The Resop Brothers, Paul and James,
started the Resop Real Estate Empire in 1952. The brothers
were from Wisconsin and came to the Park in 1942.
On April
1, 1957, they sold the real estate office to realtor Ken
Born, himself just 30. Born retained the offices at 4950
Excelsior Blvd., and in 1961 Born and Milton E. Brecke were
listed as owners. Born operated the agency for over 20
years, much longer than the Resops. Born died in
November 2004.
Ken Born's daughter tells us:
My dad helped countless people find, not just houses, but
their homes in St. Louis Park. If you wanted to find a home
in St. Louis Park, you called Ken Born. Dad, who didn't even
graduate from high school, was a marketing genius and knew
the power of relationships. Major corporations such as
General Mills and Northwestern Bell would call him to help
their transplanted executives find their homes in the Twin
Cities. And the SLP school district also tapped into Dad's
ability to put people at ease and help them find a home in
St. Louis Park. To this day, I still meet people who tell me
that my dad helped them find their homes.
In 1962, the company was listed at 6032 W. 37th Street. At
one time it was located at 3810 Princeton, and in 1972 it
was at 3601 Park Center Blvd.
When the Resops sold the agency in 1957, they started up
their Industrial Brokerage Firm, Resop Securities, at 4221
Excelsior.
This information comes from a variety of sources: newspapers, books, yearbooks, phone directories, interviews, etc. Given the varied sources, we cannot guarantee that all of this information is correct, and welcome any additions and corrections. Please contact us with your contributions and comments.