Massey Knakal looks for Jersey space

Massey Knakal Realty Services plans to sign a lease for a New Jersey
office next month, as it expands out of New York City for the first
time, said Paul Massey, founding partner and CEO of the commercial
real estate company.

The firm, which has offices in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, wants a
5,000-square-foot space near Secaucus, Massey said. The office will
cover building sales in the state’s dense areas, like Hudson and
Bergen counties, which form “a market the size of Brooklyn” and “abuts
areas we are strong in,” he said.

Massey Knakal has been interested in moving into the New Jersey market
since at least 2005, when the firm was looking to open an office in
the Garden State the following year.

The firm has not yet hired a broker to represent it but plans to use
someone based in New Jersey to secure office space. When negotiating
its leases in Brooklyn and Queens, it used local brokers.

A top agent in the company’s Brooklyn office, Landon McGaw, was picked
to oversee the New Jersey expansion and head the office. Six agents
are ready to move to the New Jersey office, which could increase to 15
to 20 staffers in the future.

Massey said he is not worried about market conditions because the firm
tends to expand with “a modest operation.”

New managers will soon take over the firm’s Manhattan and Brooklyn
branches. Last week, Massey Knakal announced that Kyle Mast, who was
acting as the interim sales manager, will run its Manhattan office.

Next month, the firm will announce the new head of its Brooklyn
office. The position has been vacant after departures by Timothy King,
who is suing the company for allegedly failing to provide audited
financial statements,
and his successor, Brian Leary.

Massey said the new Brooklyn head is a manager at another New York City firm.

In a move away from its player-coach model, the Brooklyn manager will
be a professional sales manager and will not broker his own deals. The
firm adopted the new model, to apply to new managers who are not
partners, at the beginning of the year.