From the April issue: To many New Yorkers, Boston is a punch line, usually delivered during baseball season. But New England’s biggest city — along with Cambridge, its neighbor across the Charles River — is going head-to-head with the Big Apple to woo technology companies, not only fill office space, but also provide a boon to the local economy.
Indeed, all three cities are stepping up efforts to become the No. 2 tech magnet behind California’s Silicon Valley — if not No. 1. [more]
From the December issue: Real estate is not for the tech-phobic. Real estate brokers “need to keep up with what their clients are doing,” said Burke Smith, founder of YourNetCoach, which specializes in Internet marketing strategies for real estate firms and agents. In a city full of BlackBerrys and Androids, that means no ancient flip phones. Still, not all newfangled gadgets are created equal. This month, The Real Deal asked experts to weigh in on which new technologies real estate professionals should embrace — and which ones they shouldn’t bother with — in 2011. [more]
Dumbo is quickly becoming New York City’s “Silicon Beach,” according to Fortune magazine, which ranked the six “hottest” tech companies that have blossomed in the neighborhood, in a list that heralds the neighborhood as an up-and-coming tech center. Companies like digital ad agency Big Spaceship and Etsy, a popular online “hobbypreneur” site, are among the “hot” digital companies named in the neighborhood. [more]
From the June issue: Move over, BlackBerry. A new website called Nelbee, which plans to launch later this month, will coordinate broker and client schedules in real time online, perhaps ending the flurry of texts, phone calls and e-mails required to arrange a simple showing. The site, started by New York Law School students Mike McGrath and Edward Valenti, will allow registered renters and buyers to connect directly to brokers on listings, without having to access the brokers’ page. The software allows people to connect through what is essentially an online appointment service.
From the June issue: Move over, BlackBerry. A new website called Nelbee, which plans to launch later this month, will coordinate broker and client schedules in real time online, perhaps ending the flurry of texts, phone calls and e-mails required to arrange a simple showing. The site, started by New York Law School students Mike McGrath and Edward Valenti, will allow registered renters and buyers to connect directly to brokers on listings, without having to access the brokers’ page. The software allows people to connect through what is essentially an online appointment service.
Responding to the Twitter question posed by Inman News’ Joel Burslem, “What should the real estate brand of the future mean to consumers?” Pamela Liebman, CEO of the Corcoran Group, said that the core values of a real estate brand should remain the same as they are today. In short, a broker should be “someone who’s there to be collaborative with you, to understand you, to serve your needs,” Liebman said. “I don’t think that necessarily changes.” That being said, Liebman said that technology would play a larger role in the success of top brokers in the future. [more]
While New York City has strong science and technology research centers, it shows poor performance in cultivating start-up businesses and economic growth, according to a new report from the Center for an Urban Future. The high cost of real estate and scant available laboratory space are cited as the primary reasons that research centers have difficulty producing new institutions and tech ventures. The report, which includes its inaugural “Innovation Index,” charts how New York City measures up to other metropolitan regions in its science and technology facilities. According to the report, New York City has just six companies on the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 List, while San Francisco has 88, Los Angeles has 50 and Washington, D.C. is home to 47.
