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(Crain’s) — A unit of billionaire Warren Buffett’s investment firm Berkshire Hathaway Inc. has acquired Koenig & Strey GMAC Real Estate, one of the Chicago area’s largest residential real estate firms.

Wilmette-based Koenig & Strey has been rumored to be for sale for some time, but the recession and declining housing market made finding a buyer more difficult. The firm, which will retain its name, had been owned by Brookfield Residential Property Services.

The acquisition, announced Tuesday morning, gives the Berkshire affiliate, Minneapolis-based HomeServices of America Inc. 15,000 real estate professionals in 20 states. Terms were not disclosed.

Founded in 1961, Koenig & Strey has 900 agents and 21 Chicago area offices. Koenig’s 2008 sales volume was $2.6 billion.

“This transaction makes one of the premier firms within the Chicago area into an even stronger organization,” Koenig President and CEO Doug Ayers says in a statement. “By joining with HomeServices, we will be unmatched in our ability to serve the real estate and corporate relocation needs of new and existing clients in the Chicago area.”