Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Brand Helps Sell Homes

Warren Buffett has invested for decades in strong consumer brands—from Geico to Dairy Queen—counting on the power of a trusted name to move merchandise. Now, in a rare use of his holding company’s name as a consumer brand, he’s testing the ability of “Berkshire Hathaway” to sell houses.

Since last year, For Sale signs bearing the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices name have been popping up on lawns from New Jersey to California as Buffett expands his real estate operations and licenses the name to independent brokerages. While the Berkshire brand may help sell houses, thousands of people will be doing business under the name that Buffett, 83, has spent decades burnishing. Some brokers joining the network have received a pamphlet with his photo urging workers to act ethically and report anything that might compromise the company’s reputation. “It’s an innocent strategy until proven guilty,” says Jeff Matthews, a Berkshire shareholder and author of books about the company. “A bunch of bad actors could sully the brand.”