Real Estate

Getting into a Real Estate franchise can be more beneficial and more organized than working in an independent real estate office.

RE/MAX

RE/MAX was founded in 1973 by Dave and Gail Liniger in Denver , Colo. They were dissatisfied with the way real estate was being run. Most real estate offices used the commission-split system, requiring sales professionals to forfeit half of their commissions to the brokers in exchange for an office environment and company services, according to franchising.com.

The top producers contributed the most to the operation's overhead, thus supporting the amateur, part-time- and low-producing agents. Most sales people left the business within two years, making real estate a high-turnover business consisting of inexperienced and unprofessional staffs.

The Liniger's wanted to change that.

They were sure that in order to attract and retain the best agents, brokers should offer them maximum compensation, advanced support services and the freedom they need to succeed. Agents share the overhead and pay management fees; in return they receive a wide variety of traditional real estate franchise services and high commission.

If you want to buy a RE/MAX franchise, expect to invest a total of $20,000 to $200,000, pay an initial franchise fee of $10,000 to $25,000. Royalty fees are varied.

Century 21 Real Estate

Century 21 is a real estate agent franchise company owned by Realogy, which also owns Coldwell Banker and ERA real estate. The name comes from the 1962 Century 21 Exposition held in Seattle , Washington .

Century 21 was founded by Art Bartlett and Marsh Fisher, two real estate agents in Orange County , California . They went public in 1977, were bought out by Metropolitan Life Insurance in 1984 and become part of HFS, the precursor of Cendant, in 1995. Cendant spun off in 2006 and Century 21 Real Estate LLC now operates under its real estate franchise branch, Realogy.

If you want to buy a Century 21 franchise, be prepared to invest a total of $11.800 to $522.800, pay a franchise fee of $25,000 and a royalty fee of 6%. Term of the agreement is for 10 years and is not renewable.