Press Releases

Local Real Estate Companies Merge

Four of Siouxland's long-established and largest real estate agencies announced today they have merged to create a new and more comprehensive real estate company. HomeLand Realty, Century 21 Market Place, Gateway Realty of Siouxland and Stinger-Albersen Company Realtors will become United Real Estate Solutions, Inc., effective immediately.

Ron McManamy, president of the new enterprise, explained that United Real Estate Solutions will now provide access to a whole array of new sophisticated and powerful marketing advantages for their agents to better serve clients. "Our entire focus will be on better service to our clients," said McManamy. "We are convinced combining the experience and talent in these four excellent companies, along with the financial stability our corporate investment partner provides, will assure our ability to enhance our client services." McManamy said future plans for the company include mortgage lending, insurance, property management, a commercial real estate division and other real estate related services, thereby creating a one-stop shopping Real Estate Superstore.

First Federal Bankshares, Inc., the holding company for First Federal Bank, is an investor in United Real Estate Solutions, and will also plan to move United Escrow, Inc, a real estate and mortgage loan closing company, into a new office immediately adjacent to United Real Estate Solutions this fall.

HomeLand, Market Place and Gateway will continue to operate out of their respective buildings until this fall when they will relocate into a new building being constructed in the Woodbury Center Business Park on Gordon Drive. Stinger-Albertsen will continue to operate from their current location in South Sioux City, Nebraska. "Locating our new principal office in such a perfect, central location, coupled with moving United Escrow next door to us, will provide greatly improved convenience for our clients as well as our real estate agents," said McManamy.

Mike Borschuk, Vice President, said the new company would have over 60 agents and based on the number of real state transactions closed, would be rated one of the 350 largest real estate companies in the country by "Real Trends" publication. "United Real Estate Solutions will be the largest real estate marketing company in the history of Sioux City and we're very excited about the advantages that we can bring to our clients in terms of sales and services."

Bob Campbell, Operations Director, who along with Colonel Krage, was owner of Gateway Realty, said they agreed to join the new enterprise because they believed the new, larger company could provide more and better services, especially in the area of real estate technology advancement. "The larger agency will provide better educational and administrative support and certainly more marketing clout than we could ever provide individually," said Campbell. Krage will become part of the new entity in an advisory role as well as continuing his position as one of the top selling associates in Sioux City.

The Stinger-Albertsen agency is one of the oldest real estate companies in Siouxland and is the largest agency operating in South Sioux City, Nebraska. It is owned and operated by Fred Stinger. Stinger, Broker/Manager of the new United Real Estate Solutions' South Sioux City office said, "This really worked out well for us. We will retain our office at 125 East 19th Street in South SIoux City, but we can benefit from the new company's advertising and administrative services. I look forward to working with them." Betty DeLong-Stinger will continue her role as a leading sales associate with United.

Corporate headquarters for the new company will be at 4220 Sergeant Road until the move to the new building this fall. McManamy said they are pleased to be the first tenant in the new Woodbury Center Business Plaza now under construction by L & L Builders. He said the location on Gordon Drive, just off the I-29 exit, is an ideal location for a real estate office. The combining of McManamy, Borschuk, Campbell, Krage and Stinger brings more than 125 years of real estate management experience under one company. McManamy emphasized "the real strength of the new organization will be over 60 of the most talented sales associates in the Siouxland area."

In presentations to the agents and employees, the Brokers explained that only the name of the company was changing. Agents would continue to serve their clients as before, with the same phone numbers and from the same offices at this time. Pending transactions of the merged companies will continue to be processed and closed by the new company under the terms previously agreed upon. Agents were supplied with new businss cards, forms and signs bearing the name of the new company. United Real Estate Solutions, Inc and their agents are licensed in Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota.