With roots in the hotel industry that prompted relocation across Mexico to cities like Acapulco, Guadalajara, Cancún, and Mexico City, house hunting became a family affair and eventual profession for mother and daughter global real estate advisors Leticia Urbina and Alina Echeverria. Both are affiliated with Sotheby’s International Realty. Alina with Realogics Sotheby’s International Realty in Bellevue, Washington, and Leticia with Mexico Sotheby’s International Realty in Mexico City.
Growing up, Alina spent days touring homes after school with Leticia and her brother imagining and planning what their lives could look like in each location. Alina explains, “We did this so many times, and we are still doing it,” albeit now they are touring and planning with their real estate clients. During these early years, Leticia’s natural instincts worked to her advantage. She updated and remodeled their homes and made improvements to increase their value before relocating to their next destination. And while Leticia and her husband weren’t investing intentionally, they understood the benefits of buying and selling real estate and how to generate a quick return on investment in the process. Leticia also worked in real estate adjacent industries including time shares sales where she helped her clients with buying vacation homes in Mexico.
The transition from shared vacation ownership to residential real estate was organic for Leticia in that she knew the questions to ask her clients and could support them in finding homes because she and her family had done it multiple times themselves. Eventually, Leticia moved to Mexico Sotheby’s International Realty. There she was certified (Sotheby’s requires a certification of their affiliated agents in Mexico since agents aren’t required to hold a license there), to assist local clients with buying and selling, and serving clients referred from agents across the Sotheby’s International Realty’s Global Referral Network.
Alina’s path to real estate and Sotheby’s International Realty was initially born from her passion for art. She was accepted to the Sotheby’s Institute of Art in New York, but life led her in a different direction when she moved to Seattle with her husband for work via Amazon. She also had a built-in instinct for real estate with years of family relocation and living first-hand what the buying and selling process looked like. For Alina, Sotheby’s was without question the real estate brand that made the most sense for her after she passed her real estate exams and had her feet in the industry for a while.
Living on Seattle’s Eastside with an inside view of what’s happening at Amazon, Alina sees repeated relocation patterns in tech workers who are moving to and from Seattle for work in the tech industries in locations such as Austin and Washington DC, which will inevitably create opportunities for her in the U.S. and potentially abroad.
With eight years collectively between them, Leticia and Alina work via the Sotheby’s International Realty Global Referral Network to serve their clients in the U.S., Mexico and beyond. Leticia has worked with American buyers seeking vacation properties in and around Mexico City and has referred clients to Mexican affiliates at Rivera Maya Sotheby’s International Realty in Cancún. She has built her business over the years by word of mouth and by working with her Mexico City Sotheby’s International Realty office to serve buyers from around the world. Alina too has leveraged the network to assist clients in Mexico and Brazil. Both understand the value of having each other in their respective markets and have started to refer to one another. They are looking forward to leveraging the network to serve their clients even more in the future.
Alina can assist American buyers seeking vacation homes and remote workers who are moving to trendy cities in Mexico by referring to Leticia. “Many remote workers have bought in cities like Cancún, Mexico City, and Tulum because they can work from anywhere,” says Leticia. With referral teams in both locations, the referral experience for both clients and advisors is made simpler from end to end.
Sotheby’s International Realty’s global reach has played a part in elevating both Leticia and Alina’s businesses. The two were drawn to the brand because they wanted to align themselves with a Real Estate company known for its international presence, trusted legacy, and exceptional service.
Alina and Leticia plan to expand their business by working together to build a referral pipeline between them, offering concierge real estate services to their clients moving from one location to the next. Additionally, Leticia and Alina both have relationships with agents throughout Mexico and are an excellent resource to clients interested in buying and selling there.
View properties in Mexico City and in the Seattle area. If you have questions about referrals, contact for more information.