Longtime broker Mark Zilbert joined One Sotheby’s International Realty, The Real Deal has learned.
Zilbert, who has been operating his eponymous brokerage since leaving Brown Harris Stevens in 2021, said he reached out to One Sotheby’s owners Mayi and Daniel de la Vega to join their company. His website, Zilbert.com, has gotten to the point where “it’s really, really successful,” but he realized “it may be falling short in the brand recognition to an international audience.”
“No matter where I go, I see Sotheby’s,” Zilbert said. “This is really about .. trying to make it clear I never left the game. A branded realtor or branded broker really really stands out.”
Zilbert will continue to run his website, which provides him with lead generation and referrals, and will build a team at One Sotheby’s, said Daniel de la Vega, president of One Sotheby’s. He will also work on digital strategy for the brokerage’s new developments. The firm is leading sales and marketing of Pier Sixty Six Residences in Fort Lauderdale, St. Regis Residences in Miami’s Brickell, Alba Palm Beach and others.
“It’s a huge win to be able to have our One Sotheby’s International Realty next to the Zilbert name,” de la Vega said.
Zilbert, who moved to North Carolina during the pandemic and handled sales of a condo project in Asheville, will continue to divide his time between Miami and North Carolina, with a shift toward spending more time in South Florida. He’ll be based at the One Sotheby’s office at 119 Washington Avenue.
One goal is to “have his platform expand into other markets where we can provide more agents with our leads,” de la Vega said, including Marin, Indian River, Brevard and Duval counties in Florida.
Zilbert’s tech has long been a selling point for him. At One Sotheby’s, he’ll also work with developers’ digital teams or run a digital team under the brokerage; and One Sotheby’s will use his platform to enhance its lead generation. Zilbert said he’s interested in helping developers that are seeing sales stall or slow down.
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Before relaunching the Zilbert brokerage in 2021, Zilbert worked for Brown Harris Stevens, which acquired his Zilbert International Realty in 2015. He left the same year that his longtime colleague Jeff Miller, a Zilbert protege, exited BHS to join One Sotheby’s.
Since then, Zilbert has focused more on the technology behind the website, including AI, and has been working with agents from other brokerages on deals through his enhanced referral program. He also offers agents a white-label version of his website, using his back-end tech with the agent’s branding, which he will continue to do.
“I expect for him to build one of the largest teams within our company along the entire east coast of Florida, simply because he’s got this machine in his website that is very attractive,” de la Vega said. “I’m sure every one of our competitors would love to have Mark Zilbert.”