In moving part of his expanding real estate company to Newtown, Gaetano Marra, owner of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Gaetano Marra Homes, didn’t just choose any location. He chose 45 South Main Street, a location with 40-plus years of real estate history.

Marra, with partners Bryan Atherton and Ed Vayan, picked the location because it was the former home of Curtiss and Crandon Real Estate, Coldwell Banker, also a real estate company, and most recently DaSilva Real Estate. The 3,291 square foot, two floor plus finished basement building was built in 1920, according to realtor.com. It is expected to open to the public on December 1.

While Gaetano Marra Homes, a franchise of Better Homes and Gardens, is still headquartered at 588 Monroe Turnpike in Monroe, the South Main Street location gives the business a Newtown presence beyond just selling homes and commercial locations in Newtown, as well as being the primary location for the business’ commercial realtors. They have fully renovated the location, including installing a 25-foot flagpole with a four-foot by six-foot flag, painting outside and inside, new awnings, new roof, new gutters, redone landscaping, and new exterior lights, as well as a new sign coming soon.

“This place hasn’t looked this good in 50 years,” said Atherton. “Before it was very old, nothing had been done with it in 15 years. We did a total refresh.”

“We’re ready to roll. We’re super excited to continue the tradition and continue to grow our presence in this great town,” said Marra.

Atherton said he has 25 years of real estate experience, and Marra has “a little less” than that. Marra will be primarily based in the Monroe location as a Monroe resident handling recruiting of residential realtors, and Atherton will be “a staple” in the Newtown location as a Newtown resident.

The location will provide in-house mortgages, a real estate attorney, and realtors for both residential and commercial. Someone in-house can determine from pay stubs whether a prospective buyer can qualify for a mortgage on the property they wish to buy.

“It’s important to provide full real estate services,” said Atherton.

Atherton said many other realtors treat Newtown as a satellite, but he sees it as “the sun of the universe.”

“It has great restaurants, great schools, great businesses, and a great community,” said Atherton.

Marra said that the location would be a “community-based real estate brokerage.” Marra said it made sense for the business to own its own location and be its “own landlord.”

Additionally, the Better Homes and Gardens brand, of which Gaetano Marra Homes is an affiliate, is 100 years old this year.

Gaetano Marra Homes is a full-service residential real estate brokerage, handling every town in the state of Connecticut.