Whenever the subject of San Diego luxury Real Estate comes up, Brian Guiltinan's name will likely follow. After all, the San Diego native has been involved with some of the most expensive sales ever to occur in the County. Now, as the first known Real Estate advisor specializing in properties valued in excess of $20 million, Mr. Guiltinan is the first person wealthy Southern Californians call when buying or selling high-end properties in San Diego.
For the past two-decades, Mr. Guiltinan has forged an amazing career in luxury Real Estate. Beginning in 1995, he experienced some early struggles, and even considered abandoning Real Estate. At that point Mr. Guiltinan began to reevaluate his career, and concluded that the areas he wanted to target were Rancho Santa Fe and Del Mar (two of the most affluent neighborhoods in San Diego), along with other high-end coastal areas. He received cautionary advice from other agents to stay out of these markets.
"People told me that I was too young to sell Real Estate in these markets, and that it was simply too exclusive an area to be successful," he said. Undeterred, he set about in a fervor, with a single-minded goal of being the most successful agent.
Using his networking skills, and strong connections to the community, Mr. Guiltinan soon befriended many community residents and businesspeople. "The Real Estate business is about relationships, and I knew I would be successful if I could obtain lasting friendships with successful people in Rancho Santa Fe and Del Mar area," he said. These relationships soon paid off, as he became one of the top agents in both of these communities. The coup d'etat came in 2000, when he sold a home for $22 million in Rancho Santa Fe. At the time, the sale was the most expensive in San Diego's history.
Eventually, Mr. Guiltinan decided he needed ultimate control over his career. In 2004, he formed The Guiltinan Group to encapsulate all of his ideas about properly running a Real Estate brokerage. With several creative marketing strategies, The Guiltinan Group quickly became a household name in San Diego. Mr. Guiltinan's own success as a Real Estate agent, though, did not stop. Although his primary duties included recruiting agents and supervising marketing, he occasionally assisted clients in high-end Real Estate. This "dabbling" proved quite prosperous, as Mr. Guiltinan had the highest sale in La Jolla in 2005, a $23.5 million property.
This did not go unnoticed. Steve Games, President of Prudential California Realty, an affiliate of Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway, soon noted the upstart Guiltinan Group. Berkshire Hathaway was, and continues to be, the leader in residential real estate in San Diego. Mr. Games soon began to speak to Mr. Guiltinan about the possibility of Berkshire Hathaway and The Guiltinan Group joining forces.
The relationship culminated with Berkshire purchasing The Guiltinan Group in January of 2006. Throughout the sale, Mr. Guiltinan stuck to the principles that have made him successful. "I knew that I would only sell my company to someone with the same vision as myself, someone who was committed to creating the ultimate luxury Real Estate company. As it turns out, I couldn't imagine doing this with anyone other than Steve Games."
Berkshire Hathaway Realty also had another advantage for Mr. Guiltinan. The company has offices throughout Southern California, which Mr. Guiltinan knew would give him greater exposure and even greater opportunities with affluent clientele. Infusing his excellent ideas with Berkshire reputation is proving to be a winning combination. As President of the Estates Division, Berkshire's luxury homes division, Mr. Guiltinan has been instrumental in implementing new ideas to help Berkshire Hathaway solidify its status as San Diego's leader in luxury Real Estate.
In 2007 Mr. Guiltinan's new services geared towards catering to $20 million plus property listings. " The $20 million plus property is a different animal and requires a different skill set, " said Mr. Guiltinan. "The marketing must ensure maximum exposure to wealthy buyers, and the whole process must be overseen by someone with the experience necessary to coordinate all the moving parts. I see myself as a real estate advisor, not an agent, and as such, I coordinate everything from hiring professionals to stage the property to increase its attractiveness to hiring the best team of inspectors possible who have years of experience working with luxury properties." There is no doubt that the owners and potential buyers of these properties have a great resource in Mr. Guiltinan.
Indeed, one would be hard pressed to find an agent with more experience than Mr. Guiltinan in working with such estates. Mr. Guiltinan was rewarded with a County record breaking sale for $48.5 million in Del Mar.
In 2010 Mr. Guiltinan purchased back The Guiltinan Group from Berkshire Hathaway, and has spent the past 5 years helping a client get a tentative map (TM) on a 7-acre ocean front property in Del Mar. Mr. Guiltinan was successful on getting six 1-acre lots approved from the City of Del Mar and the Coastal Commission in 2015.
Mr. Guiltinan is married to his beautiful wife Hallie for 16 years, they have three children Conor, 15, Parker, 10, and their daughter Hope, 6. They live in Rancho Santa Fe, and both are very involved with community events, as well as the kids' school and sports.
