Knight Barry Title is moving into Central Minnesota after our acquisition of Heartland Title, LLC. Don’t worry, Dave, Lynette and the rest of their great team are coming with us!
The deal with Heartland Title, LLC in St. Cloud is the Milwaukee-based company’s second expansion in neighboring Minnesota this year alone. In January, Knight Barry Title acquired a six-office operation in the Twin Cities area. The St. Cloud presence represents the company’s most westward office in Minnesota and the 13th in the state overall.
“We’re excited to show more Minnesota customers what Knight Barry Title can do for them with the help of such people who already know the business and the St. Cloud community so well,” said Craig Haskins, Knight Barry Title’s chief operating officer. “This expansion to the west of Minneapolis-St. Paul makes geographical sense, too. It strengthens our presence all over the state.”
During discussions with Haskins, Heartland Title owners Dave and Lynette Erickson said they were both impressed with how the company conducts its business and values its team members and customers alike. Much like the company it’s now joining, Heartland Title has always prided itself on staff expertise and being an independent company.“
If we were going to sell, we wanted to sell to a company that would recognize the value of our employees. Our employee's length of service and their relationships within the community are a tremendous asset,” Dave Erickson said. “I believe Knight Barry Title will take this office to a new level in customer service, bring in great technological resources and keep being a good community business citizen.”
Each of the St. Cloud office’s four full-time employees have 20 years or more in the title industry. All team members – including the two owners and a part-time employee - have chosen to continue as part of the Knight Barry Title family. While Lynette Erickson said the opportunity for the staff to remain a big selling point, Knight Barry Title has always wanted team members to stay in place as part of any acquisition in the Midwest and in other parts of the country.“
We could really tell Knight Barry Title has a good business model focused on building quality relationships and know this change will be good for our customers and our staff alike,” she said.
Dave Erickson started working for the company in 1991 and bought it with Lynette four years later. Despite sharing the same last name, the pair did not know each until then. They are thankful for their company’s longtime role in strengthening and supporting the St. Cloud community and excited to continue to do so as part of Knight Barry Title.
"Although we have somewhat of a large population, the St. Cloud community still has the local feel,” Lynette Erickson said. “Maintaining our relationships and being visible at various events and in organizations has always been important to us.”
Led by Haskins, Knight Barry Title has continued its impressive growth in Florida at the same time it has expanded closer to home. There, the company has obtained four new offices around Florida through three separate acquisitions so far in 2021.
To learn more about what the leadership team looks for when evaluating potential acquisition partners, check out
www.joinknightbarry.com, a website specifically launched recently to showcase why working for and with Knight Barry Title could be a great move.
Knight Barry Title is one of the largest independent providers of title and closing services in the US. It has 80+ offices in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Florida, Texas and Michigan. With a slogan of “Our People. Your success,” and over 540 title and closing experts, Knight Barry Title has the experience needed to provide fast and accurate services to their commercial and residential customers.