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The Aussie empire could soon move into real estate with John Symond confirming his interest in national franchise LJ Hooker, according to The Australian Financial Review.
While details reported in the daily yesterday were vague, the paper said Mr Symond, along with Sydney real estate businessman John McGrath, had confirmed his interest in the franchise.
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LJ Hooker is not formally up for sale however it is owned by Suncorp – which has been widely documented as struggling with the credit crisis. Last week LJ Hooker managing director Warren McCarthy resigned abruptly along with general manager Angelo Nicholson.
Aussie’s interest in the franchise real estate agent comes hot on the heels of its controversial acquisition of Wizard Home Loans just last month.
While Mr Symond said the Wizard integration was keeping him busy for now he confirmed the LJ Hooker franchise had caught his eye.
“This is just something I threw up. Suncorp owns LJ Hooker, Suncorp will probably divest its interest and I wondered if LJ Hooker is worth a look at, “Mr Symond told the paper.
“We have never had any discussion or formal discussions and we have got our hands full at the moment with the integration of Wizard. It caught my attention because it’s a great franchise operation and has a great distribution potential.”
