FirstService Acquires The MERIT Companies
Acquisition of California's Largest Residential Property Management and
Consulting Organization
TORONTO, April 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - FirstService Corporation
(NASDAQ: FSRV; TSX: FSV) has significantly increased the size and breadth
of its residential property management business through the acquisition of
an 80% interest in The MERIT Companies, California's largest provider of
residential property management and consulting services. Melinda Masson,
Founder and CEO, will retain the balance of the equity and will continue to
manage day-to-day operations and join the FirstService leadership team to
contribute to the strategic direction of America's leading residential
property management business. During the last 12 months, The MERIT
Companies generated more than $35 million in revenues. Terms of the
transaction were not disclosed. Additional information on The MERIT
Companies can be found on their website at http://www.meritpm.com.
"The MERIT Companies acquisition is a key strategic move to provide us
with an excellent platform for growth in California and throughout the
western US region," said Gene Gomberg, CEO of FirstService Residential
Property Management. "In addition to being one of America's most admired
residential property management companies, MERIT has always distinguished
itself by offering an integrated suite of services - everything from
front-end consulting to builders and developers of large master-planned
communities to providing management services to homeowner associations once
the communities are operational. Melinda and her management team are a
great fit with our strategic direction and we look forward to working with
them."
Founded in 1980 and based in Orange County, California, The MERIT
Companies currently contracts with more than 240 community associations
representing over 130,000 homes through a network of nine offices and more
than 400 employees located throughout California. The MERIT Companies
customer base will join FirstService's industry leading platform which
manages more than 3,500 community associations and more than 750,000 homes
throughout the US, including some of the finest and highest profile
properties in the nation. FirstService Residential Property Management is
the leader in luxury hi-rise management, active adult communities and
large-scale homeowner associations.
"I am very excited to be joining FirstService and its highly successful
residential property management group. We were attracted by their proven
track record and a unique model of partnering with strong management teams
that want to accelerate the growth of their businesses," said Melinda
Masson, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The MERIT Companies.
"FirstService has a strong and committed team of operating partners who own
equity in their businesses providing them the incentive they need to
provide the highest level of service available. It also has a strong
performance driven culture focused on differentiating their services from
those of its competitors - all important elements of an exceptional
business model."
"Consistent with our disciplined approach to acquisitions, we did not
enter the strategically important California market until we were able to
partner with the market leader", said Jay Hennick, Founder and Chief
Executive Officer of FirstService. "Melinda Masson is an icon in the
industry. She has been a prominent influence in defining legislation in
California and has been the recipient of numerous personal and corporate
awards for her many accomplishments. We are extremely proud to have Melinda
join our team and we look forward to sharing our combined best practices
and working with her and Merit's talented management team going forward."
About FirstService Corporation
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FirstService is a leader in the rapidly growing property services
sector, providing services in the following areas: commercial real estate;
residential property management; property improvement; and integrated
security services. Market-leading brands include Colliers International in
commercial real estate; The Continental Group, The Wentworth Group and The
MERIT Companies in residential property management; Consumer brands
California Closets, Paul Davis Restoration, Pillar to Post Home
Inspections, Certa Pro Painters and Handyman Connection, in property
improvement; and Intercon Security and Security Services & Technologies in
integrated security.
FirstService is a diversified property services company with more than
US $1.4 billion in annualized revenues and more than 13,000 employees
worldwide. More information about FirstService is available at
http://www.firstservice.com.