The Real Deal had a contingent of reporters and editors at the New York Hilton for the Real Estate Board of New York’s annual banquet and awards ceremony (click here to see an article on the event). The Real Deal’s Web editor Lauren Elkies interviewed a slew of real estate bigwigs from Bill Rudin of Rudin Management — who said Jonathan Mechanic of Fried, Frank (who The Real Deal also spoke to) is “the real deal” — to Bruce Mosler of Cushman & Wakefield — who said he loves The Real Deal, to Frederick Peters of Warburg Realty — who said “Virtual Office Web sites,” or VOWS, “will ultimately be insignificant.” [more]

A.C. Lawrence will be launching a VOW, or “Virtual Office Web site,” which will allow users to browse all of the industry’s listings without leaving the A.C. Lawrence Web site.
The company plans to launch the site by the end of the week, pending approval from the Real Estate Board of New York. The Manhattan-based firm will implement its VOW company-wide, rather than by agent only, making it the first to do so in New York City, according to Antonio del Rosario, president of the sales division at the nearly 40-agent firm. A VOW provides an opportunity for the boutique residential firm to keep apace with its larger rivals, del Rosario told The Real Deal. “It’s really a no-brainer… the virtual office Web site levels the playing field for all the firms,” he said. The VOW approach is still a relatively new innovation in New York City, following a recent settlement between the Department of Justice and the National Association of Realtors. Under the terms of the settlement, REBNY is required by law to provide these listings directly to VOWs who are REBNY members, provided they agree to certain guidelines and pay a fee for an audit by REBNY. Last summer, online firm CBS 2 Real Estate Market, launched the first VOW in Manhattan. By December, Halstead Property had joined the trend, making it the first of the city’s major brick and mortar firms to do so. [more]