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1989: Ed Winslow – Salesperson #1 at Massey Knakal This week’s Throwback Thursday goes back to 1989 and the first salesperson we ever hired, Edward Winslow. Ed now owns and runs @onepagecasestudies company and teaches business owners of all types how to implement the same system that we used to establish its dominance of the investment sales market in New York City. Paul J. Massey and I were fortunate enough to achieve great success early on at Coldwell Banker and CB Commercial (predecessor companies to CBRE) and our bosses, Kurt Martin and Matt Ochalski, had us travel around the country to meet with investment salespeople in various offices to teach them what we were doing that was bringing us so much success at a very young age in NYC. We also had salespeople from across the northeast come into the Manhattan office to meet with us for the same purpose. One of the folks whom I really connected with was Ed Winslow. Ed worked in one of CB’s New Jersey offices and would come into the City once per month on a Saturday to sit with me for a few hours going over best practices. We developed a close relationship and those were some of my favorite days. Talking real estate with another passionate real estate guy! Paul and I left CB to start Massey Knakal on November 15th, 1988. On the morning of November 16th, the phone rang. It was Ed. “Bob, congrats on your new firm. I want to come and work with you!” he said. One month later, Ed was our first salesperson. These photos are from early 1989, when Ed sat in the same room as me and Paul. Notice the small Rolodex to the left of his phone, the vivid lack of a computer, and the cassette tapes next to the boom box that played my smooth jazz each day in the office. Ed was a tremendous student of our marketing / market presence program where we were creating tons of content before “content” was even a thing. We were doing “social media” before social media existed by sending out tons of hard mail to our client base, demonstrating our market knowledge, and success stories. Continued in the comments... #throwbackthursday #bkrea #oldfriends

Not Just a Fluke After some of my Testimonial Tuesday's, I'll receive emails telling me that the valuations I came up with are a fluke, a "one-time event," or I got "lucky." However, I maintain that it was the market expertise and the specialization that put my team and I in a position to know the market better than anyone else and that market knowledge was the thing that enabled us to know the market so much better than the competition. To show that it was not a "one-time thing" and not a fluke, I present another example from 2014 in which we gave a client a valuation a 50% higher than all of the competition. Again, this was at a time when our market share exposed us to many more data points than the competition had. We knew the market cold and knew where the market had progressed to when others were still living in the past. A good client of ours, Parsons School of Design - The New School, owned the site at the northwest corner of 40th Street & Seventh Avenue. The buildable footage was about 100,000 buildable square feet. The School reached out to us to provide a valuation as they did with several other firms. Based upon our work on two dozen sites in Manhattan and the work we did on the site at 31st & Eighth, we told the school that their site was worth $600 pbsf. They initially laughed at us as four other firms told them the site was worth $400 pbsf. We explained that we knew the market better and reviewed all of the real-time data we had. The school hired us and we kicked ass, getting them over $620 pbsf, demonstrating that nothing in the world can compete with up-to-the-minute market data. Swipe to see what the real estate director at The New School had to say about our efforts... . . . . . . #testimonialtuesday #tuesdaytestimonial #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #bkrea #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Concrete Thoughts on the Power of Mentorship In honor of my birthday this past Sunday, this week’s throwback goes back to 2012 and my 50th birthday party. 🎉 As many of us find in this business, the majority of our friends are real estate folks. Here is a photo of me with two friends and real estate giants: Stephen Siegel (left) and @. Jared and his father, Charlie, ran The Kushner Companies, LLC. Shortly after Jared purchased the Commercial Observer, he asked me to write a regular column for him, which we call “Concrete Thoughts.” I began writing for the publication in 2009 and, over 300 columns later, still write for CO regularly and remain greatly appreciative of the opportunity Jared gave me all those years ago. Steve is the Chairman of Global Brokerage at CBRE and is the “Babe Ruth” of commercial brokerage in NYC. Steve served on our MK Advisory Board for many years and has also served as a mentor to me over the years. People often ask me why I spend so much time speaking to and giving advice to young people about the business. It is because people like Steve took the time out of their day to talk to and guide me. I have greatly respected and admired Steve since I met him back in the 1980s and can say that I learned more from Steve Siegel over the years than from anyone else in the industry. Mentorship matters. You are never too important that you can’t impart wisdom or truth to someone hungry for it. . . . . . . . #throwbackthursday❤️ #tbtpost #commercialobserver #lookback #bkrea #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

