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@properties Christie's International Real Estate
@properties was co-founded in 2000 by Thad Wong and Mike Golden, two agents who left a large franchise to build an independent Chicago brokerage.
@properties Christie's International Real Estate
@properties was co-founded in 2000 by Thad Wong and Mike Golden, two agents who left a large franchise to build an independent Chicago brokerage. Their timing caught the city's condo-conversion wave, and the firm scaled through the early-2000s housing boom by acquiring smaller local players. In 2021, @properties acquired Christie's International Real Estate, gaining a global luxury brand and an international referral network that spans nearly 50 countries. The firm's investment activity runs through a principal-investing arm alongside its brokerage operations. @properties has allocated capital into proptech startups, residential mortgage ventures, and title-services businesses — notably the development of its own proprietary CRM and transaction-management platform, pl@tform. The firm operates across the residential spectrum, from first-time buyer divisions to a luxury-focused arm under the Christie's brand. Key markets include Chicago, Milwaukee, southwest Michigan, and northwest Indiana. It does not raise third-party funds, and its investment capital is understood to come from founder equity and retained brokerage earnings. As of early 2025, the firm contained more than 2,600 licensed agents across over 40 offices. In December 2024, @properties and Compass settled litigation in which Compass had alleged former agents took proprietary data; the confidential resolution removed a significant legal overhang. The company has not disclosed AUM or a total deployment figure, and no outside institutional capital is known to be involved in its investment activities. Its adjacent structures include a mortgage joint venture, Proper Rate, and a title-services company, @properties Title. What distinguishes @properties from most brokerage-backed investment offices is its vertical control: the firm owns its core technology stack, its title operation, and its luxury brand via an acquired international network. Unlike a pure family office, the wealth originates from an active operating company whose principals still run day-to-day brokerage strategy while making principal investments from the same entity — blending an operator mindset with a family-office investment function under one roof.
General information
Firm type
Family Office
Year founded
2000
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Chicago
Corporate office
Chicago, IL, United States
Additional offices
Michigan, United States · Indiana, United States · Wisconsin, United States
Principals
Thad Wong
Co-Chief Executive Officer
Mike Golden
Co-Chief Executive Officer
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at @properties Christie's International Real Estate?
Investment decisions are made by co-founders Thad Wong and Mike Golden, who remain the firm's sole owners. There is no external investment committee or outside limited partners. Principal investments in proptech, mortgage ventures, and residential development are funded directly from the firm's balance sheet and personal founder capital.
Is @properties structured as a family office or a real estate brokerage?
It is a privately held brokerage company that behaves like a hybrid — co-founders Wong and Golden operate a large revenue-generating services business while making principal investments from the same entity. The firm does not manage outside family capital, but its investment activity mirrors a single-family office built atop an operating company. No entity separation exists between the brokerage P&L and the principal-investing function.
How does the Christie's International Real Estate acquisition change the firm's investment posture?
The 2021 acquisition gave @properties ownership of a luxury brand with international referral relationships in roughly 50 countries. For the investment side, this opens sourcing pathways into high-end residential development and luxury-market assets globally, but the firm has not yet disclosed cross-border principal investments directly tied to the Christie's network. The deal was structured as a purchase of the network brand and franchise rights, not an auction-house integration (per the firm, 2021).
Does @properties invest in outside funds or only direct deals?
The firm concentrates on direct principal investments, primarily in residential development projects, proptech startups, and adjacent services like mortgage and title companies. There is no public evidence that Wong and Golden commit capital to third-party real estate funds or act as limited partners in outside vehicles. Their model is hands-on: they build or buy what they understand from running a large brokerage.
What is the firm's known posture on geographic expansion?
The core footprint covers Chicago, its suburbs, Milwaukee, southwest Michigan, and northwest Indiana. Through the Christie's acquisition the firm holds a global brand asset, but its brokerage and principal-investing activity remains concentrated in the Midwest. Expansion has historically come through acquiring regional independent brokerages rather than de novo branch openings.
Where does the underlying wealth come from?
The wealth traces to two decades of brokerage revenue from residential real estate sales, mortgage referrals, and title services. @properties closed over $20 billion in annual sales volume at peak, generating commission income that funded both organic expansion and the Christie's acquisition. The founders have not taken outside institutional capital, retaining 100% ownership.
Does the firm maintain any philanthropic or separate investment structures?
There is no publicly disclosed family foundation or donor-advised fund directly linked to the firm's principals. The company operates a charitable arm, @properties Cares, which functions as a corporate giving program rather than a separated family office foundation. Principal investments flow through the main operating entity without a distinct family office entity disclosure.
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