Compass To Open Fourth Hamptons Office, Nabs Top Broker

Compass, a technology-driven real estate platform, soon will open its fourth Hamptons storefront, just a week after announcing it would acquire Strough Real Estate in Sag Harbor.

The new 3,900-square-foot space is located at 30 Nugent Street in Southampton Village and is expected to be open at the end of the first quarter.

Compass launched its first Hamptons location last October in Bridgehampton under the leadership of Ed Reale, who is serving as the company’s regional vice president. About a month later, Compass announced plans to open a second office in East Hampton, which is expected to be open in the middle of the first quarter.

In addition to adding more offices, the company has also nabbed local luxury broker Jonathan Davis, who jumped from Corcoran, where he worked alongside his father, the high-grossing Hamptons producer Tim Davis.

“I am thrilled to join a dynamic company like Compass at this point in my career. Their national network of exceptional agents, technology and tremendous in-house support will help to grow my business,” Mr. Davis said in a press release.

When Compass first broke into the Hamptons market, it was not without controversy. After Mr. Reale left Brown Harris Stevens to join Compass last November, BHS sued him, alleging Mr. Reale had violated a non-compete agreement. The suit also accuses the young real estate firm of “unlawfully ‘poaching’ competitors’ employees.”

Then, in December, Saunders & Associates issued a temporary restraining order against Compass, accusing former Saunders employee Meg Salem and her team of stealing more than 11,000 listings when they left to join Compass.

Compass denied knowing that the listings were from Saunders’s internal database and said it returned the data—although Saunders countered that the returned material was only a fraction of what was stolen. Compass also fired Ms. Salem and recently filed a motion to have the case dismissed.

Despite the litigation, Compass has not been slowed down, having increased its sales volume in exclusive listings, which it reports now tops $1.4 billion.