I’m truly honored to have been featured in The @for the 6th time with this insightful article about - BK Real Estate Advisors and my journey in the real estate industry. A huge thank you to The Mann Report for sharing our story! After 40+ years and 2,332 transactions totaling more than $21 billion in NYC, it’s exhilarating to return to my entrepreneurial roots and build a new path forward with BK Real Estate Advisors. Our team is embracing cutting-edge technology and data-driven insights to redefine what it means to be a brokerage in today’s digital world. Most importantly, I’m incredibly proud of our growing team at BKREA and the servant leadership philosophy that guides us. I believe deeply in empowering others to start their own businesses or lead their own departments, and I’m thrilled to see so many of my former colleagues succeed in their own right. The world of real estate is changing, and we’re ready to embrace it. Let’s continue to redefine the industry and build something great. 📸 Photo by Ezekiel Jeremiah . . . . . . #bkrea #bkrealestateadvisors #commercialrealestate  #crebroker #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Market Presence is Critical! Since the early days, Massey Knakal produced regular newsletters to our clients which contained information on the market, our activities, and anything else we thought property owners would be interested in. We started with sending our four-page “Eastside Journal” out to the 1,500 owners who had assets on Manhattan’s upper east side between 55th Street and 63rd Street. As the firm grew, we changed the name to the “Building Sales Journal,” and at its peak, the distribution reached a whopping 300,303 per quarter in 3Q07. In those days (before email became popular), we were sending out over 3 million pieces of hard mail per year, and the size of the quarterly reached 32 pages. I often talk about creating your own market data, and within these newsletters, we presented our own market data on the sales market. We also featured information on our closed transactions. This was the ultimate in proof of concept “advertising” or “proof stacking,” as it is referred to today. These pieces became famous in the marketplace, and participants relied on them every quarter for the most up-to-date market data. Fortunately, I kept almost all of these newsletters, and they bring back great memories of “the old days”. If you want to impress your client base, present information of value to them and present it, without fail, periodically like clockwork! 👈 Swipe through to see what it looked like below 👇 . . . . . #throwbackthursday❤️ #marketing101 #throwbackthursday🔙 #hardcopy #monthlynewsletter #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Another in a series of “Thought of the Day” - Remember to be a good listener. We all have a lot to say but sometimes we should hold on to those thoughts until the other person is finished speaking. They may say something that makes us alter what we say, how we say it, and what we emphasize. Often, we are so busy thinking about what we want to say next, we are not hearing what the other person is really saying. If the person who is speaking is a client, it is critically important to listen intently, as they may give clues to getting retained to work with them or even getting a deal done. This goes for business situations as well as personal ones. Becoming a good listener is a very valuable skill and one which you should concentrate on. It will make you more successful. A couple of quotes to ponder on your journey to becoming a good listener: “It is better to know some of the questions, than all of the answers.” – James Thurber “Well-timed silence hath more eloquence than speech.” – Martin Farquhar Tupper Have a great day being a good listener today!! . . . . . . . #mondaymotivational #investmentsales #developmentsites #bkrea #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Another letter from 1989 – true class! Back in the old days at CB, Gerry Bridges was our mentor and really took care of Paul J. Massey and me. Gerry had been at CB for decades and was a lifer, working his way up from the “sign truck” in Los Angeles to a national accounts officer towards the end of his career. Gerry represented the old guard, as did Jim O’Brien who was also in a “national” position at the company and for many years was in the NYC office right across the hall from Gerry. Paul and I were constantly going to Gerry’s office, on the other side of the floor from ours, and we would routinely pass Jim’s office, always saying hello to him and stopping for the occasional chat. Often, when we went to Gerry’s office, Jim was in there chatting with him. The four of us would sometimes chat for quite a while and Paul and I learned a ton! By the time we left CB, Jim had moved up to the Boston office of CB and we hadn’t seen him in a while but that didn’t stop him from writing this very kind and thoughtful letter to us. A very classy move from a very classy guy at a time when many of the folks in senior management may have been upset that we left the company to branch out on our own. How could I have not saved this beauty? It also mentions my good friend Matt Ochalski, who ran the NY office for CB back then. Although Paul and I left, we remained friends with Matt and remain friends to this day. The world is indeed round – too many people forget that! . . . . . . #throwbackthursday #developmentsites #investmentsales #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

