NY brokers turn to custom floorplan firm

For the longest time apartment plans were an afterthought for brokers, who merely took old, photocopied, and often illegible depictions from dated directories. But according to the New York Times, more and more established brokerages, including Halstead Property, Brown Harris Stevens and Gumley Haft Kleier, are turning to New York-based Lou Wenger and his company Floorplansource to create updated floor plans for their listings tailored for the Web. Wenger uses laser distance measurers, custom graph paper and colored pencils to create a detailed, aesthetically pleasing floor plan that looks just as clear online. The Times reported that Wenger will alter details to accommodate brokers’ requests: for example, he’ll draw a window wider than scale if a broker feels the true measurement under-represents the amount of light it allows into the room. But that can backfire, Wenger noted, as he said the floor plan illustrator for 75 1/2 Bedford Street, the narrowest home in the city, could have drawn thicker walls to give the appearance of a wider space, but that distortion would have raised expectations — and ultimately disappointed — potential buyers. Wenger said his firm charges $250 for the first 1,000 square feet and 12 cents for every additional square foot. [NYT]