Gio Helou's mom, Lisa Helou, is an O Group staffer and proves real estate runs in the family

Gio Helou's mom was the talk of the real estate market long before her son got into the game

Gio Helou of Selling the OC on a bot
(Image credit: Netflix © 2023)

He got it from his momma! Gio Helou's mom, Lisa Helou, is not only a real estate legend, much like Tyler Stanaland's father, John Stanaland, but she's also an O Group staffer.

Though Gio has a big personality—and boasts about hitting the $100 million mark in Selling the OC season 2—Lisa is the one who showed him the ropes and helped him gain insight into those lavish Newport beachfront abodes. 

According to Lisa's Oppenheim Group profile, where she's listed as a realtor associate, she relies on a few old-school methods to get the job done. As the description states, "Lisa brings an invaluable and proven skill-set to her clients, in addition to her emphasis on integrity and character."

Here's what we know about her. 

Who is Gio Helou’s mom, Lisa Helou?

While many of us would think sharing an office with our mothers wouldn’t be an ideal professional environment, it seems to work for Gio, who works alongside his mother at Jason and Brett Oppenheim’s brokerage, The Oppenheim Group. We salute them both!

Lisa, who you can find on Instagram under the handle @lisa_cantagallo_helouearned her license in 1976 and married a residential builder. The O group’s website describes her as having "a longstanding reputation for her assertiveness and relentless pursuit on behalf of her clients." This is no surprise, given that she's dealt with luxury listings that equate to millions upon millions of dollars.

Check on Lisa Helou on Instagram

On her Instagram, Lisa keeps followers up to date with all her latest listings and shares some adorable family snaps—especially with her son/colleague, Gio! D'aww, these two.

What's Lisa Helou's net worth?

Although there isn't a clear figure, sources suspect that Lisa is worth anywhere from $9 to $15 million.

What about Gio's father, Carol Helou?

Carol Helou, Lisa's now ex-husband, is no stranger to the luxury real estate industry, either. He's a residential builder and also provided guidance for his son.

"My dad is a builder," Gio told Real Tea. "I actually started working with him. And it was really great learning the building side of things and understanding how much things cost for clients if they want to remodel or build their dream home from scratch. So it was great to be able to bring that to the sales side when I joined my mom about four years ago."

Unfortunately, Lisa and Carol are headed their separate ways just as Gio and Tiffany Helou are preparing to welcome their first child, a baby boy. In season 2 of Selling the OC, we catch Gio listing his family home, which eventually sold for nearly $16 million. 

"I’ve sold a lot of remarkable waterfront properties in my career. This particular listing is not only the best of Newport Beach real estate, but is also uniquely meaningful to me," Gio told The New York Post. "The home was built by my father and holds some of my favorite family memories, so it’s a privilege to oversee its transition to a lucky new owner."

Is Lisa Helou in 'Selling the OC'?

Yes, Lisa appears in several episodes, making her debut in episode two at Gio's open house—where she gave him some sage advice on creating ambiance and the importance of 'no wine upstairs.' She also appears alongside Gio in episode six, again delivering words of wisdom and support to her younger colleagues, Alex Rose and Alex Jarvis

Since making her debut on the show, Lisa has been updating her IG page with some behind-the-scenes snaps, including one shot of her about to ring the famous O-group bell. It sounds like congratulations are in order!

In season 2, we see Lisa join Gio at their family home as he gears up to put it on the market.

Selling the OC season 2 is now streaming on Netflix

Naomi Jamieson
Lifestyle News Writer

Naomi is a Lifestyle News Writer with the Women's Lifestyle team, where she covers everything from entertainment to fashion and beauty, as well as TikTok trends for Woman&Home, after previously writing for My Imperfect Life and GoodTo. Interestingly though, Naomi actually has a background in design, having studied illustration at Plymouth University but lept into the media world in 2020, after always having a passion for writing and earned her Gold Standard diploma in Journalism with the NCTJ.


Before working for Future Publishing’s Lifestyle News team, she worked in the Ad production team. Here she wrote and designed adverts on all sorts of things, which then went into print magazines across all genres. Now, when she isn’t writing articles on celebs, fashion trends, or the newest shows on Netflix, you can find her drinking copious cups of coffee, drawing and probably online shopping.

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