When a social media friend comes to NYC from Alabama, I have to accommodate him in The Knakal Map Room. Joe Powell, of Fidelity National Financial, recently came up from Tuscaloosa and we had a great visit talking all things real estate!! Great to see you Joe!! . . . . . . #knakalmaproom #developmentsites #investmentsales #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

It’s always fun to meet with folks you have done business with for decades. Recently, Lisa and Isaac Shalom came to visit The Knakal Map Room and we discussed several aspects of the market. I have dealt with Lisa and Isaac’s father, Nader, and his brothers, Fred and Robert, since the 1980s. So wonderful to see how smart and professional the next generation is!! Lisa and Isaac, you are welcome to come visit any time! . . . . . . #bkrea #theknakalmaproom #developmentsites #investmentsales #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Congratulations to my good friend @avi_hiaevee of @aviandcoo on his acquisition of 5 East 59th Street for $26 million!! . . . . . . #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers  #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor  #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre  #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites #bkrea

So you may be asking why I am posing with a very old-school painting of George Washington. Well, that painting has some very special sentimental value to me. When @pjmasseyjrr and I opened the doors of Massey Knakal on November 15, 1988, my two aunts showed up at the office and presented this painting to me. I had never seen the painting before, as it had been sitting in their basement collecting dust for decades. But they wanted me to have it because it was a very special painting. When my aunts presented me with the painting, they explained the history to me. My maternal grandfather was a plumber who was very patriotic and was an American history buff. He was also an entrepreneur (maybe where I got it) and opened his own plumbing shop after being an assistant plumber for many years. On the day he opened his plumbing business, my grandmother gave him this painting as a gift. My aunts gave me the same painting and said that it had brought my grandfather good luck over the years and they wanted the same for me. For 26 years and 46 days, the painting hung in every MK office I worked out of. Then it followed me to Cushman & Wakefield after the Massey Knakal sale. It also made its way to JLL with me but after a couple of years, JLL was renovating its space, which required moving offices and I brought George home with me. When we opened BKREA - BK Real Estate Advisors recently, I thought it would be appropriate to break George Washington out again and try to get that good luck vibe back in the air!! It’s great to have George watching over things at BKREA!! . . . . . . #throwbackthursday #bkrea #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Great to speak at the Wharton Club of NY last week. Nick Petkoff, who is a fellow @whartonschooll alum and Massey Knakal alum, organized the event and interviewed me. We talked about several aspects of the local real estate market in NYC along with an update on the many policies being negotiated in Albany currently that could be implemented very soon. Always great to be with fellow Wharton real estate folks! . . . . . . #wharton #whartonalumni #whartonclubny #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Another in a series of “Thought of the Day,” In order to motivate others, stick to your principles and core values, and don’t deviate from them, ever! The adage says, “Never cheat, never steal, never lie.” Holding onto your principles and being true to your values earns you the right to be proud of yourself and have tremendous confidence. You have two ways to go as a motivator for others: you can try to be liked by those you seek to lead or you can strive to be respected by those you seek to lead. If you choose the latter, which has much more sticking power, when their respect runs deep enough, you may end up being loved. As Thomas Jefferson once said, “In matters of style, swim with the current. In matters of principle, stand like a rock!” . . . . . . . #mondaymotivation #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Hot off the press and coming soon! Who wants one? If you have already signed up for one to be sent to you, no worries - we will get one sent to you! If you haven’t signed up yet, here’s the link: Just tap on the link in bio. It’s the 2nd option at the top. . . . . . . #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #developmentsites #investmentsales

