In the latest roundup of South Florida real estate hiring news, firms made key leadership appointments.
Driftwood Capital affiliate Driftwood Hospitality Management named Greg Maliassas as its CEO, according to a news release. Maliassas was previously the CEO of Playa Hotels & Resorts, a hospitality development and management firm with nearly 10,000 keys across Mexico and the Caribbean. In his role with North Palm Beach-based Driftwood Hospitality, Maliassas will oversee more than 80 hotels with 15,000 keys. Driftwood Capital is based in Coral Gables and led by founder and executive chairman Carlos Rodriguez.
Miami-based McDowell Housing Partners named Brian Villa as its chief investment officer, according to a news release. Villa joins the affordable housing developer from Indianapolis-based firm KCG Companies, LinkedIn shows. In his new role, Villa will lead the finance and legal departments at McDowell.
Public relations firm Ingage hired Alexi Haas as chief operating officer of public affairs and government relations, a news release shows. Haas was previously a vice president of land acquisition of Taylor Morrison, and prior to that worked for 10 years at homebuilding giant Lennar, according to LinkedIn. She has worked on more than $500 million in land transactions, and in her new role will be working with Ingage’s residential and commercial real estate clients on the land use, zoning and entitlement process, the release shows.
Aria Development Group is growing its Miami team, according to a news release. The firm, led by founder and CEO Joshua Benaim, hired Antonella Jahn as director of interior design and strategy and Jake Maya as director of acquisitions and development. Jahn joins from EoA Group in Coral Gables, where she was an interior design project manager for five years, according to LinkedIn. Maya joins from PMG, where he was director of acquisitions for three years.
Aria also promoted Marco Ziff, who has been with the firm since 2018, to senior vice president of investments. He will be leading South Florida sourcing, the release shows.
Longtime Douglas Elliman agent Angel Gonzalez joined One Sotheby’s International Realty, according to a press release. Gonzalez has closed more than $700 million in career sales and specializes in new development deals. He will be joining the sales team of a to-be-announced hotel-branded luxury condo tower in Miami, the release shows.
Douglas Elliman landed two agents, Sabine Otamendi and tennis pro JP Smith, according to a news release. Otamendi is a longtime South Florida broker specializing in new development sales, with a career sales volume over $2 billion, the release shows. She joins the brokerage from Turnberry Ocean Club Residences, where she worked on sales for nearly six years.
Smith is an Australian tennis player and longtime feature on the Association of Tennis Professionals circuit. He is launching his real estate career with Elliman after 15 years as a tennis pro.
Otamendi and Smith will be based in Elliman’s MiMo office in Miami.
