MIAMI — Katherine Kallergis is the Miami bureau chief at trade publication The Real Deal.
She broke the story of the Alexander brothers, prominently known in the South Florida and New York City real estate scenes, alongside Sheridan Wall, in June of 2024.
On Monday, twin brothers Oren and Alon Alexander, 38, along with their older brother Tal Alexander, 39, were convicted of sex trafficking.
“The case of the Alexander brothers sent media shockwaves through the industry in South Florida,” Kallergis said.
She spoke recently about the impact the convictions of the brothers will have on the South Florida real estate market.
“They brokered deals to the 1% of people, they were involved in some of the splashiest, record sales from Miami Beach to Indian Creek, so people knew them,” she said. “They lived the lifestyle of their clients. A lot of people followed them, followed their deals and their activities, so it was just a huge deal when they fell out of the market, and when they were arrested and taken into custody, that opened up opportunities for other agents to come in and absorb that business.”
As Kallergis explained, from the time of their arrest to Monday’s conviction in New York, many in the real estate industry were keeping close tabs on the Alexander brothers’ case.
“While the trial has been going on, top brokers and executives from South Florida have been tuned in there,” she said. “They’ve been following the daily coverage of the trial. They’ve been captured by it and waiting to see what the outcome would be.”
Additionally, she said that there are more potential victims out there who are starting to come forward.
“A lot of people have reached out and said that people in their office were allegedly assaulted by one or more of the brothers,” Kallergis said. “They have their own stories to tell. So that’s what’s been playing out during the trial.”
She said that it will be interesting to see how the South Florida real estate industry will move forward now that there will potentially be hundreds of millions of dollars in sales that will be able to go to other agents.
“When somebody like that is no longer in the market, their competitors step in and absorb that business,” said Kallergis. “They pick up their clients, they handle deals that one of the brothers would have been involved in had they not been arrested in federal custody. So it resulted in other top agents picking up their clients and their business and their listings.”
Ultimately, there is hope that the arrest and conviction of the Alexander brothers brings upon some positive changes after bringing attention to some dark corners of the trade.
“I think that this helped shine a light on bad behavior in the industry,” said Kallergis. “I think that there are agents who felt like they couldn’t speak up because they weren’t in a position of power and they were vulnerable, so I think it sends a message that this behavior, which went on for so long, may not be tolerated. I think it forces agents and people in positions of power, of people who are highly ranked, to take a more serious look at any sort of allegations of bad behavior.”
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