Zia
Zia is a Santa Barbara-based luxury real estate team under eXp Realty, founded in 2006 by Daniel Zia, serving high-net-worth buyers and sellers in Santa Barbara and Montecito with residential, commercial, development, and specialty transaction programs.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersSanta Barbara, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Zia does
Zia is a Santa Barbara-based residential real estate sales team operating under the eXp Realty brokerage (DRE # 01878277), founded in 2006 by Daniel Zia. The firm serves high-net-worth home buyers and sellers in the Santa Barbara and Montecito luxury market through a specialized team model that separates buyer's agents, listing agents, and administrative support. Over an 18-year operating history, Zia reports approximately $1.5 billion in cumulative local sales volume and roughly 1,100 homes sold.
The company has expanded well beyond traditional brokerage. Its product surface now includes Cash Offer and Home Trade-In programs, an off-market listings database of more than 150 properties, a Sports & Entertainment Division, a Commercial Real Estate Services line led by Alan Siebenaler, and a Real Estate Development Services arm with branded projects including Oak Terrace and The Woods. Internationally, Zia markets listings through 90+ web platforms and maintains a direct mail database of more than 30,000 contacts. The firm holds the "#1 most reviewed" real estate team designation in its market and ranks on Real Trends.
The business model is primarily commission-based, deriving gross commission income from residential and increasingly commercial real estate transactions, supplemented by developer margin on in-house development projects. Zia is privately held, founder-owned, with no disclosed outside funding and 11–50 employees. The supporting material contains no evidence of proprietary technology systems or AI/ML capabilities; the technology stack described is standard real estate marketing infrastructure (web syndication, direct mail database, off-market inventory database) rather than a differentiated platform.
Zia firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Zia
- Legal name
- Zia Group
- Website
- https://ziagroup.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Zia is a Santa Barbara-based luxury real estate team under eXp Realty, founded in 2006 by Daniel Zia, serving high-net-worth buyers and sellers in Santa Barbara and Montecito with residential, commercial, development, and specialty transaction programs.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Zia industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Residential Real Estate Brokerage
- NAICS
- Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (5312), Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (53121)
- SIC
- Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531), Real Estate Dealers (For Their Own Account) (6532)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Real Estate Buyer Representation (FSAEAJAG)
Keywords
Where Zia is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Santa Barbara
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Zia business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Real Estate Commission: Zia Group earns commissions on residential real estate transactions, typically a percentage of the sale price. As an eXp Realty affiliated team, they operate under the brokerage's commission structure. They also offer specialized services including real estate development sales, commercial real estate, and home trade-in programs that generate transaction revenue.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
Zia product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Zia Group is a full-service residential real estate team operating under eXp Realty that helps clients buy and sell homes in the Santa Barbara and Montecito luxury markets. Service offerings span buyer representation, listing/seller representation with multi-channel marketing (digital, direct mail, premium print), and specialized programs such as a Home Trade-In (buy-before-sell), Off-Market Listings access, a Cash Offer Program, and Home Value Analysis. The team also provides commercial real estate sales/leasing and real estate development sales and marketing services.
Product overview
Zia Group is a real estate team operating as a unified service offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core offering combines home buying and selling services with specialized programs including the Home Trade-In Program (enabling buy-before-sell transactions), Off-Market Listings (exclusive access to private listings), Home Value Analysis, and the Cash Offer Program. Additional specialized services include Real Estate Development Services for developers, Commercial Real Estate Services for retail/office/industrial properties, and Neighborhood Finder for area exploration. The company also develops branded property communities including Oak Terrace (modern single-family homes in San Roque) and The Woods (luxury estates). The Home Search Portal serves as the primary digital property search tool for customers.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Oak Terrace: Santa Barbara's first all modern-contemporary single family home community featuring 6 homes built on a new cul-de-sac in the San Roque neighborhood.
- Home Trade-In Program
Products and services
- Home Search Portal
- Home Trade-In Program
- Real Estate Development Services
- Commercial Real Estate Services
- Off-Market Listings
- Home Value Analysis
- Cash Offer Program
- Oak Terrace Development
- The Woods Development
Quantifiable outcome
- Homes sell 5% above average market price
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Zia
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Zia technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Zia partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- eXp RealtycoreZia Group operates as a real estate team affiliated with eXp Realty (DRE # 01878277), one of the largest tech-enabled real estate brokerages. This affiliation provides the team with brokerage support, licensing, and access to eXp's platform while maintaining their independent team brand and operations in the Santa Barbara and Montecito markets.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Zia competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks1 record
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Zia social profiles
Digital presenceZia financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Zia leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Zia funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Zia M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Zia
What does Zia do?
Zia Group is a full-service residential real estate team operating under eXp Realty that helps clients buy and sell homes in the Santa Barbara and Montecito luxury markets. Service offerings span buyer representation, listing/seller representation with multi-channel marketing (digital, direct mail, premium print), and specialized programs such as a Home Trade-In (buy-before-sell), Off-Market Listings access, a Cash Offer Program, and Home Value Analysis. The team also provides commercial real estate sales/leasing and real estate development sales and marketing services.
Is Zia a public or private company?
Zia is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Zia founded?
Zia was founded in 2006. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Zia based?
Zia is headquartered in Santa Barbara, United States, in the North America region.
How does Zia make money?
One revenue line is on record: real Estate Commission.
Does Zia have an API?
No public API is recorded for Zia.
What industry is Zia in?
Zia's product category is Residential Real Estate Brokerage. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAEAJAG, Real Estate Buyer Representation. Its NAICS code is 5312 and its SIC code is 6531.