Our History
Four generations of trust… and counting. As the oldest, and one of the largest real estate companies in South Central Wisconsin, Stark Company Realtors has a rich heritage and a respected name. Paul E. Stark believed that "a community isn't built one house at a time, but rather one handshake at a time." We still believe that. We still operate that way. It’s tradition. A family tradition.
1908
Presbyterian Minister Albert C. Stark co-founds Stark-McLane Land Co. to sell land in the Dakotas. His son, 23-year-old Paul E. Stark, replaces an ill Mr. McLane and the company name changes to Stark Land Co. In 1910, the company begins selling real estate in Madison.
1916
Paul Stark helps organize the Madison Real Estate Board & becomes early President of what is now the Realtors Association of South Central Wisconsin.
RASCW1919
Paul Stark co-founds the Anchor Building and Loan Assoc. (today, Anchor Bank) to ease the frustration of getting a mortgage.
1921
Company changes name to The Paul E. Stark Co. as we are no longer just a land company.
1926
First office building is built – first ever by a Madison Realtor.
1937
National Assoc. of Real Estate Boards elects Paul Stark as President (a first for someone from a small city), the same year he co-creates a comprehensive real estate program for the University of Wisconsin (the first in the country).
1945
Paul Stark passes away at age 61. Longtime employee Walter Schar becomes General Manager. (Paul’s two sons, Phillip and Richard, had just returned home from WWII military service.)
1948
Phillip Stark joins the company with a distinguished infantry record and his B.B.A. from the University of Wisconsin, with a major in real estate (the program created by his father).
Glory in Retrospect1965
Walter Schar passes away. Phillip Stark becomes President.
1977
First branch office opens, a new building soon follows. It’s on the west side and managed by a woman – a radical step for the times.
Madison West Office1978
Phillip's son, David Stark, joins the firm as a Sales Associate. East side branch opens and a new building is constructed.
Madison East Office1979
An affiliation begins with Better Homes and Gardens that would last only four years.
1989
Phillip Stark retires and David Stark becomes President. In the same year, the company buys the real estate brokerage business from Anchor Savings and Loan Assoc., doubling the size of the firm and adding two branches.
1992
David Stark becomes one of five founding members of a partnership group owning Preferred Title. Later that same year, the group again partners to create Universal Home Protection.
1996
1998
Middleton Office opens (and later moves its staff to the West Office) after purchasing Simon & Voss Realtors.
Madison West Office2003
Stoughton Office opens, and a new building is built, after purchasing Hill, Hanssen & Pfundheller.
Stoughton Office2004
The Central/Corporate Office is built in Fitchburg – becoming the eighth building that Stark Company Realtors builds in the Greater Madison area.
Central Office2006
2009
Nathan Stotlar, David’s stepson, becomes a Loan Officer with the company’s mortgage affiliate and is quickly promoted to Manager.
2010
Christopher Stark, David’s son, joins the company as a full-time licensed Real Estate Agent and becomes a Branch Manager in 2014.
2015
Alison Stark, David’s daughter, joins the company as a full-time licensed Real Estate Agent and becomes the Customer Service Manager in 2016.