It's official: Grand Union is a brokerage now
The short version
Grand Union Real Estate now operates as an independent brokerage, licensed in Oregon and Washington. Same three agents. Same phone numbers. Same MLS.
What changed is where the money goes. Our agents keep their commissions, and a percentage of our revenue goes to our two community partners, Proud Ground and Friends of Outdoor School.
Who's here
Tyler Koski, Founder & Principal Broker. 13 years.
Michael Harris, Co-Founder & Broker.
Janikka Byman, Managing & Designated Broker. 22 years.
Why our own brokerage: the money goes two places
At most brokerages, a cut of every commission goes up the chain to a national chain. Not here.
To our agents. Their commissions are theirs, not ours.
To the community. A percentage of our revenue goes to Proud Ground and Friends of Outdoor School.
Tyler grew up in Southeast Portland and built his career around housing, public programs, nonprofits and land trusts. If a place invests in you, you owe it something back. That's why we started our own.
Where the checks go
Proud Ground
A community land trust that helps income-qualified first-time buyers in the Portland area buy homes, then keeps those homes affordable for the next buyer too. Tyler spent eight years on its staff.
Friends of Outdoor School
Outdoor School is a week of hands-on science outdoors for Oregon's fifth and sixth graders. Friends of Outdoor School helped pass Measure 99 in 2016 to fund it statewide, and still fights to keep it funded. Tyler went as a sixth grader and came back as a field instructor.
How we pay our brokers
A flat fee, not a split.
Agents pay a flat $700 a month and $200 a closing, whatever the sale price. No commission split.
We're expanding. If you know an agent who'd want to work this way, send them to agents.grandunionre.com.
What you'll get from us
Two emails a month. On the Block on the 1st: one argument about Portland housing, with the numbers behind it. The Street Sheet on the 15th: median recorded sale price, price per square foot and number of sales from Multnomah County records, neighborhood by neighborhood.
Our neighborhood guide is live: what homes sell for, how fast prices are moving, and what's worth knowing before you buy or sell.
Talk to us
Michael Harris, Co-Founder & Broker: michael@grandunionre.com · (503) 957-0023
Tyler Koski, Founder & Principal Broker: tyler@grandunionre.com · (503) 806-6114
Janikka Byman, Managing & Designated Broker: janikkabyman@gmail.com · (503) 501-8567
See you on the block, Tyler, Michael & Janikka
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