By MARGIE DOYLE

Editor

Windermere Real Estate/Orcas Island will acquire Gudgell Properties on March 1, according to an announcement released by their respective brokers, John Dunning and Wally Gudgell.

Dunning, who owns the San Juan Island Windermere agency as well as the one on Orcas Island, says, “Wally and I started talking three or four months ago and it seemed to make sense. He wanted to associate with a major franchise, and it’s hard to duplicate Windermere’s service to clients, particularly on the website, windermere.com.”

Long-time islander Wally Gudgell said that, even in the declining real estate market, “Windermere in the Northwest has been most successful, with their market share increasing.” Most of all, he appreciated Windermere’s high rankings on internet search engines. “In the Puget Sound region, 90 percent of buyers contact [realtors] through the internet. I was always trying to get a higher ranking [for Gudgell Properties’ website]. This is my fourth decade in real estate and I could see the writing on the wall: if you’re not on the search engines, you’re not doing a good job.”

When he visited the Windermere corporate offices in Seattle and saw that 27 full-time Internet tech people were employed there, he decided to pursue discussions with Windermere, and devote himself to working full-time as a realtor. Gudgell, who will stay on at Winderemere, said, “This will give me more time with my clients and customers.”

Dunnning said that the existing Gudgell office will become a Windermere office, but will function as a separate branch until their offices are physically merged. All Gudgell agents will stay on with Windermere. “It’s kind of an exciting opportunity because Wally and his excellent group of agents have tremendous expertise in high-end properties and has many loyal clients. We’re both excited about the potential opportunities this provides,” said Dunning.

Windermere will move as the main tenant into a new building Gudgell will construct on the property he owns on the southeast corner of Haven Road and Main Street, north of the former Templin residence. The commercial building, designed by local architect David Kau, will have a main floor of 2,300 square feet, with a daylight basement and a residential unit above, said Susan Gudgell, co-owner of Gudgell Properties. There is room for retail space in the building. Wally Gudgell says construction is set to begin on the new project in a couple of months, with completion scheduled for May, 2009.

In a statement issued by Gudgell’s office, it was said that the two offices “look forward to collaborating on the latest in industry professional development, while continuing to focus on the small town values paramount to them and the greater Orcas community.”