BY ALEXANDRA ANTONOPOULOS
With a long and rich history in the western communities, Arthur Murray Real Estate’s new office in Loxahatchee Groves is actually a return to its origins.
Founded in 1964 by the real estate developer of the same name, Arthur Murray Real Estate got its start in a little yellow building on Okeechobee Blvd., not far from its new location on Southern Blvd.
“At the time, we were land brokers only. There wasn’t much out here,” said Bill Hammond, who purchased the firm from Murray in 1979. “You had to depend on your odometer to get from one property to the next; there were no houses.”
When Hammond joined the company in 1972, the western communities were an untapped market, and it took some time before the area became appealing to buyers. But once people discovered what Loxahatchee Groves had to offer, the business took off, and Hammond has been part of Arthur Murray Real Estate ever since.
Pierre Litzenberg, the current owner, purchased a house from Hammond several years ago. Litzenberg recently became involved in the business, now that Hammond is looking toward his retirement.
Litzenberg and Senior Sales Manager Larry Brower convinced Hammond to stay on as a broker, and the three have found that working as a team gets them great results.
“Larry [Brower] had been a great personal friend for many years,” Litzenberg said. “So when I decided to move up here, I bought my house from him, then met Bill [Hammond] and really liked him.”
Litzenberg noted that getting involved with the business was an easy decision, thanks to Arthur Murray’s great reputation. “When this opportunity came along, I was very interested because I knew the history of the company,” he said.
The company’s reputation is a source of pride for the team, considering Arthur Murray Real Estate has been operating in the western communities for more than 40 years.
“We’ve done a good job and kept our nose clean throughout the years, so people respect us for that. These two guys are really gonna make a go at it now,” Hammond said of Litzenberg and Brower.
Hammond said the company has even dealt with two and three generations of home or land buyers from the same family.
Brower noted that in his 20-plus years with the company, he has personally sold the same properties several times over.
“We’ve got customers now that are great-grandkids of people we sold to years ago,” Litzenberg added.
Because of their recent change in location and ownership, Litzenberg and his team plan to use a variety of mediums to get the word out. Using web advertising and advertising in foreign countries will allow them to reach an untapped equestrian market that has a need for the acreage that Loxahatchee Groves and the surrounding areas have to offer.
“It’s really ‘country real estate,’” said Brower of the company’s area of expertise. “There could be a house on the property or a barn or nothing at all. Bill, Pierre and I call it ‘country real estate’ because you’re dealing with properties that are 10 acres, 20 acres.”
Arthur Murray Real Estate may have expanded to do business in Wellington and Royal Palm Beach, but Loxahatchee Groves will always be its area of focus. “That is really our niche,” Brower said.
Arthur Murray Real Estate is located at 14569 Southern Blvd., Loxahatchee Groves. For additional information, call (561) 793-1370.
ABOVE: Larry Brower, Bill Hammond and Pierre Litzenberg at Arthur Murray Real Estate’s new office in Loxahatchee Groves.
