REBNY okays Brooklyn pact

Real Estate Weekly, July 2, 2003

The board of the Real Estate Board of New York reached an agreement last week that will increase the sharing of property listings in Brooklyn, according to a New York Times report.

Under the agreement REBNY members -- most of which are based in Manhattan -- that do business in Brooklyn will share listings with a buyer represented by an agent from any other member firm, according to the report.

However, the agreement stopped short of mandating that members automatically share listings with competitors within 72 hours -- a rule that went into effect in Manhattan in January, the report said.

The sharing of listing information has been an ongoing debate among residential real estate brokers. The decision reached earlier this year to mandate sharing came after years of discussing the issue.

With Manhattan housing prices soaring in recent years, many residents have looked to the outer boroughs for housing.

In 1998, Corcoran Group bought a Brooklyn firm and now has three offices in the borough in Brooklyn Heights, Fort Greene and Park Slope.

Reaction to the decision among brokers has been mixed. At least one broker Peter Marra, president and owner of William B. May, told the New York Times that sharing of listing information is not the norm in Brooklyn and could not be imposed on the market.