Taking you back... to 1995. Notice the Rolodex and the shocking absence of a computer on the desk! And those files...all the files! This was the Massey Knakal office on the third floor of a commercial townhouse at 18 East 50th Street between Park and Madison Avenues. The building was formerly occupied in its entirety by the famous Bachrach photo studio that photographed several US Presidents in the building. Because it was fully owner-occupied for decades by the studio, the elevator was in the middle of the ground floor and all of our employees had to walk through the studio space on the ground floor in order to get to the elevator to get up to our space. The building was demolished in the early 2000s to make way for venting shafts for subway tunnels. Would love to see some of the other brokers who were around then share their photos! . . . . . . #throwbackthursday #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers  #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor  #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre  #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Concrete Thoughts on the Power of Mentorship In honor of my birthday this past Sunday, this week’s throwback goes back to 2012 and my 50th birthday party. 🎉 As many of us find in this business, the majority of our friends are real estate folks. Here is a photo of me with two friends and real estate giants: Stephen Siegel (left) and @jaredckushner. Jared and his father, Charlie, ran The Kushner Companies, LLC. Shortly after Jared purchased the @commercial_observer Commercial Observer, he asked me to write a regular column for him, which we call "Concrete Thoughts." I began writing for the publication in 2009 and, over 300 columns later, still write for CO regularly and remain greatly appreciative of the opportunity Jared gave me all those years ago. Steve is the Chairman of Global Brokerage at CBRE and is the "Babe Ruth" of commercial brokerage in NYC. Steve served on our MK Advisory Board for many years and has also served as a mentor to me over the years. People often ask me why I spend so much time speaking to and giving advice to young people about the business. It is because people like Steve took the time out of their day to talk to and guide me. I have greatly respected and admired Steve since I met him back in the 1980s and can say that I learned more from Steve Siegel over the years than from anyone else in the industry. Mentorship matters. You are never too important that you can't impart wisdom or truth to someone hungry for it. . . . . . . . #throwbackthursday❤️ #tbtpost #commercialobserver #lookback #bkrea #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

I'm truly honored to have been featured in The @mannreport for the 6th time with this insightful article about @bkrea_nyc - BK Real Estate Advisors and my journey in the real estate industry. A huge thank you to The Mann Report for sharing our story! After 40+ years and 2,332 transactions totaling more than $21 billion in NYC, it's exhilarating to return to my entrepreneurial roots and build a new path forward with BK Real Estate Advisors. Our team is embracing cutting-edge technology and data-driven insights to redefine what it means to be a brokerage in today's digital world. Most importantly, I'm incredibly proud of our growing team at BKREA and the servant leadership philosophy that guides us. I believe deeply in empowering others to start their own businesses or lead their own departments, and I'm thrilled to see so many of my former colleagues succeed in their own right. The world of real estate is changing, and we're ready to embrace it. Let's continue to redefine the industry and build something great. 📸 Photo by Ezekiel Jeremiah . . . . . . #bkrea #bkrealestateadvisors #commercialrealestate  #crebroker #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Another in the series of "Thought of the Day": Be the cause, not the effect. “Shallow people believe in luck. Wise and strong people believe in cause-and-effect.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson What do these things mean? They mean that you can make things happen if you put your mind to it. Self-discipline will help you get there. You need to have a plan and do what it takes to make things happen. At the beginning of the day, ask yourself, “What do I want to cause to happen today? What do I want to produce today?” People who have a hard time producing have a hard time asking themselves these questions because they are too busy thinking about what is going to happen to them instead of what they are going to cause to happen. Make no mistake about it: you can make things happen. In real estate brokerage, you can be proactive or you can be reactionary. When you are reactionary, you are helping others by being proactive. When you are proactive, you are advancing your agenda and moving towards achieving your objectives. In order to be proactive, you must use self-discipline. “Discipline is remembering what you want.” – David Campbell, Founder of Saks Fifth Avenue The myth, almost everyone believes, is that we “have” self-discipline. It’s something in us, a genetic gift, that we either have or we don’t. The truth is, we don’t “have” self-discipline; we “use” self-discipline. To think that you either have it or you don’t is a profound mistake. That’s a mistake that can ruin a life. But the good news is that it is never too late to correct that mistake in you. It’s never too late to learn the truth. Someone who says that they lack self-discipline has just simply failed to use it. If you truly understand that self-discipline is something one uses, not something one has, then you could use it to accomplish virtually any goal you ever set. You could use it whenever you wanted or leave it behind whenever you wanted. It’s a tool that anyone can use. You already possess everything you need to be successful – it’s simply having the mindset to use them. So, at the start of the day, ask yourself what you want to cause to happen today, and then… Well, you know what to do. #bkrea

