“I truly believe in the area (Doral). I’ve seen it grow, I’ve been here practically the entire time, and I want to stay here and watch it continue to develop. My company is here and has grown with Doral and I know it will grow further. The quality of life here is bar-none—the diversity of shopping, of recreation, of the outstanding people that live here, etc. It all adds up to a place that is truly international, unequaled anywhere else,” says President Ernie Anton of Century 21 Doral Stars.

(Left to Right) President Ernie Anton, Lily Castro, and Vice President Robert Villañi of Century 21 Doral Stars. 

Anton speaks about Doral with conviction and sincerity—his life has been intertwined with that of the Doral community for over a decade, and it is clear he cares deeply for it.

He lives in Doral Isles and lived in Doral Park before that. All in all, he’s lived in Doral for more than ten years.

His two real estate offices, the Century 21 and his ERA ELK Realty, are both in Doral. And before that, he sold home for Lennar in Doral.

And the people he hires to work for Century 21 and ERA, for the most part, live in Doral as well, because he recognizes what an asset it is to have people on staff that understand how unique the Doral community is.

“People come to us because we live in the area, and they trust us; we’re their neighbors. They see that we ourselves believe in the area, and have for some time now. Lots of people are trying to jump into this area, but we’ve been here for years, and we understand things about the area that they just don’t grasp. We know where it’s been and where it’s going,” he said.

Anton has built Century 21 Doral Stars into a powerhouse in less than a year for almost exclusively those reasons.

Since taking over, he’s doubled the amount of realtors on staff, from 15 to 30, yet managed not to lose quality along the way.

The amount of sales they’ve done has surged to $30 million, and they’ve risen to second in both the number of units sold and the volume (in terms of money paid) of those sales.

Who’s in first place? Anton’s ERA Office, which he’s owned since 1993.

“While we do have independent staffs at the two offices, they are kissing cousins, undoubtedly. This business is service oriented, and everyone has the same basic tools. What separates us, besides our familiarity with the area and the cross-referencing we can do between offices, is that we can handle everything for you in-house, whether it’s mortgages or whatever else you might need. And our staff, being affiliated with Century 21, has the best training and highest technology at their disposal in the industry. You don’t have to worry about the little stuff with us—we’re equipped and prepared to help you,” Anton said.

And they are recognized worldwide as a leader in Doral and South Florida in general. CNN Text, which is in some 250 million homes in Europe, recognizes them as one of the companies to do business with in South Florida. They are also highly regarded in South America and the Caribbean, and do a great deal of second home and relocation work with clients from there.

He moved to Doral a year after marrying his wife Lissette, the Administrator of Miami Brito School, and has two children, Keith, 8, and Kurk, 4.

Anton also teaches a psychology class daily at Miami Brito—he got his degree from FIU, but gravitated towards his father’s business: real estate.

Anton sees a connection between the two.

“I love teaching people, helping people. I believe that if you help people, it comes back to you,” he said.

Not surprisingly, Anton takes a similar attitude when it comes to charity—helping out whenever he is offered the opportunity—but Anton doesn’t like to talk about it.

“We don’t like to talk about that sort of thing. I don’t want to cheapen the idea of giving—my father taught me to give without the expectation of getting. We help people because they need it, not for exposure,” Anton explained.

If you want to contact Century 21 about residential, development, or commercial sales, property management, or any other questions you might have, call 305 599 2121. Although they specialize in Doral, they have listings throughout Kendall and the rest of Dade, including the beaches, as well as Broward.