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Cape Cod luxury brokerage Robert Paul Properties has been bought by Commonwealth Realty Group, parent company of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Commonwealth Real Estate, in a deal that will bring the latter to over 1,000 agents and $3 billion in total sales volume.

The move also gives Commonwealth Realty Group a significant presence on the Cape, where it currently only has one office, in Chatham. Robert Paul Properties has offices in Osterville, Falmouth, Barnstable, Sandwich, Chatham, Provincetown and Marion in addition to its Boston office, and recently expanded to the South Shore via an office in Norwell.

The purchase price was not disclosed.

Robert Paul Properties leaders decided they needed to sell last year as the brokerage approached what was ultimately an internal record of $1 billion in sales volume, company President Emily Clarke said, adding that company leaders decided the only way the brokerage could survive long-term was to grow.

“Being able to carry forward, we felt we had to have a partnership to be able to increase our agent benefits and client partnerships,” she said.

The deal came together “fairly quickly,” Clarke said, thanks to a strong prior relationship between both companies’ leadership teams.

“Robert, Paul, and their elite team of talented agents have built a remarkable company, and we are thrilled to welcome them to the Commonwealth family,” George Patsio, a managing partner at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Commonwealth Real Estate, said in a statement.  “Robert Paul Properties is highly regarded in the region for their integrity and expertise, and as a leader in the luxury market.  We’re proud that they will represent our growing brokerage family and the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices network.”

Post-acquisition, both companies will continue operating independently as sister companies and affiliates of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services, Robert Paul Properties said in a statement.

Robert Paul Properties co-founders Robert Kinlin and Paul Grover will remain as agents at Commonwealth Real Estate and “strategic partners” and “managing partners,” Clarke said. The duo founded Robert Paul Properties in 2009 after selling their first joint venture, Kinlin Grover, in 1999.

By joining Commonwealth Realty Group, Clarke said, the company and its agents would gain a marketing advantage over independent rivals, thanks to Commonwealth’s ability to bulk-buy advertising at lower rates and BHHS’ lead generation, referral and relocation networks. Clarke singled out BHHS’ “FOREVER Cloud” technology suite, including marketing support, video production and social media assistance as a particular benefit.

“This doesn’t take away with what we do – Robert Paul has been very well-regarded for our marketing efforts,” she said, but noted the larger company will be able to offer agents significantly more resources.

The tie-up will also improve the benefits packages offered to Robert Paul Properties agents, Clarke said, and aid in building its presence on the South Shore.

More Tie-Ups to Come?

The deal comes after a banner year for the Cape Cod real estate market when well-heeled buyers from Greater Boston, New York City and other areas first sought to shelter from the worst of the pandemic as it hit their home cities and then looked to either buy a new permanent residence on the peninsula or a second home that can provide them with more square footage in more bucolic surroundings until COVID-19 abates.

Barnstable County saw 20.55 percent more single-family home sales in 2020 than in 2019, for a total of 5,297, and a 10.05 percent increase in condominium sales according to The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.

The median county-wide single-family sale price jumped 15.85 percent to $475,000 and the median condo sale price rose 21.34 percent to $325,000 as higher-end properties began moving quickly and inventory shrank. There were only 542 single-family homes and 218 condos for sale in December, according to the Cape Cod and Islands Association of Realtors, with cumulative days on market cut by half for single-family homes, to 57, and by nearly 40 percent for condos, to 80.

Brokerages and agents from outside Cape Cod have sought to make inroads on the local market in recent years, with the most notable deal being Gibson Sotheby’s International Realty’s 2018 purchase of oldCape Sotheby’s International Realty.

Robert Paul Properties’ Clarke said the company had been approached by other brokerages looking for Cape Cod acquisitions.

With referral networks becoming more important as sources of growth for brokerages and the changing dynamics of real estate marketing giving the advantage to bigger players, Clarke said, it’s possible this acquisition will be the first of many on the Cape.

“The Cape Cod market is changing,” she said. “Twenty years ago [brokerages] were all small independents. There were no brand names. In the last five to 10 years that’s changed quite a bit. I expect that we’ll see the consolidation ramp up.”