RE/MAX Grows Presence in Western Africa, Sells Master Franchise Rights in Republic of Benin

RE/MAX, LLC today announced it has closed the sale of Master Franchise Rights in the Republic of Benin, a French-speaking West African nation, to Marc Houessou. Houessou is a Benin native and current RE/MAX Sales Associate living in Quebec, Canada.

"This is an exciting time for RE/MAX. Any time we enter a new country, we're also entering a new era of helping more homebuyers and sellers," says Shawna Gilbert, Senior Vice President of Global Development. "Real estate is a relationship business and we're honored to be one of the few global real estate companies that help empower local communities and businesses to flourish. Each expansion helps provide greater levels of professionalism to the industry, advancement to individuals' careers, and a reliable process for homebuyers and sellers. It's truly a win-win-win."

"The reputation of RE/MAX throughout the world is unmatched," says Houessou. "There are millions of Beninese living in Western countries who know RE/MAX and the strength and quality of its network. By choosing RE/MAX, we are telling Beninese people that our brokers are from the best network and well equipped to provide them with superior quality transactions."

Houessou is also the owner of College de l'immobilier Benin, a real estate college with the goal to give future Benin real estate brokers knowledge and competencies to perform in their business. According to Houessou, Beninese real estate regulation and laws exist but are not well known and followed. Houessou says the profession needs to be more organized to avoid lack of professionalism and accountability. He plans to bring his standards and introduce a comprehensive real estate curriculum to the industry in Benin by operating the College de l'immobilier Training Structure in addition to selling RE/MAX franchises. College de l'immobilier du Benin will educate scholars on subject matters pertinent to the profession, like entrepreneurship, finance management and administrative procedures as well as marketing and sales.

"RE/MAX Benin is a source of pride and a dream that we have had for a very long time," adds Marc. "We think it will revolutionize the real estate industry in Benin. This is a big challenge we have accepted but we believe that under the RE/MAX brand, we will achieve our goals."

Marc has been listing and selling real estate with RE/MAX since he earned his license in 2017 and is the recipient of many RE/MAX production awards.