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Revision as of 21:04, 31 May 2020

Watson Realty Corp.
IndustryReal estate
FoundedJacksonville, Florida (1965)
HeadquartersFlorida, U.S.
Key people
William A. Watson, Jr. Founder & Chairman of the Board, Watson Realty Corp.
Ed Forman President, Watson Realty Corp.
Number of employees
1,400
WebsiteWatson Realty Corp.

Watson Realty Corp. is an independent real estate company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, with 51 offices and 1,400 employees in Northeast Florida, Central Florida, and Southeast Georgia.

Watson Realty Corp. is a member of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, a global community of 565 international real estate companies across the world. Watson Realty Corp. also maintains an affiliation with Luxury Portfolio International, the luxury branch of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World.

History

Watson Realty Corp. headquarters
Watson Realty Corp.'s Ed Forman, president and Mr. Watson, founder and chairman of the board.

Watson Realty Corp. was formed in 1965 by William A. Watson, Jr. The company's first office was located in Jacksonville, as a single-office real estate company in a shared storefront with William A. Watson and one part-time sales agent.

William A. Watson Jr., was born in Jacksonville, the son and grandson of railroad conductors for what today is CSX Corp. The professor, Roger G. Giles, would become one of Watson's early mentors.[1]

After graduation in 1959, Watson joined Gifford Grange Realty in 1960. When Grange left the business to enter politics, Watson opened his own brokerage on the Southside. He offered property management and fire and casualty insurance in addition to real estate services. Watson opened his first branch office in 1970.[1]It would later be renamed a final time to Watson Realty Corp. in 1976.

By 1979, Watson opened branches in Gainesville, Orlando, Longwood, Deland, and Daytona. In 1985, Watson opened its first office outside of Florida in St. Marys, Georgia.

Watson established its family of service companies in 1994 with the opening of Watson Mortgage Corp. and, in 2002, Watson Title Services of North Florida, Inc.

In 2017, Watson merged with All Florida Realty, offering services to Melbourne, Port St. Lucie, Vero Beach, and Port Charlotte.

Growth

In 1999, Watson Realty Corp. acquired Palm Coast Home Realty. Palm Coast Home Realty was the resale real estate marketing division of ITT Community Development Corp., the initial developer of Palm Coast, a 15,000-home community halfway between St. Augustine and Daytona Beach.[2]

Today

Today, Watson Realty Corp. headquarters are located in Jacksonville at 7821 Deercreek Club Rd. in the Southside area. The company has offices in the Northeast and Central Florida, as well as Southeast Georgia.[3]

The company currently has 51 offices, including the newest location which is set for a 2020 opening in Lake Nona.

References

  1. ^ a b "Bill Watson has built real estate firm through 5 decades of positive thinking". The Jacksonville Daily Record. August 20, 2014. Retrieved 2020-02-23.
  2. ^ "Watson buys Palm Coast firm". Jacksonville Business Journal. July 27, 1999. Retrieved 2020-02-23.
  3. ^ "Watson Realty buys Starke company". Jacksonville Business Journal. August 12, 2010. Retrieved 2020-02-23.