Ericka Rios, Founder and Director of Leasing
Kati Baker, CEO
As a boutique brokerage owned and led by women, Downtown Apartment Collective (DAC) offers its clients a strong brand identity and white-glove service. Ericka Rios, founder and director of leasing, and Kati Baker, CEO of the firm, have worked together for almost 16 years. They share a passion for providing extensive coaching and support to their team of experienced agents.
Rios, a real estate veteran, focuses on developing new agents and supporting the company’s experienced team members. She also manages the leadership team and fosters relationships with property management partners. Before becoming CEO, Baker was in charge of building the firm’s team, handpicking many of its top agents. She now oversees business development, daily operations and strategies.
With a retail-style office in the gallery district of River North, DAC focuses on residential leasing in the downtown luxury high-rise market, including in the Gold Coast, River North, Streeterville, Loop, South Loop, West Loop and Fulton Market neighborhoods.
“We bring a lot of professionalism to the real estate leasing industry,” Rios and Baker say. “We know how to effectively qualify our clients and stay on top of the market, allowing us to provide an efficient service that the industry lacked.”
In fall 2024, DAC officially partnered with Compass Real Estate. Shortly after joining, DAC rose to among the top 10% of Compass agents in the region and earned recognition for completing the highest number of rental transactions in a single year.
Rios and Baker agree that integrity is instrumental to their success. “Our agents have clients’ best interests at heart,” the duo insists. “They take the time to get to know clients in order to help them find their perfect home. This level of care keeps our clients coming back and referring us to their friends and family.”
