FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida - August 12, 2010 - Homeowners aren't the only ones getting hit by the real estate Depression. RE/MAX Partners, a Fort Lauderdale, Florida franchise of real estate company RE/MAX L.L.C., is closing its doors after five years of deteriorating home sales.

The largest RE/MAX brokerage in Florida, it experienced a 29% drop in business after the April expiration of the federal homebuyer tax credit. Also contributing to the decline were the aftereffects of Hurricane Wilma. Management is trying to help relocate the firm's more than 160 agents to other RE/MAX offices.