By Rob Speyer, chairman, REBNY
& Steven Spinola, president, REBNY
For REBNY, 2013 was another productive year of working with and on behalf of our members to promote public policies that improve New York City and the real estate industry.
We continued to grow, both in numbers and in activity.
This year, we have reached a membership record, topping 15,000 brokers, owners, managers, and professionals active in our industry. And as our membership grows, so have our services.
We launched a new REBNY Listing Service that modernizes and updates the way we share our residential listings among brokerage members.
We added new committees to reflect the growing needs and interests of our membership, such as the REBNY Sustainability Committee, and adding RLS Vendor and Technology committees.
We increased our member benefits, adapting our health care offerings to match the requirements of the upcoming Health Care Reform and a new 401K program to increase options for saving towards retirement.
Our membership’s impact on the City was as impressive as ever.
This year was marked by significant development milestones, including the addition of the spire at One World Trade Center, the groundbreaking at Hudson Yards, and the continued development of the impressive skyline in Long Island City — which has added thousands of residential units in a few short years.
Although we can celebrate many accomplishments from 2013, we are looking forward to 2014 — the first year for a new class of government officials, bringing with them new opportunities and partnerships.
The past 12 years working with Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and many citywide and local elected officials have been some of the most dynamic years in New York’s real estate history.
We have always strived to maintain an open dialogue and cooperation with the administration and the City Council, and look forward to continuing our participation with Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Administration and Councilmembers — of which 22 are new to the Council.
Indeed, this past year was filled with many achievements. For our full Annual Report, which compiles a detailed list of our activities in 2013, we encourage you to visit www.rebny.com.
