@properties Named To Crain’s Chicago Business’ Fast 50 List For Third Time

@properties, the largest independent real estate brokerage firm in Illinois, has been named to Crain’s Chicago Business annual Fast Fifty list of the fastest-growing companies in Chicago. This is the third time @properties has made the list. The firm first appeared on the list in 2007, ranking fifth. The following year, they were No. 24.

@properties made the 2014 list at No. 49, based on five-year revenue growth of 172 percent. The firm had the 12th highest revenue among the Fast Fifty and was the only residential or commercial real estate brokerage firm on the list.

Established in 2000 by Thaddeus Wong and Michael Golden, @properties has grown from a four-person boutique firm to one of the top 20 residential brokers in the U.S. The company expanded its brokerage business from downtown Chicago to the North Shore in 2009. In 2013, @properties opened its first Southwest Michigan real estate office in New Buffalo and quickly emerged as one of the leading brokerage firms in the region. The firm has grown rapidly over the last year, opening new offices in Libertyville, Elmhurst and St. Joseph, Mich. Today @properties has 15 offices throughout the city of Chicago, surrounding suburbs and Southwest Michigan.

In addition to geographic expansion, Golden and Wong said @properties’ growth can also be attributed to investments in new training and technology, and hiring of top-producing agents and new staff. And while other Chicago real estate companies have merged, been acquired or taken on a franchise affiliation, @properties has remained a locally-owned, independent firm.

“Many of our competitors have grown through mergers and acquisitions, but @properties continues to grow organically as a local company. This has been our strategy all along, and it’s very rewarding to see our name alongside some great Chicago businesses,” said Wong.

“We’re incredibly proud of this achievement. We made this list two years in a row during the housing boom, so it’s exciting to be back on the list again despite the many challenges the real estate industry has faced,” said Golden.

To view the complete Crain’s Fast Fifty list, visit http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20140531/ISSUE02/140529763/meet-chicagos-fast-fifty.