From the September issue: In the summer of 2008, no one could have foreseen how much the real
estate industry would change in only a year. Prices that once
accelerated at a dizzying pace are now declining. Sales volume and
rental transactions have been cut in half. Commissions are smaller and
brokers’ fees paid by renters are largely a thing of the past. New
developments, once the city’s most sought-after properties, are now
nearly impossible to sell amid a credit crisis of epic proportions.
The industry’s remaining agents have been left to pick up the
pieces and adapt to a radically different world. Surprisingly, many
have done so with gusto, adjusting their business models to fit the new
environment.
Brokerage Citi Habitats, for example, recently launched a new
“Elite Rentals” division for high-end rental apartments, hoping to
capitalize on homeowners’ need to rent their apartments after being
unable to sell them.
