AARE History - Experienced Realtors

AARE was founded by Andrew Arroyo. Arroyo started his career as a real estate appraiser's assistant in 1996. His passion to value properties precisely never died and lives on today as he is involved in any decision regarding the price of a home for sale at his firm. By 1999, Arroyo held a real estate sales license and a real estate appraisal license and started making the transition from appraisals to sales in North San Diego County. He then joined North County real estate icon Kevin Underdahl with Re/MaxBuena Vista and was appointed sales leader of the buyer's agent team.

"In 1999 and 2000, Andrew was essential in leading my buyer's agent's team at Re/Max Buena Vista. During this time alone, our successful sales exceeded $100 million, closing more than 450 transactions. Prior to my real estate career, I was a teacher for 20 years. If I had to grade Andrew as an individual, and his performance as an agent and a broker, he would certainly receive an A+." - Kevin Underdahl

After being a part of over 450 transactions, Mr. Underdahl retired and Arroyo decided to take a break, travel the world, get his broker’s license and move down the San Diego coastline to ‘sell the big stuff.’

Off To The Coast – ‘To Sell The Big Stuff’

In early 2001, Arroyo took a leap of faith when he left his established book of business in North San Diego County and moved to Del Mar.

“The timing couldn’t have been worse. The stock market was crashing from the tech bubble then 9/11 hit later that year. The first 24 months was like starting my career all over again, many people (including myself) were wondering if I made just made a million dollar mistake walking away from my business in North County, but thankfully the gamble paid off a couple years later,” says Arroyo.

Arroyo sold his first home over $5,000,000 at age 23 in 2003. At the time, this was the highest sale ever on record for a home sold in Encinitas, CA. One year later he sold another home in Rancho Santa Fe, CA for over $10,000,000. In 2004, at the youthful age of 24 he was selected by Realtor Magazine for their 30 under 30 award.

By 2005, Arroyo had been a part of more than 500 transactions acting as an agent, broker, team leader and sales trainer. He worked for the most reputable real estate firms at the time in San Diego including Prudential, Re/Max and Realty Executives. He trained 15 agents who continue to practice real estate today as successful sales professionals.

Arroyo Goes Hollywood

“One weekend in the spring of 2003, a childhood friend of mine who was working at the William Morris Agency invited me up to Hollywood to show me around town. I stopped at a couple open houses to just check them out and on the spot decided to buy a home in the Hollywood Hills. I was surrounded by movie stars…it was quite an adventure. My next door neighbor, Forrest Whitaker, was the coolest guy ever. He and his wife were extremely gracious. They even gave me a bronze yoga statue for my front lawn as a home warming gift. Five years later, when it came time to sell the home I conveniently timed the listing period when Forrest won the Oscar for The Last King of Scotland. The home closed escrow just a few weeks later... L.A. is such an interesting market. The latest buzz sells everything.”

Arroyo’s adventures in Hollywood continue still today. He no longer frequents the streets of Hollywood Hills but is actively engaged on skid row with the Los Angeles Dream Center, an outreach that helps the homeless. He also serves on the board of the San Diego Dream Center, which is a smaller version of the LA Dream Center with a similar mission to help those down and out in San Diego.

Top of The Bubble – Oct. 2006

By 2005 several of Arroyo’s clients were becoming independently wealthy from their real estate holdings. He had advised them to purchase homes during the tech crash and in the midst of 9/11 even though the stock market was plunging. His thesis was that lower interest rates would encourage higher prices and the investments paid off handsomely just a few years later. 

In late 2005 and early 2006 Arroyo started selling his personal real estate assets and suggesting to his clients to do the same.

“Some listened, some did not. Thankfully, we were able to get almost everyone out of their investments by the end of 2007 before the market tanked. Less than a handful of my clients took a hit from the hundreds of home we sold. I was very pleased with this but my goal next cycle is to have 100% of my clients on the sidelines before the market crashes, not just 95% of them""says Arroyo.

AARE Becomes Official – Inception of The Current Team

Arroyo incorporated his practice in 2003 and launched his most recent team of agents shortly after the bubble crash in 2006. Teams can be formed in the most atypical situations and in some of the most unsuspecting moments. A decision amidst the controlled chaos on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange marked the beginning of the current team’s formation. 

For years, many people had been encouraging Arroyo to launch a Real Estate company of his own. After turning down a handful of offers and opportunities to take control of and direct other companies he decided to start fresh and establish a company of his own. With years of experience under his belt and the drive to succeed propelling him forward, he began the process of selecting a team that would represent, fulfill, and surpass every necessity, request, and desire of a client. He knew that the process of selecting the group of individuals that would carry and ensure the success of this company was the key building block to a foundation that would endure through the years.

With over 15,000 agents licensed in San Diego County it was important that the people who made up the foundation of his team stood above the rest. Part of what makes this team unique is the way they all came to work together, and the different talents and backgrounds each bring to the table. Nik Mazzola, who in 2001 interned at a music studio previously owned by Arroyo, re-connected with him in the spring of 2006 after obtaining his real estate license and joined the team. Through a chance meeting Nicole Mazzola (unrelated to Nik) and Arroyo were introduced by Megan Mazzola (now Megan Arroyo). Andrew and Megan (Nicole’s sister) fell in love and got married but that’s another story!

Nicole who had been working alongside her father, a well-establish commercial real estate broker in San Diego, had been looking into entering into the residential real estate was a fit from the start. She was soon followed by Matt Mueller who brought with him years of experience and his network of investment clientele that he had established in his years of commercial real estate as a vice president with Coldwell Banker. With Arroyo’s background in recruitment and residential sales the core of the team had been established and the initial goal achieved. It was not an option for Arroyo to have any semblance of doubt that the people representing this company would on all levels exceed every expectation of not only their clients, but of themselves as well.

Surviving the Recession & Growing Pains

The first hundred homes sold by the current AARE team came at a time when most agents were getting out of the business due to the housing crisis of 2008. “I knew if I could train the agents to make sales during the crisis of 2008 and 2009, they would really excel when the market recovered,” says Arroyo. By 2010 the team had expanded from the original four members to a team of twelve agents and additional staff. The team was now capable of servicing home buyers, sellers, banks and private investment funds. At the end of 2011 three additional office locations were opened to facilitate the expanding clientele across San Diego County.

AARE’s Growing Sister Company - Andrew Arroyo Investments

The bubble experience encouraged Arroyo to obtain the necessary licenses for financial advising and to launch a sister company, Andrew Arroyo Investments (AAI). AAI was established to help manage his client’s stock, commodity and real estate portfolios.

“After the last crash and roller coaster since then most of my clients just asked that I handle their investments from start to finish rather than hassling with tenants and trying to time the market. It works out much better this way for everyone involved,” says Arroyo.

His investment firm is regulated by the SEC (Securities & Exchange Commission), state of California and the NFA (National Futures Association). The firm specializes in financial advising for all asset classes of investments including: real estate, stocks, futures, commodities, currencies, bonds and options. The financial advisors at his firm primarily work with individual and company retirement accounts, (IRAs, SEPs, 401K).

Life at AARE Today

Today AARE is robust with activity with agents and managers being added continually to each office location throughout the county. Experienced San Diego Realtors like Robert Sizer, Jason Riehl and Jennifer Davidson have joined the AARE team as it continues to expand. AARE Clients are actively buying, selling and investing with the firm on a regular basis. You can follow the AARE team on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and read their most recent blog posts to stay on top of the latest news at AARE.

The San Diego Business Journal’s recently endorsed AARE as one of the fastest growing companies in San Diego and featured it as one of the top 12 residential real estate agencies in San Diego.