Christie’s International Real Estate, a global luxury real estate company, announced that it launched a new brokerage firm in Austin, Texas.
Backed by the Jerry Jones family, owners of the Dallas Cowboys, the new firm will be owned and operated by Jerry Mooty Jr., who is also Jones’ nephew. Mooty brings Texas real estate experience to the Austin firm, as he already owns multiple Christie’s International Real Estate offices in Dallas and Frisco.
Serving as chief operating officer and broker of record for the new firm is Romeo Manzanilla, a longtime fixture of the Austin real estate scene.
Previously, Manazanilla led real estate firm Compass’ Texas operations, along with serving as broker in charge at Realty Austin — where he grew the company from 25 to more than 600 agents.
According to Manzanilla and Mooty, Christie’s International Real Estate — which was acquired by Chicago-based real estate and tech company @properties back in 2021 — is looking to locate the Austin headquarters somewhere in the Westlake/Barton Creek area, with the hopes of it being operational by Nov. 1. Amidst this process, Manzanilla and Mooty say that they have already received commitments from several top-producing Austin agents to join the newly-established firm.
“With Christie’s International Real Estate’s unparalleled affiliate network, and @properties’ best-in-class pl@tform™ technology, our firm will offer an unmatched experience for Austin agents and clients,” said Mooty. “We plan to hit the ground running with Romeo and a fast-growing team of highly regarded agents to raise the bar for service in the Austin market, especially at the high end.”
Thad Wong, co-CEO of Christie’s International Real Estate, says that Austin — which offers hundreds of live music venues, and also serves as a hub for several tech companies — will serve as a highly impactful area for the company.
“Austin is a key market for Christie’s International Real Estate, and we’re absolutely thrilled to have Jerry and Romeo leading the expansion,” said Wong. “Jerry not only has great connections in Texas but also throughout our national and international network, and that’s going to be huge given the global business profile of Austin today. And Romeo is so well respected in this market; we are lucky to have him on board.”