ONE Sotheby’s acquires luxury South Beach firm

ONE Sotheby’s International Realty has just acquired South Beach International Realty, one of the largest independent Miami Beach brokerages still in existence, The Real Deal has learned.

The South Beach luxury firm, headed by power broker Diane Lieberman, will combine its roughly 70 agents with ONE Sotheby’s network of more than 475 Realtors. Lieberman’s office at 1680 Meridian Avenue will remain open, which brings the number of ONE Sotheby’s offices in South Florida to nine.

“It’s going to be a wonderful addition to ONE Sotheby’s,” Daniel de la Vega, president of One Sotheby’s, told TRD. “We’re really excited to have Diane and her entire team on board with ONE Sotheby’s.”

The deal has been in the works for several months, de la Vega said. Not only is SBI Realty getting absorbed, but Lieberman has accepted a position as vice president at ONE Sotheby’s. She’s a 28-year real estate veteran who also owns a chain of 15 historic hotels named “The South Beach Group.” Prior to the move, Liberman’s firm averaged $300 million in sales annually.

“When I made the business decision to join forces with another real estate powerhouse, ONE Sotheby’s was the smartest choice to take SBI Realty and my agents to the next level. ONE Sotheby’s offers our associates and clients the best of both worlds, local experts and the reach of an international network,” Lieberman said in a statement. “In this next chapter as vice president of ONE Sotheby’s, I look forward to leading one of the most prestigious brokerage firms in South Florida while implementing tactical strategies concentrated on increasing sales volume, while having the international platform behind me.”

Miami Beach’s large independent firms are gradually getting eaten up by their larger competition. In June, Mark Zilbert’s eponymous Zilbert International Realty, which had 30 agents, was acquired by Brown Harris Stevens in a bid to strengthen the pipeline of New York buyers looking at Miami properties.