Meet Vanessa Villela: The soap star who’s now a real estate agent on Selling Sunset

She’s 43 and grew up in Mexico City

2 years ago

Season four of Selling Sunset has just landed on Netflix, and we’ve been treated to some brand new realtors at The Oppenheim Group! Following the swift departure of Davina, newbie Vanessa Villela has joined the season four cast of Selling Sunset, and she looks as though she’s going to bring a lot to the new episodes.

She’s introduced as being new to the real estate game, and a soap star from Mexico. She joins the series alongside Emma Hernan, a model who has been part of The Oppenheim Group off-camera for a while. Here’s everything you need to know about Vanessa Villela as she settles in on the show.

via Instagram @vannevillela

Vanessa Villela is 43-years-old and used to work as an actress

Before joining Selling Sunset, Vanessa Villela had already made a name for herself as a successful actress from Mexico. She grew up in Mexico City, and has starred in Mexican TV. She began her acting career early in life performing in a variety of TV shows and soap operas. Her works, including El Señor de los Cielos, Una Maid en Manhattan, and Eva Luna, have been televised in over 120 countries.

Vanessa is 43-years-old now, and is a US citizen. As well as being a skilled actress and now real estate agent, Vanessa is fluent in both English and Spanish. She dedicates a lot of her spare time supporting iFaw, an international fund for animal welfare, and Naam Yoga Los Angeles, a spiritual centre in Santa Monica. She also says she enjoys meditating, staying fit, and spending time in the sun on the beaches of Malibu.

via Instagram @vannevillela

Vanessa Villela is one of the latest agents to join The Oppenheim Group in Selling Sunset

Vanessa is a new agent in season four of Selling Sunset, brought in as a replacement for Davina – who left The Oppenheim Group. Announcing the news she was joining, Vanessa said on Instagram: “Dreams do come true. It is with great honour and excitement that the official announcement was made today about me joining the beautiful and fun cast of one of the top Netflix shows, ‘Selling Sunset’ and the amazing team and company of Real Estate The Oppenheim Group.

“I am so excited! Not only because I was able to manifest this dream of blending my background in acting with my latest passion in real estate but because I want to help empower and show others to never give up on yourself or your dreams. I’m beyond grateful and blessed with this next chapter of my life. I can’t wait to have you and the audience personally watch how it unfolds and I thank all of you for being on this journey with me!!!”

In an interview with E Online, Vanessa said it was her sister who inspired her career change to become a real estate agent. “She was a realtor and in San Diego, and she started doing really well,” Vanessa told the publication. “She told me, ‘Why don’t you do it?’ She was like, ‘Yeah, you’re gonna love it. I mean, you love helping people’.”

Her sister posed the idea of them starting a house staging company in LA whilst Vanessa got her real estate license. Soon after, her sister passed away, which she says in the show was “unexpected” and due to a complication with some medication.

“I stayed with the staging company, to try and make something good out of all the hard work that she did,” she added to E Online. “Nothing was really going well in the company…One day I sat in my car and I spoke to her. And I was like, ‘Jackie, I need a sign. Please give me a sign. What should I do?’ And then I opened my phone and I looked for open houses and…the first open house that I went to, the realtor, within the first five minutes of our conversation, he was like, ‘I want you to work for me’.”

Season four of Selling Sunset on Netflix

via Netflix

Vanessa says working at The Oppenheim Group is ‘dysfunctional’ but ‘super sweet’

Speaking to E Online about joining The Oppenheim Group, Vanessa said: “I love everyone there. Of course, there’s a little bit of drama, but it’s still a family. Maybe, what’s the word? Dysfunctional. But in the end, we’re still a family and we’re here for you…They were super sweet with me, since day one. It’s just been like an amazing journey so far.”

The Oppenheim Group website describes Vanessa as a “warm and dedicated professional, Vanessa brings to every deal her unique skillset, stellar communication skills, and keen ability to connect with buyers and sellers. She loves nothing more than helping clients better their lives.”

via Instagram @vannevillela

She has 613k followers on Instagram

Vanessa was already a pretty big name before joining the show, so it’s no surprise she already has a big following and a verified Instagram account. She currently has 613k followers and has recently been sharing lots of promotion for Selling Sunset and fun pictures of her hanging out with the rest of the cast members. Her handle is @vannevillela.

Season four of Selling Sunset is available on Netflix now. For all the latest Netflix news, drops, quizzes and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook.