Brokerage offices play game of musical chairs

Manhattan s top real estate companies are playing musical chairs along the West Side, changing locations and nudging each other for market share.

Corcoran, Elliman and Brown Harris Stevens are unwillingly relocating, as their home base for many years, the Apple Bank Building at 2112 Broadway at 72nd Street, is going condo. As reported in The Real Deal last month, Corcoran will be moving its offices to a 20,000-square-foot space on a high floor of 888 Seventh Avenue at 57th Street.

Douglas Elliman and Brown Harris Stevens will remain in more central Upper West Side locations. Elliman plans to open in a 9,000-square-foot space at 1995 Broadway at 68th Street with around 80 agents this summer, according to published reports. Brown Harris s new offices will be in a 10,000-square-foot space at 1930 Broadway and will also open this summer.

Other firms are making first forays into the area. Sotheby s recently announced it would open an office at 450 Columbus Avenue at 81st Street, and JC DeNiro & Associates has expanded from two Downtown locations to open an office at 2265 Broadway at 81st Street.

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In Harlem, Dwelling Quest is the latest residential real estate brokerage to set up a storefront at 528 West 145th Street, and will handle rental and residential sales services, as well as commercial and mortgage services through Dwelling Quest s sister companies, Quest Commercial and Mortgage Quest, respectively. The office will have 25 full-time agents.

“It was always part of our growth strategy to expand into Harlem,” said Daren Hornig, president and chief executive officer of parent company The Quest Group. “It is a very vibrant, exciting market and we re looking forward to contributing to the area s continuing revitalization.”

Dwelling Quest will join Warburg Realty, which opened a storefront office in Harlem in October.

In other areas of Manhattan, Brown Harris last month announced the opening of a 2,500-square-foot office on the ground floor of 43 North Moore Street in Tribeca.

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