Carl Gambino to Add Four Agents, Eyes Market Expansion

Singer-songwriter Patti Smith offered a view into New York City’s always-evolving world of real estate when celebrity agent Carl Gambino was growing up.

“I would sit on her [townhome’s] stoop, and she would sometimes talk about real estate and how cheap it used to be in the Village or in Soho,” he remembered. “It was quite clear it was an ever-changing environment and that [values] were going up significantly over time.”

Gambino’s in a dramatically different world from those days listening to Smith as he now helms a 22-person bi-coastal team at Compass. He closed last year with over $400 million in sales, while making good on an expansion plan via his recently hired head of operations Julian Berkeley. The Gambino Group is currently in negotiations to add two agents in Los Angeles and two in New York as further market expansion is now being considered in Westchester, Hudson Valley and Palm Beach. The group currently does business in L.A., Miami, New Jersey as well as New York City and Long Island’s North Fork and Hamptons markets.

Meanwhile, Gambino along with Compass’ John Bercsi can add another notch in the team’s belt, after the duo represented the buyer (they declined to provide details and the deed is not yet available) this month in the $51.8 million sale of 942 North Alpine Drive in Beverly Hills, which is the city’s priciest on-market deal so far this year and also the most expensive since Ryan Seacrest sold 1196 Cabrillo Drive for $51 million in 2022, according to Zillow records.

Christie’s International Real Estate Southern California’s Aaron Kirman and Carolwood Estates’ Linda May were the listing agents on behalf of the seller, a trust tied to Stephen Paul — whose family owns a minority stake in the Pittsburgh Steelers and founded steel maker Ampco-Pittsburgh — and his wife Nancy Paul, property records show.

The deals pile onto Gambino’s over $2 billion in lifetime sales as he also juggles listings for high-profile names such as the relist earlier this year of Jessica Chastain’s Manhattan co-op, on the market for $6.5 million, and Halsey’s Los Feliz home for $5.5 million. There’s also Jeremy Piven’s Mount Olympus home, which is asking $8.2 million.

The star-studded roster is just the latest for Gambino, who has carved a business for himself as an agent to the stars, with Mark Wahlberg, Jennifer Lopez and Joe Jonas among the other notable names he’s represented.

“Obsessed” with real estate

The high-flying worlds of entertainment and luxury real estate is a far cry from where Gambino got his start.

Born in New York, Gambino mostly grew up in New Jersey and said he was always “obsessed” with real estate, despite not having come from a family in the business. His mother was a teacher and his father was a bank teller.

A former alcoholic and addict, Gambino said he began attending 12-step meetings when he was 22 and has been sober now for 17 years. He attributes the aggregate of his experiences to his successes today.

“Where I come from has given me this overwhelming ambition,” he said. “I think there are aspects of it that have helped me build and I’m really grateful for my background.”

When he was younger, he hustled with odd jobs around New York City, including handing out flyers for a locksmith in Lower Manhattan and selling advertisements for a local magazine.

Gambino was first licensed in New York and began in commercial real estate, working at Marcus & Millichap, before switching to residential. He was broke when he moved to California, picking up a job as a dog walker to earn income until his wife and interior designer, Sarah Ivory, pushed him to get his license.

Gambino knew with his work ethic he could tackle the demands of the luxury client in L.A.

“I’m an obsessive workaholic,” he said. “My phone dies twice a day. My wife wants to throw it out. That level of service, being available to luxury clients, is very important.”

Gambino’s first few deals in California involved selling homes to his dog walking clients. Singer Joe Jonas, who Gambino was introduced to and said remains a close friend today, was his first listing and launched his foray into serving high-profile clients.

In 2015, Gambino was part of Beverly Hills-based Westside Estate Agency, clocking five years with the brokerage and learning as much as he could from its founders Stephen Shapiro and Kurt Rappaport.

“It desensitized me watching [Rappaport and Shapiro] sell extremely high-end homes and deal with basically the wealthiest people in the world,” he said. “To see them double-end $100 million homes and work with the most influential and interesting people in the world over and over again, it was a wonderful place to learn the business.”

In 2020, Gambino jumped to Compass, which fueled the growth of his team.

Last year saw the Gambino Group enter New Jersey and the North Fork. It also began dabbling in co-listings of properties overseas, including in Italy and Portugal. The group currently holds four exclusive listings in Sardinia, Italy; Algarve, Portugal; Toiny, St. Barths; and Mykonos, Greece.

The plan now is to leverage the team’s multi-market footprint to cross-sell and cross-list.

“We created this concierge business where we can sell someone’s L.A. house, their New York apartment, their Miami apartment, their Hamptons place,” Gambino said. “Clients we work with love the idea that we can help them everywhere.”