Angel Nicolas, a leading agent at Compass with over $200 million in sales during the past year, has left the firm to join Serhant. State licensing records confirm that Nicolas’ license was transferred to Serhant on Monday. He had been with Compass since 2019 and was recognized as one of its top 100 agents for 2024.
Nicolas, who previously played professional baseball, said most of his 18-person team is also moving to Serhant. Since becoming a real estate agent in 2016, he has closed nearly $2 billion in sales. His work focuses on neighborhoods such as Coconut Grove, Gables Estates, Pinecrest, Ponce Davis, and Southwest Ranches.
“It’s been a tough move to be honest because I am quite happy with Compass,” Nicolas said. He noted that Ryan Serhant, founder and CEO of Serhant, had been discussing the possibility of joining forces for three years.
Nicolas expressed enthusiasm about starting a nationwide luxury division at Serhant. “Him [Serhant] and I have been talking about how we can become the No. 1 team in Miami,” Nicolas said. “We both want to be No. 1 in all of Florida. That’s the plan.”
Among recent deals handled by Nicolas is brokering both sides of a $19.3 million penthouse sale at Grove at Grand Bay in 2023—a record for Coconut Grove condo transactions.
William Abreu, a member of Nicolas’ team and also a former professional baseball player, represented the buyer in the purchase of an estate in Davie earlier this year for $25.5 million—a record-setting transaction for the area involving streamer Adin Ross.
Nicolas commented on market conditions: South Florida’s luxury sector remains stable with continued demand for turnkey homes. He anticipates further growth if Zohran Mamdani becomes mayor of New York City.
“The homes sitting on the market need a lot of work or are teardowns. Your special homes in special neighborhoods are setting records,” he said. Recently, he represented the seller in a $6.3 million sale at 7425 Southwest 56th Avenue in Miami—a record price for High Pines.
Looking ahead, Serhant plans to open offices in Coconut Grove, Coral Gables and Miami Beach according to Nicolas.
The move adds momentum to Serhant’s expansion efforts across South Florida; earlier this year Gary Pohrer joined from Douglas Elliman’s Exclusive Group to help lead its Palm Beach office after first expanding into Delray Beach last year (https://therealdeal.com/miami/2023/03/13/ryan-serhants-brokerage-opens-first-south-florida-office-in-delray-beach/). The brokerage now counts around 260 agents statewide including Tyler Cameron and founding agents Mariana Niro and Chris Prakas; Yasser Ponce leads its Miami operations per state records (https://www.floridarealtors.org/news-media/news-articles/2024/05/top-miami-agent-joins-serhant).
Compass declined comment on Nicolas’ departure.
