The Real Deal New York

From left: Zhann Jochinke and Eric Barron

[Updated at 8:51 p.m. with comment from Argo] Keller Williams NYC has hired Zhann Jochinke to oversee the brokerage’s day-to-day operations as COO, the firm said. Jochinke joined the Keller Williams NYC in December, but his hiring was kept under wraps due to unspecified “complications” with his previous firm, Argo Residential.

He will have an office at 425 Park Avenue, between 55th and 56th street, where the entire firm is finalizing its move as previously reported by The Real Deal. Only Keller Williams NYC Chairman Ilan Bracha and his team of about 15 brokers will remain at 725 Fifth Avenue, between 56th and 57th streets.

Jochinke, 29, actually attempted to bring the Keller Williams franchise to Manhattan himself about four years ago, and had rounded up capital to pave the way for a launch, he said, but was thwarted by the Lehman Brothers crash and his resulting lack of confidence in the market.

“The model, above the commission split and everything else, is about putting the agent first,” he said. “We want to be the brand behind the agents’ brand, the company behind the their company. That’s what attracted me and probably most of our agents.”

He had been in dialogue with the regional leadership ever since, according to Keller Williams Realty’s regional spokesperson, and again immediately after Bracha launched the Keller Williams NYC franchise early last year. Within weeks he was speaking with Bracha, too.

Jochinke hails from Australia and moved to New York City seven years ago. He said he read the book “The Millionaire Real Estate Agent,” by Keller Williams Realty Chairman Gary Keller and almost immediately began working towards a real estate license. Within a year he took a job with Argo Residential where he has worked for the last six years focusing mostly on $700,000 to $1.3 million homes, he said. Karen Berman, Argo’s director of sales and the company point person, said there was “no reason” why Jochinke wouldn’t have wanted to announce his move in December and added, “we wish him well.”

Keller Williams NYC has no qualms about elevating someone with relatively limited experience.

“There’s no substitute for intelligence, and he’s probably the smartest person I’ve met in the real estate industry,” CEO Eric Barron said. “He has a tremendous ability to grasp all the moving parts, particularly from a technology standpoint… which is the backbone of almost everything we do today.”

But Barron did not play a role in Jochinke’s hire. In fact, Barron said Jochinke was already affiliated with the firm when he was brought on to replace Adina Azarian, whose is now the executive director of new business, as CEO. Barron said he and Jochinke’s ability to compliment one another from an operational standpoint was ultimately a big reason he took the job 10 weeks ago.

Jochinke compensates for what Barron lacks in familiarity with agent technologies, and still has the “agent’s mentality,” the CEO said, which helps him relate to the firm’s roster of brokers. In fact, Jochinke serves as the president of the Manhattan MLS and as a board member with the Manhattan Association of Realtors.