Market Presence is Critical! Since the early days, Massey Knakal produced regular newsletters to our clients which contained information on the market, our activities, and anything else we thought property owners would be interested in. We started with sending our four-page “Eastside Journal” out to the 1,500 owners who had assets on Manhattan’s upper east side between 55th Street and 63rd Street. As the firm grew, we changed the name to the “Building Sales Journal,” and at its peak, the distribution reached a whopping 300,303 per quarter in 3Q07. In those days (before email became popular), we were sending out over 3 million pieces of hard mail per year, and the size of the quarterly reached 32 pages. I often talk about creating your own market data, and within these newsletters, we presented our own market data on the sales market. We also featured information on our closed transactions. This was the ultimate in proof of concept “advertising” or “proof stacking,” as it is referred to today. These pieces became famous in the marketplace, and participants relied on them every quarter for the most up-to-date market data. Fortunately, I kept almost all of these newsletters, and they bring back great memories of “the old days”. If you want to impress your client base, present information of value to them and present it, without fail, periodically like clockwork! 👈 Swipe through to see what it looked like below 👇 . . . . . #throwbackthursday❤️ #marketing101 #throwbackthursday🔙 #hardcopy #monthlynewsletter #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Another in a series of "Thought of the Day" - Remember to be a good listener. We all have a lot to say but sometimes we should hold on to those thoughts until the other person is finished speaking. They may say something that makes us alter what we say, how we say it, and what we emphasize. Often, we are so busy thinking about what we want to say next, we are not hearing what the other person is really saying. If the person who is speaking is a client, it is critically important to listen intently, as they may give clues to getting retained to work with them or even getting a deal done. This goes for business situations as well as personal ones. Becoming a good listener is a very valuable skill and one which you should concentrate on. It will make you more successful. A couple of quotes to ponder on your journey to becoming a good listener: “It is better to know some of the questions, than all of the answers.” – James Thurber “Well-timed silence hath more eloquence than speech.” – Martin Farquhar Tupper Have a great day being a good listener today!! . . . . . . . #mondaymotivational #investmentsales #developmentsites #bkrea #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Another letter from 1989 – true class! Back in the old days at CB, Gerry Bridges was our mentor and really took care of Paul J. Massey and me. Gerry had been at CB for decades and was a lifer, working his way up from the “sign truck” in Los Angeles to a national accounts officer towards the end of his career. Gerry represented the old guard, as did Jim O’Brien who was also in a “national” position at the company and for many years was in the NYC office right across the hall from Gerry. Paul and I were constantly going to Gerry’s office, on the other side of the floor from ours, and we would routinely pass Jim’s office, always saying hello to him and stopping for the occasional chat. Often, when we went to Gerry’s office, Jim was in there chatting with him. The four of us would sometimes chat for quite a while and Paul and I learned a ton! By the time we left CB, Jim had moved up to the Boston office of CB and we hadn’t seen him in a while but that didn’t stop him from writing this very kind and thoughtful letter to us. A very classy move from a very classy guy at a time when many of the folks in senior management may have been upset that we left the company to branch out on our own. How could I have not saved this beauty? It also mentions my good friend Matt Ochalski, who ran the NY office for CB back then. Although Paul and I left, we remained friends with Matt and remain friends to this day. The world is indeed round – too many people forget that! . . . . . . #throwbackthursday #developmentsites #investmentsales #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

When a social media friend comes to NYC from Alabama, I have to accommodate him in The Knakal Map Room. Joe Powell, of Fidelity National Financial, recently came up from Tuscaloosa and we had a great visit talking all things real estate!! Great to see you Joe!! . . . . . . #knakalmaproom #developmentsites #investmentsales #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

