Brokerage stays open for business for 24 hours
In today’s tight rental market, don’t put off ’til tomorrow what you can do today.
Mosaic Properties is taking the adage to heart. On Nov. 28 and 29, the brokerage hosted its first “Rental 911,” where its office located at 100 West 32nd Street remained open for 24 straight hours to help renters review listings, set appointments and complete paperwork in order to secure an apartment.
“There is a low vacancy rate for rental units, and if you wait you could lose,” said Brian Cooper, principal of Mosaic Properties. “We want to do as much as we can to make ourselves available to New Yorkers.”
Mosaic Properties hopes to target the 25-to-40-year-old renter who’s always on the go.
The “Rental 911” marathons will be held every month, with dates to be announced. “We’ll host the ‘Rental 911’ towards the end of the month, when people are desperate for apartments,” Cooper said.
“The New York City rental market requires hustle — it’s a city where all-nighters are not uncommon,” Cooper said. “It’s very practical for our clients and it also gives the image that we are going to go that extra step.”
Toll Brothers, Cantor Pecorella sales offices face off
It’s a battle of the sales offices on 12th Street and Broadway.
The Toll Brothers marketing office for One Ten Third, a new East Village condo project, has a sales office directly across the street from the sales office for … another East Village development. Cantor Pecorella will open its sales office in early December for the A Building.
Both developments are being marketed as high end, although only the Toll Brothers’ project is a high-rise.
In addition to having sales offices in close proximity, the developments aren’t far from each other. Construction is underway on the 21-story glass tower at 110 Third Avenue and two blocks away is the eight-story glass and terra-cotta A Building, at 425 East 13th Street between First Avenue and Avenue A.
The A Building’s sales office will feature a digital “water” wall, a reference to the building’s rooftop lounge and lap pool.
The face-to-face sales offices are not an issue, says Ariana Meyerson, project manager of the A Building for Cantor Pecorella.
Forging partnerships with Zagat, Sony
Following in the footsteps of condo developers, residential brokerages are linking up with well-known consumer brands.
Last month, the Corcoran Group partnered up with Zagat Survey to provide neighborhood restaurant guides that accompany apartment listings online in what the brokerage calls the first co-branding of its kind.
“We think about what our clients and customers want in their experience,” said Corcoran’s CEO Pamela Liebman. “When they come to our site, they’re able to look at a neighborhood and explore where you can eat.”
Clients searching listings on Corcoran’s Web site can click through to Zagat’s restaurant directory for the neighborhood, which requires a monetary subscription to view ratings and reviews directly.
Another residential brokerage is in talks with Sony to provide gift cards for electronics, though none of the other top residential brokerages have announced co-branding partnerships yet.
“The concept is very interesting. Real estate is really about more than just the property,” said Paul Purcell, co-founder of the real estate consultancy Braddock + Purcell. “The more you can help a consumer to understand what the lifestyle will be, the better.”
The majority of brokerages have school and neighborhood information on their Web sites, which Purcell says is critical to the quality of life.
“But I may not want to buy an apartment and still go on the Corcoran Web site for free Zagat information,” he added. “It increases activity on the web site and by extension increases brand awareness.”
According to Liebman, traffic to the neighborhood section of Corcoran’s Web site has increased, tripling since the Zagat partnership.
Developers of new condos have successfully paired up in the past in an attempt to lend brand awareness to their projects — 20 Pine Street teaming up with Armani/Casa is a notable example — but it remains to be seen whether brokerages will see the same results.
“People tend to be sheep in real estate,” Purcell said. “It’s pretty hard to find new and creative things to do that benefit the consumer. You find one that does and everyone jumps on that.”