Texas Border Business
McALLEN, Texas – Marcus Phipps, the current Chairman of the Board for Texas REALTORS® and past Chairman for the Harlingen Board of Directors, and Myssie Cardenas-Barajas, a third-generation Texas REALTOR and NAR Director, Texas REALTORS Director, and current member of the esteemed NAR Leadership Academy Class of 2023, have officially joined forces to provide the highest level of integrity, experience, leadership, and geographic competency ever seen in Texas’ southernmost four-county region, serving the entire Rio Grande Valley. Phipps, Owner and managing Broker for Harlingen Homes, will expand his offices and 27 years of real estate experience into the Hidalgo County area, ultimately rebranding the company as Marcus Phipps Real Estate with Myssie Cardenas-Barajas leading the operations in McAllen, TX.
Barajas, who also has a background in economic development, has a deep connection to the real estate industry. She is the granddaughter of S.M. Cardenas, one of the original founding fathers of local RGV real estate, the daughter of Mimi Cardenas, who won Realtor of the Year in 2006, and the niece of Charles Cardenas, CCIM, who was named Realtor of the Year in 1977. Barajas herself was awarded Realtor of the year in 2021 making the Cardenas family the most awarded in the field. She is the founding member and former chairman of the Greater McAllen Association of REALTORS Diversity & Inclusion Committee, a former member of the GMAR Board, and has been appointed as a Director for Texas Realtors, representing the State of Texas as a Director for the National Association of Realtors.
When asked about their partnership and goals, Barajas stated, “My grandfather began his real estate career in 1947 and strategically partnered with Jack Caywood to expand their geographic coverage and enhance their knowledge capacity and expertise. He was a brilliant man, and I’m not about to reinvent the wheel. As soon as I recognized the opportunity, I followed in his footsteps. Marcus and I share similar work ethics and goals, and we hold each other to very high standards of integrity. We both have deep family roots in the Valley and are dedicated to serving our community through professional and volunteer service. When you find like-minded people, you find a way to build a network together to better serve the community. That’s exactly what we did. We aim to blend old-school business ethics and hard work with efficient and effective technology, keeping our agents at the top of their game and providing our clients with the best resources for making informed decisions about their real estate investments.”
Both Phipps and Barajas have served as trainers, instructors, and mentors for large franchise brokerages, overseeing hundreds of agents with varying degrees of experience throughout their careers. They have also been leaders in local, state, and national capacities, successfully and positively influencing the political infrastructure of the region, protecting the rights of current and future property owners, and advocating for more affordable and available housing. However, more importantly, both Phipps and Barajas have a proven track record of representing buyers and sellers in the Valley’s specific niches, including residential, farm & ranch, coastal properties, multi-family, commercial investments, and property management. By combining their expertise in each of these areas within Hidalgo, Starr, Cameron, and Willacy counties, they aim to empower the community and elevate the trajectory of generational wealth and economic growth through real estate investment at the hyper-local level.
The main office will be located at 1617 E Tyler Ave, Suite “H,” Harlingen, TX 78550, and can be reached at (956) 423-5300.
