One of Monmouth County’s premier concierge businesses, built on a people-first philosophy, expands its roster of white-glove services.

BY ERIK SCHONING • PHOTOS BY ALEX BARRETO

When you first speak with Kerry O’Brien of O’Brien Realty, what stands out immediately is her unmistakable positivity. An avid journaler and dedicated student of self-improvement, O’Brien has built her business on a simple yet powerful belief: relationships are everything. Today, as her company expands into a full-scale coastal concierge ecosystem, it’s clear she understood that from the very beginning.
O’Brien came to realty by an indirect route. A former writer and producer for HBO and Showtime, she had always been told she would make a natural salesperson. One day, O’Brien and her life partner, Tammy, decided to take the leap and launch what would become O’Brien Realty, a self-described “mom-and-mom” shop, setting sail in the choppy wake of the 2008 financial crisis.
“I was able to form great relationships with people, which created a huge network,” O’Brien said. “We became matchmakers for people looking for homes or rentals. This was at a time when a lot of things were crashing; I was able to help a lot of people, at a time when they really needed it.”

The company launched in Monmouth Beach, where O’Brien was born and raised. (Her mother was the original town historian in Monmouth Beach, and her great-great grandmother summered there.) Drawing on Tammy’s extensive experience in the financial industry and Kerry’s people skills, the company grew quickly. As their client portfolio grew, so did the demand for trusted referrals and connections – a new homeowner seeking a gardener, a mover, a local expert. Over time, it became clear the company could be more than a successful realty firm; it could evolve into a fully integrated ecosystem. Today, that includes O’Brien Title, O’Brien Moving Co., O’Brien Referral Group, O’Brien Concierge, and the latest addition, O’Brien On Location.

“A lot of the companies came about from necessity,” O’Brien said. “I had referred a client to a title company that then screwed up and put the seller in jeopardy. I had two single women come to me within a two-week period and tell me they were financially taken advantage of by movers. And I was like, OK, we have to make sure it’s done the right way. So we decided to just do it ourselves.”
O’Brien Realty remains the self-described mothership, the hub around which all the other businesses rotate. When a client buys or sells a house, they sign on for a lasting relationship with the O’Brien team, one that extends throughout the transaction process into everyday necessities. With O’Brien Concierge, clients can seamlessly access luxury home management and personalized concierge services that range from holiday decorating to event staffing, housekeeping, kitchen stocking, and lists of trusted vendors for all kinds of maintenance needs. (With so many seasonal homes in Monmouth County, these Concierge services have been in especially high demand.) Thanks to O’Brien’s deep-rooted ties to the area, many of the tradespeople she connects clients with are former classmates, neighbors, or family friends – relationships that bring a built-in level of trust to the entire process.

O’Brien On Location, the latest branch of the tree, serves as a matchmaking service between property owners and TV and film production companies. It’s been a meaningful addition for O’Brien, a bridge between her present and past careers. More importantly, it’s been a hit.

“I was getting calls from location scouts and managers who were looking at my listings,” O’Brien said. “It’s always been an aspiration of mine. We match properties with scouts, and we negotiate the contract, the permits, and the insurance, and then we represent the property owner on the ground. It’s a real full-circle moment for me.”
Today, the small business launched by Tammy and Kerry O’Brien has become something so much more: it is, in the truest sense, a community. From the agents on the realty side to the movers who show up at your door, everyone in the O’Brien ecosystem is fully invested in their above-and-beyond mantra.
“We’re surrounding ourselves with great employees who are local and homegrown and care about the community just as much as we do,” O’Brien said. “They live here. They raise their kids here. We are a part of the community, and that’s how we stand out as the go-to brand for everything Monmouth County.”
These days, the O’Briens have one eye on the future, as their daughters Tatum and Tiernan prepare for college, with plans to eventually return home to get involved in the business themselves. In a homegrown family enterprise, that’s a particular point of pride.

“It’s cool to see that we can create a generational business that our children can thrive in, and hopefully their children, too,” O’Brien said. “That’s what I put in my journal every day: to create generational wealth and continue the integrity of the business. That means everything to me.”

O’Brien Realty, O’Brien Concierge Co., O’Brien Moving Co., O’Brien On Location, O’Brien Title
obrienrealtyllc.com • obrienconcierge.com • obrienmovingco.com • obrienonlocation.com • obrientitle.com