Santiago Arana and Mauricio Umansky (iStock)
The Agency is relaunching in South Florida with a franchise location in Surfside, near Bal Harbour.
The Beverly Hills-based brokerage expanded to South Florida in 2018 with its first office in Boca Raton. It eventually closed that and other locations in Coral Gables and Aventura, and is now opening in a 2,200-square-foot space at 9564 Harding Avenue in Surfside, said The Agency’s Santiago Arana and Mauricio Umansky.
Arana, a partner at the firm, purchased the franchise rights for the region stretching from Palm Beach down to the Florida Keys. Umansky, a co-founder and CEO of The Agency, is an investor in the franchise. Both brokers have closed billions of dollars worth of sales in their careers.
The Surfside location, which recently opened in a former salon space, marks the company’s 34th franchise, according to a release. The firm has about 38 agents in South Florida.
Arana plans to expand with offices throughout South Florida, including in Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Sunset Harbour in Miami Beach, and Coconut Grove, he said. The cost of the franchise rights was comparable to other brokerage franchises, which he estimated is about $80,000 to $85,000.
South Florida’s residential market boomed as a result of the pandemic, with wealthy buyers relocating to the region and buying homes. As a result, brokerages have expanded throughout the tri-county area and to other parts of Florida.
“When Covid hit, I was visiting Miami a little bit more. I saw the potential and it was about to explode. That’s when I called our partners Mauricio [Umansky] and Billy [Rose],” Arana said, later adding that he is “super excited and fired up to bring the power of The Agency” to Florida.
Umansky and Arana plan to recruit agents and continue growing in South Florida, Umansky said. He is considering eventually buying a home in Miami.
After the closure of its office in Boca Raton and other offices, the firm had a temporary corporate office in Fort Lauderdale. The Agency terminated its relationship with the agents who had been tasked with leading the South Florida expansion.
The brokerage has more than 50 locations in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Europe. It opened 11 franchises in 2021, including in Naples.
