Upstart apartment brokerage Urban Compass has tapped industry veteran Gene Martinez to lead its charge into the Miami market.
The tech-focused brokerage announced this morning (Wednesday) that Martinez has left Corcoran to join Urban Compass as Director of Sales and Business Development, Miami and Washington, D.C.
“In founding Urban Compass, we set out to build a different kind of residential brokerage, integrating the best of the best across real estate, technology, and business to empower our agents and improve the real estate experience for our clients,”said Robert Reffkin, founder and CEO of Urban Compass.
“As a dynamic global hub for investors and one of the fastest-growing markets in the country, Miami is critical to our expansion strategy. We will look to build our Miami presence with a disciplined approach to high-level recruiting and the development of superior technology and marketing solutions.
“Gene is the ideal person to help drive the continued expansion of our differentiated model into new markets. His proven track record and management style is highly compatible with our collaborative, agent-first culture, and we look forward to the significant contributions he will make to growing our organization.”
With more than 16 years of residential real estate experience, Martinez is highly regarded as one of the industry’s most effective brokerage managers. He most recently served as the head of The Corcoran Group’s SoHo office, ranked the second most profitable office out of more than 700 offices owned by parent company, NRT.
In his new role, he will work to establish Urban Compass’ Miami office and oversee the sales managers for all of the firm’s expansion markets. In Washington, D.C., which Urban Compass entered last year, Martinez will work with Lindsay Reishman, president of Urban Compass Washington, D.C., on training, recruiting and talent retention.
Before joining Urban Compass, Martinez spent the entirety of his real estate career at The Corcoran Group, starting as an agent in the firm’s Upper West Side office before being named Senior Managing Director of the company’s SoHo office. As head of the SoHo office, he doubled the size of the office’s sales force to 150 agents, and was responsible for managing the day-to-day office operations, including coaching, recruiting and retention. In 2014, he s appointed by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to the State Board of Real Property Tax Services.
Prior to starting his career in real estate, Martinez owned and operated a successful artist and photographer representation agency with offices in New York City and Miami.
“Having spent my entire real estate career with one firm up until this point, my decision to join Urban Compass was driven largely by its exceptional people, the clarity of its mission, and the exciting opportunity to take my career to the next level,” commented Martinez.
“I grew up in Miami, so relocating to build Urban Compass’ Miami office is somewhat of a homecoming for me. At the same time, I will be able to help shape and grow the firm’s presence in all of its expansion markets, affording me the opportunity to take on new challenges in building a national sales team.”
Urban Compass was the first residential brokerage in the country to offer a proprietary mobile app exclusively for its agents. It employs a team of full-time consultants focused on supporting its agents’ businesses and a set of market research tools.
To date, the company has raised $73 million (most recently at a $360-million valuation) from investors including Founder’s Fund, Thrive Capital, .406 Ventures and Advance Publications. The funding has equipped the company with the capital to grow its operations in New York City, Washington, D.C., and now, Miami, as well as expand to other cities throughout the United States.
