Gaia Real Estate has relocated its headquarters from New York to Miami, a move that reflects the firm’s growing focus on South Florida’s multifamily housing market. The company announced it has established its base at 8163 Northeast Second Avenue in Miami’s Little River neighborhood, expanding its footprint with two new leases that will bring its total space to 5,000 square feet starting early next year.
Danny Fishman, CEO of Gaia, stated in the release: “Miami has ‘the right momentum’ for Gaia’s evolution.” He explained that the firm wants to be closer to its key markets as it pursues further investment in the region.
Founded by Fishman and Ken Woolley in 2009, Gaia Real Estate had previously operated mainly out of New York. Over time, it has invested more than $4 billion across over 20,000 residential units nationwide. While moving its headquarters south, Gaia is maintaining an office at Carnegie Hall Tower in New York City. The company currently employs 35 staff members in New York and has about 150 contracted employees at property sites around the country. In January, the Miami office will launch with 10 employees; all future hiring for Gaia will take place there. Some current New York staff may relocate or adopt hybrid work schedules between both offices.
Earlier this year, Gaia partnered with Moderno Development Group—also based at the same Miami address—to launch a $300 million fund aimed at purchasing and redeveloping single-family homes and townhomes throughout South Florida. Through their joint venture MILAS (Miami land and single-family), all newly developed homes from this phase are planned for rental rather than sale.
Moderno CEO Doron Broman said: “Monthly rents will range from $4,000 to $7,000,” when speaking with The Real Deal in May.
Beyond this partnership, Gaia continues to pursue value-add multifamily investments and operates a fully discretionary real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on new multifamily properties across Sun Belt cities including Houston, Orlando, Nashville—and now South Florida. According to the firm, this REIT has already made approximately $300 million in investments spanning more than 1,000 units.
The timing of these moves comes amid a cooling period for apartment leasing activity in South Florida following record demand during the immediate post-pandemic years. Developers completed a record number of new apartments last year—18,600 units—surpassing net new lease signings by about 3,600 units according to CoStar Group data. This supply surplus led to slower lease-ups and some rent declines even as construction remains robust; construction began on over 14,500 apartments in South Florida during the year ending September 30 per CoStar figures.
Despite these trends affecting traditional apartment rentals, Broman noted earlier this year that demand remains strong for single-family and townhome rentals—a segment with relatively limited supply compared to multifamily stock.
Gaia’s headquarters relocation suggests continued interest among northern firms seeking opportunities in South Florida despite reports that such migration had slowed since peaking between 2020 and 2022 when many companies moved south due partly to favorable state policies during pandemic recovery.
