The
newly
formed

Virginia
team
will
operate
as

RVA
Blue
Realty.
Terms
of
the
cash
deal
were
not
disclosed,
although
John
Finn
said
it
was
backed
by
third-party
acquisition
financing.

Finn
and
River
City
Blues
founder
Smitty
Smith
had
reportedly
been
in
talks
about
combining
forces
as
Smith
looked
to
return
his
firm
to
a
physical
office
space
after
years
of

virtual
operations.

“Before
Covid
came
around,
we
had
a
very
strong
office
presence,”
Smith
told
Richmond
BizSense.
“We
wanted
to
get
back
to
an
in-person
workshop.
We
reached
out
to
John
to
see
what
some
of
the
large,
successful
firms
were
doing,
and
we
walked
in
and
I
was
like,
‘Wow,
this
is
what
I
want
right
here.’”

Smith,
who
has
assumed
a
leadership
role
as
a
United
broker,
said
the
merger
not
only
provides
access
to
United’s
offices
but
allows
agents
to
benefit
from
expanded
training
and
administrative
support.

“He
has
the
infrastructure
and
the
experience
that
helps
me
and
the
agents
already
associated
with
River
City
Blues
Realty,
so
it’s
a
win-win
situation
for
my
agents
especially,”
Smith
said.
“Why
go
out
and
recreate
the
wheel
when
the
wheel
already
exists
and
it’s
turning
in
the
direction
that
you
want
to
turn?”

United
Real
Estate
Richmond
was
founded
in
2015
by
the
Finn
brothers.
It
has
grown
from
six
agents
to
its
current
position
as
the
largest
African
American-owned
brokerage
in
the
Mid-Atlantic,
according
to
Finn.

It
is
now
the
third-largest
brokerage
in
central
Virginia
by
agent
count,
Richmond
BizSense
added.

The
company
uses
a
flat-fee

brokerage
model
that
charges
agents
about
$700
per
transaction
while
allowing
them
to
keep
100%
of
their
commissions,
a
structure
Smith
found
particularly
appealing.

“That
is
the
direction
of
real
estate
today
if
you’re
a
brokerage,”
Finn
said.
“The
fees
that
you
charge
generally
are
contracting.”

Finn
said
the
company
is
in
talks
with
three
more
firms
about
potential
acquisitions.
Last
year,
United
Richmond
agents
closed
more
than
1,000

home
sales.