No need to cease and desist: Our licensed Realtors act according to their Code of Ethics by Rodriguez

June 7, 2016 - Brokerage

Eliezer Rodriguez, Bronx - Manhattan North Association of Realtors

The Bronx-Manhattan North Association of Realtors (BMNAR) is the local chapter for the New York State and National Association of Realtors (NAR). Our members represent the face of real estate in The Bronx and Upper Manhattan. Once you are a member of a local Realtors association, you are entitled to call yourself a Realtor. As a Realtor, you are held to a higher ethical standard.

My members care about the communities they serve. Realtors help build communities and they also work hard to sustain them. Realtors invest in the communities they serve and they also give back to those communities. If you get a chance to drive by the intersection of Morrison Ave. and Westchester Sq. in The Bronx, you will notice a mural that depicts the image of Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the first Hispanic U.S. Supreme Court justice, along with other important figures and places from the Soundview community. The Soundview mural was made possible by a $2,200 Micro-Place-Making Grant received from NAR. In mid-2015, congressman Serrano attended the unveiling and his office was instrumental in securing the appearance of Justice Sotomayor. It was an incredible feeling to listen to Justice Sotomayor talk about the mural and her thanking Realtors for the role they played in its creation.

The Soundview mural received a significant amount of coverage from local, state and national media sources. Without a doubt, the Soundview mural exceeded the expectations of everyone involved in the project. A once old and dreary graffiti wall was turned into a beautiful and vibrant community space for people to gather and enjoy the wonderful story the mural has to tell. Today, the mural is valued at $55,000.

Over the past year, BMNAR also received three Smart Growth grants from NAR. Each grant was for $15,000 and earmarked to benefit Bronx Community Board # 9 (BCB#9), the largest of our 12 community boards and the poorest. BCB#9 is also the proposed home of the New Metro North Station, Soundview Ferry, York Movie Studio and other growth. The grants are to help BCB#9 carry out the smart growth development in a way that ensures their vision for the future is protected.

Our work with organizations such as: The Community Mainstream Associates; The Bronx YMCA: and, Camp Good Days and Special Times, to name a few, often goes unnoticed. Camp Good days, for example, is a camp that strives to give back to children, adults and families what cancer and other life challenges have taken away from them. To date, BMNAR has donated to the camp over $300,000.

Over the years, the hard work of the Realtors has paid off and the Bronx real estate market is doing great. In fact, some headlines state that the Bronx real estate market is burning HOT! Unfortunately, a hot market also creates opportunities for others who are not real estate licensed Realtors and, therefore, not bound by a code of ethics. Caution has to be exercised by “opportunity seekers” as to not impede the years of positive Realtor involvement.

Several hearings were held recently where residents argued that they are being marketed to and harassed by Realtors and that the harassment rises to a level that requires the imposition of Cease and Desist Zones. The solicitation to our neighbor’s homes in the form of flyers and mailers by “opportunity seekers” such as flippers and speculators is fueling the rise for such zones.

Cease and Desist zones allow residents in those zones to have their addresses placed on a “cease and desist” list. Once on the list, real estate licensees would be penalized for contacting a listed address. According to the Department of State, there were only seven reported violations of the cease and desist law in 2009, two violations in 2010, and since 2011, zero violations or complaints were reported. More importantly, as of 2014, due to the lack of complaints, the New York State Department of State opted not to renew any of the existing cease and desist zones in New York City.

Recently, legislation was proposed to reauthorize and expand cease and desist zones. This bill would unfairly hurt the livelihood of real estate professionals by restricting their ability to do their job and consequently have a negative impact on the state and local economies.

A Cease and Desist zone is not a just reward for my Realtor members who gave a damn at a time when others did not. Before a Cease and Desist Zone is imposed, I ask lawmakers to do their due diligence, give significant weight to Realtor involvement in the communities we serve and to fairly evaluate the evidence before imposing such a zone without just cause.

Eliezer Rodriguez is the executive director of The Bronx-Manhattan North Association of Realtors.