Gus Rubio tapped as new Douglas Elliman’s Florida COO

He previously oversaw One Sotheby's nine South Florida offices

Gus Rubio
Gus Rubio

From the South Florida website: Douglas Elliman’s growing management team in South Florida has just announced a new addition — the former COO of One Sotheby’s International Realty. Gus Rubio, who spoke with The Real Deal in an exclusive interview, said he joined Elliman because of the company’s substantial growth during its 11 years operating in South Florida.

“I don’t think there’s any other company that can touch that,” he told TRD.

As COO at Douglas Elliman, he’ll be overseeing the brokerage’s growth in the coming years, which he expects to be steady. That includes making sure the firm’s staff and agents have the support systems they need — databases, up-to-date offices, computer software, etc. — and smoothing over acquisitions of smaller companies.

“We want to make sure it’s educated growth and that we have good systems in place,” he told TRD.

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Rubio worked as One Sotheby’s COO for 18 months, during which he was intimately involved in the company’s operations over its nine offices in South Florida.

Prior to that, he worked with Realogy Corp., where he developed the company’s six real estate brands: Better Homes & Gardens, Century 21, Coldwell Banker, Coldwell Banker Commercial, ERA and Sotheby’s International Realty.

Douglas Elliman, a real estate giant in New York, has been aggressively expanding its presence in South Florida in recent years. In September 2013, Jay Parker joined the firm as CEO of its Florida brokerage. In June of 2014, Douglas Elliman acquired Jeff Morr’s Miami Beach-based Majestic Properties. And in late February of this year, the firm opened its newest location in Fort Lauderdale.

Douglas Elliman has  also extended its reach to the West Coast with its opening of a new headquarters in Beverly Hills last month to spearhead the brokerage’s expansion in the region.