Coldwell Acquires San Diego County Rival Sun Harbor

Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage bolstered its already dominant market share in north San Diego County by acquiring its biggest rival, Sun Harbor Realty, for an undisclosed price.

The Mission Viejo-based real estate brokerage chain said Wednesday that it has acquired Sun Harbor’s five offices and increased its share of that market to 24%. Coldwell Banker said it will retain Sun Harbor’s 300 employees.

Coldwell Banker will merge its office in Vista and one of its offices in Del Mar into nearby Sun Harbor offices. Sun Harbor’s Encinitas and Rancho Santa Fe offices will be merged into nearby Coldwell Banker offices and its Carlsbad office will be kept open as a Coldwell Banker branch.

James McInnis Sr., who founded Sun Harbor in 1982, will join Coldwell Banker as the San Diego assistant regional manager.

In January, Coldwell Banker concluded a deal to purchase the one-office Regatta Real Estate Co. Inc. in Point Loma, more than doubling the work force at Coldwell’s office there to 58 employees from 25. With the Sun Harbor acquisition, Coldwell Banker has 22 offices and 825 employees in San Diego.

Coldwell Banker, a subsidiary of Sears, Roebuck & Co., has more than 2,000 residential real estate offices and 45,000 employees in North America.