Ryan to buy Altus Group’s Property tax Business for $500M

A Dallas-based firm that claims the mantle of biggest business-tax service provider in the world is bolting on a chunk of commercial real estate accounts with the acquisition of a Canadian counterpart.

Ryan LLC has struck a deal to buy the property-tax portion of Toronto-based Altus Group Limited’s commercial real estate services, the Dallas Morning News reported.

The $500 million buy is expected to close next year, upon regulatory approval. Ryan also agreed to a $5 million-a-year subscription to Altus Market Insights for three years.

The deal broadens Ryan’s client base in the U.S. and Canada, and gives the firm entry to the market for property tax services in the UK.

The deal is the latest in a roll-up strategy that has brought numerous firms under Ryan’s umbrella, adding specialists in segments ranging from severance taxes to tax credits, excise taxes and property taxes in various markets.

Altus Group’s property tax business had $193 million in revenue last year, and accounts for 975 workers across the globe. Ryan is valued at $2.5 billion and employs nearly 5,000, the outlet reported.

Ryan is engaged in a lawsuit against the Federal Trade Commission in a bid to overturn the agency’s move to prohibit non-compete clauses as conditions of employment. The clauses are seen by some as an impediment to workers from starting similar businesses or moving to competitors.

Ryan claims such agreements protect intellectual property, and has charged that striking them down gives the government undue authority over private business decisions.

Ryan also is a long-established adherent of the work-from home trend, promising employees the chance to “thrive in a guilt-free workplace in which the focus is on results and superior client service, rather than where and when the work is done.”