12 RENJ THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, JUNE 28, 2020The Real Estate Board of New York
(REBNY) has issued its own set of guide-
lines to its members to ensure the safety of
employees and clients in the field. In addi-
tion to the usual forms that a broker might
ask a potential buyer or seller to sign, many
agents may also ask a client to sign a coro-
navirus liability form and fill out a health
screening questionnaire. The real estate
board also urges members to conduct in-
person showings only in vacant or unoccu-
pied properties — in other words, when the
seller isn’t home.
Before Monday, Jason Haber, an associ-
ate broker at Warburg Realty, hadn’t been in
an apartment other than his own since
March 10. For three months, he declined
new showing opportunities — even virtual
ones — and instead focused on checking in
with his existing clientele, going so far as to
help some of them organize various
Covid-19 relief projects. He did, however,
close contracts for spaces that had already
been seen by clients pre-pandemic.
Like many agents, Mr. Haber isn’t wor-
ried about returning to work. He’s itching to
begin showing properties again and is sit-
ting on 12 residential listings, a mix of rent-
als and sales, all of which are coming online
in the next few weeks. He said that he had
never had so many on the market at once.
In addition to stocking up on hand sani-
tizer, Mr. Haber recently bought a UVC
wand to disinfect the spaces he will be
showing. “Getting people to change their
behavior will be the hardest thing to do,” he
said. “It’s human nature to want to touch
things.”
Brokers agreed that the focus on client
comfort and safety is more important than
ever, but during Phase 2 and possibly be-
yond it, the consideration of everyone in-
volved in a single listing may be a little
tricky to handle. For in-person showings,
agents will have to communicate with not
only the buyer and seller, but also building
managers or co-op and condo boards, as
many buildings will have their own rules
and coronavirus protocols.
For the foreseeable future, virtual walk-
throughs will probably remain a popular op-
tion. As they were the only way to do busi-
ness during the pandemic, many agencies
touted them as the wave of the future. Can-
dace Adams, president of Berkshire Hath-
away HomeServices, said in-person show-
ings would eventually become the second
and third step, not the first. “Everyone’stime is so valuable today,” she said. “Virtual
tours will be a forever thing for us going
forward.”
Sotheby’s International Realty has fea-
tured 3-D tours and virtual reality experi-
ences on its website since 2016. Cathy Taub,
a top Sotheby’s broker in Manhattan, said
she had been getting more questions about
virtual tours than ever before. “Real estate
has always been eye candy,” she said, “but
during this time when we’ve all been shel-
tering at home, people have been browsing
nonstop.”
Even developers realize the benefit ofboosting their online presence. Before leas-
ing began, Sam Charney, of Charney Com-
panies, and Nicholas Silvers, of Tavros
Holdings, had already begun working with
Listing 3-D, a start-up used by Corcoran,
Douglas Elliman and Compass, among
other agencies, to develop an online mar-
keting tool for the Dime, a rental building in
Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Plans to welcome
potential clients on April 1 were pushed
back to May 18 because of the coronavirus,
but both men now see some advantages in
the timing.
“I think our eyes were opened a little bit
to what the market looks like due to Covid,”
Mr. Charney said. “For a rental, we wouldn’t
have thought to do virtual tours, because we
were originally trying to attract locals, but
recently we’ve seen a lot of interest from
people out of state and other countries.”
The Dime last week opened its on-site
leasing office, allowing prospective renters
to schedule socially distanced tours. Those
who first previewed the building online can
now walk through to feel out what Mr. Sil-
vers described as an easy-to-use and touch-
less experience: Doors are outfitted with
keyless entry technology, and tenants have
access to a smart package room and a
hands-free storage option, as well as a video
intercom viewed through their smart-
phones.
Practicing safety during in-person show-
ings is crucial for engaging with clientele,
but the same goes for returning to work in
real estate offices across the city.
Corcoran, for example, bought a robot —
and trained a receptionist — to test the tem-
perature of employees in its Bridgehamp-
ton office when Long Island entered Phase
2 on June 9. Pamela Liebman, chief execu-
tive of the company, said they may use the
robot in Corcoran’s Manhattan and Brook-
lyn offices in the future. For now, the com-
pany is providing personal protective
equipment and also tracking how many
people enter the office. To limit the number
of people in the office, staff key cards were
deactivated and agents must sign into an
app before heading into work.
Bess Freedman, the chief executive of
Brown Harris Stevens, said the key to re-
opening was “harm minimization.” Ms.
Freedman, a survivor of the coronavirus,
said her agency was mourning the recent
death of one of its top agents, Sal
Capozucca, due to Covid-19, but she also
spoke of the near future of real estate with
optimism. Like many agency heads, she be-
lieves all the pent-up demand from the
weekslong pause will make for a strong
market in the late summer and fall.
“Obviously we can’t expect this year to be
anything like it would have been without
the pandemic, but given all that’s happen-
ing in our world, it could pan out to be OK,”
she said. “And I’m OK with an OK year.”As New York Reopens, It’s Back to Work for Agents
Clockwise from above: Jason
Haber of Warburg Realty
recording a look at a Park
Avenue apartment; scrubbing
and cleaning are also part of an
agent’s job description; though
handshakes may be a relic,
clean hands are au courant.PHOTOGRAPHS BY STEFANO UKMAR FOR THE NEW YORK TIMESVirtual tours will stay a
first step, with in-person
showings later.CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
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ROCKLAND COUNTY
SECLUDED
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ten car detached garage Clarkstown
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Ofcs: 900sf.; 1,700sf & 3,200sf w/ wet
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conforming commercial,Zoned M1-5B
community facility uses onlymanufacturing/industrial &
7123 SF, divisions availNo retail/office
$80 psf ground, $40 psf LL,$60 psf 2nd/Mezz
Contact 347-831-8302Offices−Manhattan 105COMMERCIAL &
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betw/ Houston & Prince Strts, 7,500sf
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Call Steve 212-334-5589741 RALPH AVE, BROOKLYN
1275 Sq Ft, Busy Location, Parking
Asking $3,500.00
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