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McGrath Estate Agents announced that it has issued notices terminating the franchise agreements for three offices in the Illawarra region of NSW.
The offices are Wollongong, Shellharbour and Thirroul, and the termination agreements will become effective on 23 October.
McGrath’s head of franchise network, Christopher Mourd, said that it is a disappointing outcome.
“This is an unfortunate situation between two partners of a McGrath franchise, resulting in a dispute between the two franchisees,” Mr Mourd said.
“While we have tried to help resolve the issue and have encouraged mediation, we now have no choice but to terminate the franchise agreements.”
In delivering the news, Mr Mourd was quick to confirm the company’s commitment to the Illawarra region.
The official said: “McGrath has operated in the area since 2009, and our brand and offering has significant depth with its customers over many years. We are in the process of securing other franchise partners to continue our presence in this important area of the NSW South Coast.
“We continue to believe that the region offers a highly desirable lifestyle choice for Sydney commuters, downsizers and holiday home buyers.”
McGrath shot to the headlines recently following the departure of a clutch of its most experienced agents in the wake of its troubled listing, with many of them finding their way to rival The Agency.
The move has left an undeniable dent in the McGrath balance sheet. In delivering its FY17 results to the market, where it reported a 42 per cent drop in net profit, CEO Cameron Judson identified the company’s personnel issues as a contributing factor to the company’s modest results.
He also said that to regain lost market share going forward, the company would focus on "attracting, growing and developing” the best talent in the market and equipping them with the tools to shine.
To this end, McGrath announced in September that it has partnered with Facebook to launch an enabled social advertising strategy as part of its regain strategy and continuing focus on digital innovation.
