'Million Dollar Listing' Altman Brothers expanding to Phoenix

The Altman Brothers, the Los Angeles-based luxury real estate brokerage and stars of Bravo’s “Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles,” are expanding to Phoenix.

Josh and Matt Altman are teaming up with Scott Grigg of The Grigg’s Group to create a boutique luxury real estate brokerage in the Camelback Corridor. The new brokerage, dubbed Grigg’s Group Powered By The Altman Brothers, is taking nearly 5,000 square feet at 5055 N. 32nd St. in Phoenix.

Grigg and the Altman brothers have been referring business to each other for the past 10 years, said Josh Altman, co-founder of The Altman Brothers.

“Scott and Matt and I have been very dear friends for over a decade now,” Altman told Phoenix Business Journal. “We send 15 to 20 deals back and forth to each other.”

Josh Altman has been considering opening an office here for the past five years, saying it’s “been a long time coming.” As luxury home prices continue to rise in Scottsdale and Paradise Valley, Altman said now is the time to expand to the metro.

“The Scottsdale and Paradise Valley area is still very undervalued,” Altman said. “It has a ways to go.”

Paradise Valley and Scottsdale are home to the three wealthiest ZIP codes in Maricopa County, according to the latest Phoenix Business Journal data. The median home value in Paradise Valley was in excess of $2.6 million as of Aug. 31, data from Zillow Inc. shows. With an average estimated annual mortgage payment of nearly $200,000, Zillow estimates that residents need a minimum annual income of more than $656,507 to afford a home there. In Scottsdale’s three wealthiest ZIPs, Zillow estimates at least $288,827 in annual income is needed to afford a mortgage.

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Altman said the new office space in the Camelback Corridor is nearly finished. The goal is to hit $250 million in sales the first year, double that to $500 million in the second year “and go from there,” he added.

The team currently has a dozen agents, and plans call for roughly doubling that, Altman said.

“We feel we have the secret sauce when it comes to opening these offices and setting people up for success,” Altman said. “We know the size we want to be. We know it works. We did it in Orange County and we’re one of the top teams in Orange County in less than a year. We’re gonna do the same thing in Arizona.”

Together, Grigg and The Altman Brothers have a combined experience of over 20 years and $8.3 billion in career sales.

Grigg, who had been with Realty Executives for 14 years, said that agency has been great to work with.

“This is such a unique opportunity that doesn’t come around very often that we wanted to go down this road and do something very unique,” said Grigg, who added that his entire team is included in the new partnership.

Grigg is the exclusive agent for Scottsdale-based Cullum Homes. He said the luxury homebuilder will benefit from Altman Brothers’ global reach. Rod Cullum, president of Cullum Homes, said Grigg and his team have done a fantastic job in selling his homes since 2010 and noted that the new partnership will “give us a more global exposure and a real advantage in exposing Cullum Homes to the California market.”

“We believe the buyer profile and the high quality of buyers and homes that the Altman team represent match the Cullum Homes commitment to quality that we have devoted ourselves to for the past 38 years,” Cullum said.

Plans call for filming a “Million Dollar Listing” episode locally to feature Cullum’s development at The Phoenician, Grigg said.

Cullum’s Ascent at The Phoenician development is incredible, Altman said.

“I think those are the new frontier of what you’re going to see a lot of,” Altman said. “That was one of the driving forces of us coming into the Scottsdale area — the fact that a lot of these hotel residences are now popping up. These are all second, third, fourth buyers. Our reach is perfect for those. What better lock-and-leave situation where you have everything at your doorstep? You feel like you’re on vacation. You get the best of your own place but also hotel amenities.”

Altman said that while he doesn’t plan to move here full-time anytime soon, he and his wife, Heather, are looking to buy a functional home here for their family.

“At this point in our life, it’s less about the sexy modern,” he said. “I love those houses with the views. We have looked at a few up on Camelback with incredible views. For us, we’ve got the young kids now. Lexie is 6 and Ace is 4. We’ve changed our style. It’s more about the functional home feeling traditional type houses. There’s not a lot of them in that area, but we’ll find the right one.”

Altman said his brother Matt was one of the leading factors of opening in Arizona.

“He’s gonna be extremely involved in day-to-day operations,” Altman said. “Matt and I are partners on everything in life. What’s mine is his.”

This expansion into Phoenix isn’t to sell a few houses, he said.

“We’re coming to this market to be the No. 1 team, hands down,” Altman said. “We will accomplish that in the next 24 months. People thought I was ambitious when I said we were expanding to Orange County.”