Above: “Hoby” Hanna IV (left) and Art Herling (right)
Howard Hanna Real Estate Services has entered the Philadelphia market through a partnership with longtime team leader Art Herling. According to the company, the move strengthens the company’s presence in Pennsylvania and extends its agent-first model into one of the region’s biggest real estate markets.
“This expansion reflects both our history and our future,” said Howard W. “Hoby” Hanna IV, CEO of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services, in a released statement. “We’ve spent nearly 70 years building our business in Pennsylvania, and entering the Philadelphia market allows us to carry that legacy forward while continuing to invest in agents, families and the communities they serve.”
In an interview with RISMedia, Hanna expounded on the importance of Philadelphia to the firm now and going forward.
“Philadelphia is important to us,” he said. “Our roots started in 1957 in Pittsburgh, and we are the largest real estate brokerage firm in terms of sales and agents in the state of Pennsylvania, but without any presence in Philadelphia, which is the largest city in the state. A lot of people think Philadelphia is like an hour away from Pittsburgh, but it’s not. So we’ve always had aspirations to be in Philadelphia. I think our growth strategy for many years has been through acquisition, but unfortunately, we never had the opportunity (in Philadelphia).
“Two iconic companies—Fox & Roach and Long & Foster—were privately held family owned and ended up selling to Berkshire Hathaway, so we never had the opportunity to partner with them and come into the market, which had been our strategy. But we looked at Philly, and today it’s a big part of our growth strategy. We entered New York City in the fall. We think that the Eastern Seaboard is an important growth perspective for where we want to be. From New York to Philly down to D.C. and Baltimore, those are our target markets in 2026, and we’re excited to start the year off with this expansion into Philadelphia.”
A 45-year real estate veteran, Herling and his team bring to the partnership deep local leadership and a reputation for agent excellence built over decades in the Philadelphia region. A former public school teacher, he is widely known for his hands-on approach, ability to coach and develop agents, and his work across a broad range of real estate—from first-time buyers and urban neighborhoods to luxury homes, land, new construction and investment properties.
“This partnership felt right because it’s about people and values,” said Herling. “Howard Hanna understands family—both in life and in real estate. This alignment allows our agents to continue doing what they do best while gaining long-term support from a company that shares our commitment to service, independence and growth.”
The expansion brings more than 100 agents across four offices serving Philadelphia proper. Herling anticipates that agents will benefit from Howard Hanna’s integrated one-stop-shop, including mortgage, title and insurance services—along with technology, marketing and operational support.
Consolidation puts Howard Hanna in a ‘really good position’
Hanna noted that the widespread consolidation within the industry of late creates great opportunity for his firm.
“As the largest independent brokerage in the country, and in the top 10 brokerage firms in terms of transactions, we’re the only one that’s not publicly traded or has some form of private equity or venture capital money behind them,” he said. “I think we’re in a really good position to pivot and be responsive.
“We’ve got the capacity to continue to grow, and I think that some of the acquisitions are big, bold moves, but they may have a tiger by the tail in terms of what’s the culture, what’s the direction, what are the changes? How do you blend those cultures? For almost 70 years at Howard Hanna, we’ve stayed with a consistency of being a very listing-focused company that drives tools and programs and resources to its agents to succeed, and also has built out the infrastructure of what we refer to as essential services so we can keep that sort of housing ecosystem under one roof and create customers for life for agents.”
Regarding the expansion into Philadelphia, F. Duffy Hanna, president of Howard Hanna Financial Services, added that, “As we grow alongside Art and his agents, we’re building a full-service presence across the Delaware Valley—expanding support for agents and bringing mortgage, title and insurance capabilities closer to the transaction.”
Howard Hanna is the largest privately owned real estate brokerage in the country and the largest brokerage in Pennsylvania, with a strong and growing presence across the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest. In 2025, Howard Hanna closed nearly 107,000 transactions company-wide, totaling almost $40 billion in closed sales volume. Over the past several years, Howard Hanna has continued to expand its footprint across multiple regions, adding offices, agents and market share in key East Coast markets, including New York City.
