Empire building with I&I New York

I am here to build an empire,” said Eyal Amir, the Israel-born founder of new brokerage I&I New York Real Estate.

Indeed, his newly launched, eight-agent commercial and residential firm has a militaristic bent. Amir, a veteran of the Israeli army, said that experience informs how he trains his agents. All new recruits are subject to I&I Boot Camp, an intensive training program that emphasizes punctuality, neatness and dependability.

For example, he said, “listing brokers will work according to our schedule, not their schedule.”

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Amir first arrived in New York five years ago, initially making ends meet by tending bar. He worked at Miron Properties and at the rental firm Metropolitan Property Group before launching I&I late last year. The name expresses the “one is all and all is one” ethos of the company, Amir said.

I&I specializes in buying and selling off-market multi-family properties, an asset class that has seen growing demand in recent years, Amir said. In particular, I&I will look to court international buyers, with whom Amir said he has existing relationships. The firm, which Amir hopes will expand to 50 agents by the end of the year, will also handle residential sales and rentals.

The company’s first office is a 750-square-foot space at 419 Lafayette Street in Manhattan.