Real estate professionals Taso Tsakos, Keri O’Reilly, Karen Roy, Cat Spender and Skylar Santa Barbara have joined Engel & Völkers as real estate advisors, the brokerage announced on Monday.
Tsakos and O’Reilly were formerly part of Engel & Völkers’ rival brokerage, The Agency, and have ranked among the top 1.49% of real estate professionals by sales volume, on RealTrends. While Tsakos served as the managing partner, O’Reilly was a Realtor and managing director, both in East Bay. They will now serve as managing partners, with the responsibility to expand Engel & Völkers’ footprint in San Francisco’s East Bay market.
They helped build The Agency’s largest office in Northern California in terms of agent count and sales volume, Engel & Völkers said through a statement. Tsakos’ professional career spans more than three decades in real estate with a record of selling the most expensive home in Contra Costa County for $19 million. Meanwhile, O’Reilly has more than two decades of experience in the industry.
“Our footprint is growing in Northern California, and Taso and Keri have the local market expertise, industry acumen and experience in servicing the high end of the market that attracted them to Engel & Völkers and that will elevate our business not only in the East Bay, but on a regional, national and global level as well,” said Paul Benson, who operates more than 30 shop locations in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, Idaho and Utah.
This follows the move last month of top real estate agent Tracy McLaughlin and daughter Whitney, who left The Agency to join Engel & Völkers.
Karen Roy joins the brokerage from eXp Realty. According to the statement, Roy is a multi-million-dollar producer with a specialty in new construction and investment properties. She is a member of the Greater Boston Association of Realtors and is licensed in Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
Cat Spender joins Engel & Völkers from residential real estate brokerage Redfin, where she served as a Realtor and associate agent. Her professional career spans more than 15 years in client service, management and marketing. She received her real estate license in 2020 with a focus on helping relocation buyers in Rhode Island.
“With a wide network across the country, I am able to advise clients based on their unique circumstances and create a seamless communication process,” Cat said in a statement.
Skylar Santa Barbara left Davitt Design Build, a design and build company, to join Engel & Völkers. Her specialties include new construction and luxury properties with experience in the custom home building industry. She received her real estate license in 2022 and is a member of the American Marketing Association.
“Agents are attracted to Engel & Völkers for our robust support, global referral network, and ability to target higher end properties,” said Emilio DiSpirito, co-owner of Engel & Völkers. “We are thrilled to have Karen, Cat, and Skylar join our team and we look forward to watching their careers continue to flourish.”
Engel & Völkers currently operates in more than 275 shop locations with approximately 6,200 real estate advisors in the U.S., and 16,400 real estate professionals in 31 countries.
