Brokerage and charity, do they mix?

Jason Haber, CEO of Rubicon Property, a New York City-based residential real estate brokerage founded in 2010, says his company’s philanthropic bent has helped it stand out from the crowd of other brokerages in the city. The firm donates a portion of its fee from every sale to a local non-profit charity:water that provides safe drinking water in developing countries. At a charity:water event in February, Haber told The Real Deal that the owner of 123 East 10th Street, a $14.3 million townhouse that includes a neighboring property, was so taken with his company that she is getting her real estate license and joining the firm. Rubicon has raised $8,000 for the non-profit since last fall, Haber told the New York Times. He said his company is different than other real estate firms, many of which also give to charity, in that his began donating money to charity:water, before it even made a profit. “It’s part of our firm DNA,” he said. The firm is not expected to enter the black until this month. [NYT]