, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties, the network’s No. 2 brokerage last year. “They have a tremendous team of talented agents and I am thrilled to welcome these professionals to our company. At California Properties, our objective is to help every single agent expand their business through our enhanced tools and resources.

“We are committed to growth as we expand our footprint in existing marketplaces and strategic geographic locations,” Blaylock continued. “Adding these professional and productive agents who share our passion for delivering exceptional client service is an important step toward that goal.”

Dave Corey, co-owner of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Perrie Mundy Realty Group/Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Realty, said the transaction will help his brokerage better compete in the hotly contested Inland Empire marketplace. “We’re excited to join forces with Tarbell’s Corona, Redlands and Riverside offices and grow our stronghold in the region,” he said. “As always, homebuyers and sellers will know they’re working with the very best in Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Perrie Mundy Realty Group/Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Realty.”

Finally, Dennis Rosas, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties, based in Cerritos, said: “We’re eager to grow our operations in the greater Chino area with the union of the terrific Tarbell team there. We love the market and are excited for our growth prospects in the area.”
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© 2019 David Mazor

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Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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Berkshire Hathaway, a company that does a Texas-sized amount of business in Texas, including being the home state for BNSF Railway, had an unexpected bump in the road created by its 2015 acquisition of the Van Tuyl Group.

Berkshire bought the auto dealership group for $4.1 billion after company CEO Larry Van Tuyl approached Berkshire in late-2014 and proposed the acquisition.

Unfortunately for Berkshire, Texas state law prohibited owning dealerships if you manufacture vehicles, something Berkshire does through its wholly-owned Forest River, Inc., a leading manufacturer of RVs and small buses.

Van Tuyl Group, which was rechristened Berkshire Hathaway Automotive, ran afoul of the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles when in 2017 the Department decided to look at whether Berkshire Hathaway was violating state law and might be subject to fines.

Berkshire Hathaway Automotive CEO Jeff Rachor testified before State Sen. Kelly Hancock’s committee that applying the law to auto dealerships because of owning a motorhome manufacturer was an “unintended consequence.”

Unfortunately, Texas regulators didn’t relent and Berkshire’s first push at a legislative fix, which included some glad-handing by Warren Buffet himself, came up empty when the Tea Party coalition helped kill a bill to fix the problem.

Fast forward a couple of years and cooler heads have prevailed.

This time, the bill State Sen. Hancock sponsored, SB 1415, passed, and Gov. Greg Abbott has signed it into law.

The new law, which takes effect Sept. 1, 2019, means that manufacturers are now only prohibited from owning dealerships that sell the same vehicles that they produce, which is not something that Berkshire Hathaway Automotive Group does.

Problem solved, and Warren Buffet can now breath a Texas-sized sigh of relief.

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