Premium real estate brokerage Engel & Völkers, based in Germany, this week announced it is opening its first Vancouver office in partnership with a local luxury brokerage.
The Carros Group, a luxury Vancouver real estate brokerage that for more than five years operated as Sotheby’s International Realty’s highest-grossing Vancouver office, is opening a new Engel & Völkers franchise at its Yaletown office.
Greg Carros, president of The Carros Group, said of the new partnership, “Working with Sotheby’s has been a great experience, but when Engel & Völkers approached me a few months ago, I saw this as an opportunity to grow and elevate client services in Vancouver.”
He added, “I was impressed with the Engel & Völkers brand, and to be frank, given the company’s stellar track record and reputation, I didn’t want to compete with them.”
Carros said that working with Engel & Völkers gave him an opportunity to own a franchise, which was not possible with Sotheby’s. He estimated that his office had sold $600 million of real estate over the past two years, which made it an attractive proposition for Engel & Völkers.
Anthony Hitt, CEO of Engel & Völkers North America, said, the Carros Group was “well-known in the industry for serving exclusive clientele.”
He added,“The Vancouver team’s experience and innate knowledge of the city’s luxury marketplace will seamlessly combine with Engel & Völkers’ global network to best serve Vancouver’s premier real estate needs.”
The office will be the eighth Engel & Völkers to open in recent months across Canada, having already established a presence in Victoria, Nanaimo, Toronto, York, Collingwood, Calgary and Montreal.
“Engel & Völkers aggressive expansion into Canada – and now Vancouver – can be viewed as a positive statement,” said Jon Stovell, vice chair of the Urban Development Institute. “It shows that we are on the global stage for luxury real estate.”
The Carros team will continue to operate from its Yaletown office at 1152 Mainland, with the transition to the Engel & Völkers brand planned to be complete by December 1.
Carros is already planning to open further franchise offices on the West Side, East Vancouver, West Vancouver and North Vancouver.
Engel & Völkers was established in Germany in 1977 and has become one of the world’s leading companies in real estate. The company also sells yachts and aircraft.
