Halstead taps Richard Grossman as president

Longtime brokerage exec replaces Jim Gricar, who exited in 2015

RichardGrossmanDianeRamirezArthurZeckendorf
From left: Richard Grossman, Diane Ramirez and Arthur Zeckendorf

Halstead Property has named Richard Grossman – a longtime member of the brokerage’s executive team – as president, the firm said Wednesday.

Grossman, who has been running Halstead’s Village and Soho offices, will be the third president in Halstead’s 15-year history.

CEO Diane Ramirez, co-founder of the firm with Clark Halstead, was the first. Jim Gricar, who was named president in 2013, left the company last year after his contract was not renewed. (He is now general sales manager of Houlihan Lawrence in Westchester County.)

In a statement, Ramirez said of Grossman: “We’ve been working very closely for the last year and he is a very trusted and strategic colleague.”

Arthur Zeckendorf, co-chairman of Terra Holdings, the parent company of Halstead, praised Richard’s track record, including the conversion of more than 30 rental buildings to co-ops and condominiums.

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Grossman, 54, who was previously an executive vice president and senior managing director of Halstead Property, will continue to oversee the Village and Soho offices with Sara Rotter, Halstead’s executive director of sales for Downtown.

In a phone interview with The Real Deal, Grossman said his priority as president will be to work closely with Ramirez and the brokerage’s owners and executive team to “move the company forward in the ways that we have been growing, both in terms of our technology and market share.”

A real estate veteran, Grossman joined Halstead in 2005 after the firm acquired Heron Properties, where Grossman was a senior vice president and director of sales. Previously, he was director of sales at Hahn & Mann Realty and worked at J.H. Taylor Real Estate.

Halstead is the third-largest residential brokerage in New York City’s, according to The Real Deal’s most recent ranking in May 2015. At that time, Halstead clocked in with 814 agents representing more than $700 million worth of listings. For the 12 months ending March 31, 2015, Halstead closed 1,066 sales valued at $1.21 billion. On the new development front, the firm is representing Cadence’s Sorting House condominium at 318 West 52nd Street and Xin Development’s Oosten at 429 Kent Avenue in Williamsburg.