Kunstlinger joins Eastern Union as first senior broker

Manhattan, NY Elliott Kunstlinger has joined Eastern Union as first senior broker. This is the next phase of Eastern Union’s nationwide expansion, led by chairman Ira Zlotowitz and president Abe Bergman. Kunstlinger, known for closing some of the market’s largest and most complex financings, is the first of several senior and emerging brokers now in discussions to join the firm.

The move comes amid strong deal momentum. Eastern Union closes billions of dollars in transactions a year. Most recently, the firm secured a $125 million acquisition loan for The Pavilion, a 1,115-unit apartment complex in Chicago, and closed a separate $54 million transaction in the same period.

Before moving into brokerage, Kunstlinger spent years on the ownership side of commercial real estate, giving him a principal’s view of how complex deals get financed and closed. He has since built a reputation for large, intricate transactions and the repeat institutional relationships that come with them.

His recent work includes two separate $225 million engagements on a single Sixth Ave. asset in Manhattan; an original financing and a later modification for the same institutional client; a $92 million financing in Brooklyn; an $85 million transaction on Manhattan’s Seventh Ave.; and numerous financings in the $50 million to $100 million range across New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Florida, Connecticut, Ohio, and Georgia.

“In today’s market, every deal feels complex—the regulations, the rate environment, the lender landscape,” said Kunstlinger. “What matters is having a platform that gives you the tools to actually get things done.

“I’ve built my career on tackling deals others won’t touch, whether that’s a straightforward transaction or something far more intricate. That only works on a platform that can carry the weight: real lender relationships in every market, an underwriting and support team behind every deal, and a firm that got ahead of everyone on technology and AI. Eastern Union has all of that, it pays at the top of the industry, and it lets me decide how to invest in my own growth. That’s why I’m here.”

“Elliott’s joining us reflects what we’ve built over 25 years and signals where we’re headed,” said Zlotowitz. “Abe Bergman and I are committed to this expansion and to making sure every broker who comes aboard has the platform, the support, and the compensation to perform at the highest level. Elliott won’t be the last. We’re in active conversations with senior and newer brokers across the country.”

“We don’t make brokers choose between great support and great economics,” said Abraham Bergman, president of Eastern Union. “We built the firm to deliver both, and Elliott looked at everything we put behind a broker and everything we pay on top of it before he signed. Talent at his level doesn’t move for hype. It moves for a platform that makes you more productive and an upside with no ceiling.”.