Worth Clark Realty Acquires South Estates Realty

St. Louis-based residential brokerage Worth Clark Realty acquired a 15-agent team in Azle, upping its foothold in the Dallas-area market to 80 realtors.

Founded in 2009, the broker-owned firm is growing fast — while transactions declined by 3.5 percent for the entire residential real estate market in the first quarter this year according to the National Association of Realtors, theirs grew by 12 percent year over year and 13 percent in the second quarter, Worth Clark’s chief growth officer Ryan Michaelis says. It made Inc.’s 5000 List of fastest-growing private companies this year as well, ranked at No. 4,132 with 108% revenue growth from 2020 to 2023.

A press release on Aug. 28 said the brokerage scooped up South Estates Realty, which notched $54 million in sales volume and 157 transactions last year, to “relieve” former broker-owner Jackie South of “operational burdens.”

South, now Worth Clark’s DFW managing broker, previously had a similar 100-percent commission model with capped transaction fees. The deal’s grittier details weren’t disclosed, but Worth Clark will help “alleviate” South of maintaining the office, along with rent and utilities.

Michaelis said now is the time of year when broker-owners in general tend to reevaluate, and walkovers increase as they look to other brokerage options.

“It may have just been an experience they had at their brokerage that was negative, and they’re starting to look at other options — because that’s becoming more of a repeatable thing, unfortunately,” Michaelis said.

He claims South was drawn to Worth Clark’s perceived competitive edge, giving agents 100% commissions, no desk fees, partial equity and the occasional lead. In a video on the brokerage’s website, Michaelis says that “real estate is changing” and the days of commission splits, franchise fees and desk fees are “steadily coming to a halt.”

South, specifically, responded to the managing broker opening within Worth Clark’s Dallas-Fort Worth, Tyler and Longview markets, a region where officials reported a combined $148 million in sales volume and 348 transactions last year.

Its model to exclude the industry’s traditional commission splits was relatively new or at least underrepresented in the Midwest when Worth Clark staked its claim in the St. Louis market, but Michaelis admits the competition is stiffer in the DFW metroplex, where several brokerages with similar 100-percent commission models had planted roots a while before Worth Clark entered Texas markets in early 2021.