From left: Tamir Shemesh, Pamela Liebman, Howard Lorber and Dottie Herman

Another top team is leaving Prudential Douglas Elliman, the city’s largest residential brokerage.

Longtime Elliman broker Tamir Shemesh today announced that he is moving to the Corcoran Group — Elliman’s primary competitor — with his team of seven people. The move is the second high-profile departure for Elliman since the New Year. In January, super-broker Ilan Bracha — head of the top-ranked team at Elliman — left to launch the first Manhattan franchise of Keller Williams.

“I was ready for a change,” said Shemesh, who was a managing director at Elliman. “I found an opportunity at Corcoran, so we did it.”… [more]

From left: Marc Lewis, Denise Salizzoni, Tiffany Stilwell, Marc Windheuser and the former Century 21 NY Metro office at 228 East 45th Street

With Century 21 NY Metro now closed, boutique brokerage A.C. Lawrence has taken over the firm’s 45th Street office space and hired several of its top managers, including former CEO Marc Lewis as chairman.
Former Century 21 NY Metro managers Denise Salizzoni and Tiffany Stilwell are also joining A.C. Lawrence’s management. Salizzoni will serve as rental director and Stilwell as listings manager. Former Century 21 NY Metro Sales Director Marc Windheuser has returned to Prudential Douglas Elliman.
Other former Century 21 agents are “free to decide” whether they want to join A.C. Lawrence or not, said A.C. Lawrence spokesperson Charlotte Kullen, formerly the spokesperson for Century 21 NY Metro. A.C. Lawrence, which has around 35 agents, said it is launching an “aggressive recruitment campaign,” however. … [more]

From left: A.C. Lawrence co-founders Anthony DeGrotta and Larry Friedman and Century 21 NY Metro CEO Marc Lewis

Struggling brokerage Century 21 NY Metro is merging with A.C. Lawrence, industry sources said today.

The Real Deal reported yesterday that Century 21 NY Metro — a Manhattan-based, independently owned franchise of the Century 21 brand — has experienced cash flow problems in recent weeks and has been looking for new investors to inject fresh capital into the firm.

It appears they may have found it.

Agents were told today that Century 21 NY Metro would be absorbed into the boutique sales and rental firm A.C. Lawrence. It’s unclear what the new entity would be called. … [more]

From left: Marc Lewis, Paul Bologna (top), Jorden Tepper and 228 East 45th Street (building photo credit: PropertyShark)

The management of brokerage Century 21 NY Metro is looking for new investors in a bid to save the company, industry sources said. The residential and commercial real estate company has been having cash flow problems and recently failed to make payroll, according to several agents who said they are owed commissions. With rumors flying that the company is on the verge of shutting its doors, a large number of agents have left the firm. Agents were told several weeks ago that the owners were exploring a partnership with the long-established real estate management firms Mautner-Glick Corp. and Wallack Management to inject new capital into the company. … [more]

From left: Marc Lewis, Marc Windheuser and Jorden Tepper

Former Prudential Douglas Elliman associate broker Marc Windheuser has been tapped to manage sales at Century 21 NY Metro, the firm anno… [more]

Louis Caceres

Manhattan Apartments veteran Louis Cace… [more]

Century 21 NY Metro’s Marc Lewis

Century 21 NY Metro has launched its own Virtual Office Website — or
“VOW” — the company announced today. The VOW will give homebuyers
access to all residential listings from member … [more]

Marc Lewis, president and CEO of Century 21 NY Metro and his company’s new office at 228 East 45th Street (building photo source: PropertyShark)

Century 21 NY Metro is relocating to a 13,000-square-foot office at 228 East 45th Street, the company announced today.
The sales and rental company, which has around 150 agents and staff, will vacate its current space at 575 Madison Avenue June 1, according to President and CEO Marc Lewis. The new office is some 40 percent larger and can house up to 200 people, Lewis said. The asking rent for the new space is listed on CoStar as $29.50 per foot. Lewis would not comment on the taking rent, but said it was comparable to what the company is paying now. Since the recession hit, a number of real estate companies have switched locations to take advantage of lower rents for office space. Aside from offering more space for a comparable price, Century 21’s new office — on 45th Street between Second and Third avenues — is “in a much better location,” Lewis said…. [more]

Century 21 NY Metro is the latest New York City brokerage firm to ramp
up its social media efforts. The firm launched Live Agent Chat last
week, a feature on its Web site which allows potential buyers to chat
online with agents while perusing listings. The system connects potential clients with agents who are logged in at
that time and cycles the next client to the next agent, moving through
those logged in. “With more buyers and renters finding that even e-mail is too slow in
this era of texting and tweeting, an immediate chat response is often
preferred,” said Marc Lewis, president of Century 21 NY Metro. The agents are reporting success with the new feature. “I’ve come close to closing a deal and many of my colleagues have been
successful the first day the chat feature was up and running,” Century
21 NY Metro agent Deborah Abraham told The Real Deal during an online
chat…. [more]

After years of sluggish — or virtually non-existent — sales at Saxa’s the Prime condominium at 333 West 14th Street, between Eighth and Ninth avenues, a late-summer uptick in sales has left the 10-story, nine-unit condo with only one unit left on the market. Why the sudden surge? “I think price has a lot to do with it,” said Michael Katz, RP Miller’s on-site sales associate. His group kicked off a new sales effort at the development a year ago (note: correction appended). Almost immediately after taking the helm, RP Miller slashed asking figures, and invited carolers to sing outside an open house at the project. Two weeks ago, RP Miller & Associates closed on its eighth unit: a 4,000-square-foot, three-bedroom, three-bathroom penthouse with three balconies and a private roof terrace that sold for $4.1 million, Katz said. Back when sales launched in September 2006, the asking price was $9.5 million. It was reduced to $7.5 million in January this year, and then finally to $5.9 million in July. TRD