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 Our History

History & Organization

Harrison & Lear, Inc. was formed in September, 1953 by Jefferson C. Harrison and Robert H. Lear to meet postwar housing demands on the Peninsula. The company has been under the leadership of Thomas T. Thompson since July, 1980.

The RESIDENTIAL SALES DEPARTMENT is the original department. In January, 2002, our residential sales department joined existing brokerages in Williamsburg, Poquoson, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Virginia Beach to create Coldwell Banker Professional, Realtors, with coverage of the entire metropolitan area.  There are currently eight offices and sales for 2003 were more than 250 million dollars.  The Hampton office staff consists of the Managing Broker, Yvonne Vreeland-Johnson, twenty-two salespersons and an administrative assistant.  This office continues to provide primary representation for the Running Man subdivision.

The PROPERTY MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT was formed in June, 1965 to provide property management services to residential, commercial, and retail property owners. These management services include all phases of leasing, maintenance, administration, and accounting.

The Director of Property Management is President Robert M. Sherman, III, CPM®. The Property Management Department staff currently consists of the Director of Property Management, two Senior Managers, eight Managers and an Administrative Assistant. The Managers, along with their assistants, are responsible for 842 apartment units, 1,469 condominium & townhome units, 109 individual rental homes and 27,000 square feet in commercial office property.

The ACCOUNTING DEPARTMENT serves all segments of the company. Under the direction Mershelle Butler, the Accounting Department provides all of the financial services relating to each property and activity.

The DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT was formed in September, 1964 to find, procure, and develop vacant land. The department works in close coordination with the INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT. These two departments are headed by Skip Morris and have developed and syndicated such well known projects as:

The two departments have formed twenty-three (23) partnerships and corporations with 591 investors to purchase over 3,000 strategically located acres to hold for investment and future development.

The COMMERCIAL SALES DEPARTMENT was formed in 1965.  It has sold over $20 million dollars of commercial and retail property. Some recent accomplishments are:

Harrison & Lear, Inc. has matured to be a full-service real estate company. The depth and experience of its staff will continue to serve Harrison & Lear customers faithfully as each department expands with the growth of the Tidewater area.