It's always fun to meet with folks you have done business with for decades. Recently, Lisa and Isaac Shalom came to visit The Knakal Map Room and we discussed several aspects of the market. I have dealt with Lisa and Isaac’s father, Nader, and his brothers, Fred and Robert, since the 1980s. So wonderful to see how smart and professional the next generation is!! Lisa and Isaac, you are welcome to come visit any time! . . . . . . #bkrea #theknakalmaproom #developmentsites #investmentsales #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Congratulations to my good friend @avi_hiaeve of @aviandco on his acquisition of 5 East 59th Street for $26 million!! . . . . . . #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers  #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor  #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre  #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites #bkrea

So you may be asking why I am posing with a very old-school painting of George Washington. Well, that painting has some very special sentimental value to me. When @pjmasseyjr and I opened the doors of Massey Knakal on November 15, 1988, my two aunts showed up at the office and presented this painting to me. I had never seen the painting before, as it had been sitting in their basement collecting dust for decades. But they wanted me to have it because it was a very special painting. When my aunts presented me with the painting, they explained the history to me. My maternal grandfather was a plumber who was very patriotic and was an American history buff. He was also an entrepreneur (maybe where I got it) and opened his own plumbing shop after being an assistant plumber for many years. On the day he opened his plumbing business, my grandmother gave him this painting as a gift. My aunts gave me the same painting and said that it had brought my grandfather good luck over the years and they wanted the same for me. For 26 years and 46 days, the painting hung in every MK office I worked out of. Then it followed me to Cushman & Wakefield after the Massey Knakal sale. It also made its way to JLL with me but after a couple of years, JLL was renovating its space, which required moving offices and I brought George home with me. When we opened BKREA - BK Real Estate Advisors recently, I thought it would be appropriate to break George Washington out again and try to get that good luck vibe back in the air!! It's great to have George watching over things at BKREA!! . . . . . . #throwbackthursday #bkrea #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Great to speak at the Wharton Club of NY last week. Nick Petkoff, who is a fellow @whartonschool alum and Massey Knakal alum, organized the event and interviewed me. We talked about several aspects of the local real estate market in NYC along with an update on the many policies being negotiated in Albany currently that could be implemented very soon. Always great to be with fellow Wharton real estate folks! . . . . . . #wharton #whartonalumni #whartonclubny #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Another in a series of "Thought of the Day," In order to motivate others, stick to your principles and core values, and don’t deviate from them, ever! The adage says, “Never cheat, never steal, never lie.” Holding onto your principles and being true to your values earns you the right to be proud of yourself and have tremendous confidence. You have two ways to go as a motivator for others: you can try to be liked by those you seek to lead or you can strive to be respected by those you seek to lead. If you choose the latter, which has much more sticking power, when their respect runs deep enough, you may end up being loved. As Thomas Jefferson once said, “In matters of style, swim with the current. In matters of principle, stand like a rock!” . . . . . . . #mondaymotivation #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Hot off the press and coming soon! Who wants one? If you have already signed up for one to be sent to you, no worries - we will get one sent to you! If you haven't signed up yet, here's the link: Just tap on the link in bio. It's the 2nd option at the top. . . . . . . #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #developmentsites #investmentsales

A nice site with ugly zoning! 606 West 30th Street was a 15,000 SF lot with a one-story building on it, the home to the NYC Department of Sanitation where they repaired their garbage trucks. DOS controlled the site but their lease was expiring. The site was just one block south of the massive Hudson Yards development and had a density factor (Floor to Area Ratio – “FAR”) of just 2.0 while, just across the street, some of the FARs were as high as 33.0. The site had a total buildable square footage of just 30,000 SF. How did we maximize price? We looked at the history of the site, looked at other properties on the block, and tried to figure out what the probability of a rezoning was. The sites to the east and south were ground leased by a developer in the process of going through a rezoning of those adjacent sites. While that process wasn't near its conclusion, it appeared that the rezoning had good traction. We focused our marketing on trying to convince buyers that a rezoning was possible. But what if the rezoning was not going to happen? What was the fallback position? At the time we were marketing the site, it had a value of somewhere in the $300 to $400 per BSF range ($9,000,000 to $12,000,000). Given the 30,000 BSF and the relatively large land size of 15,000 SF, we advocated for a site on which a slim tower could be built on a one-story base, creating the ability for a very rare amenity space on the roof of the one-story base. Think - private park, tennis court, basketball court, or any of a thousand possible amenities. With this very rare characteristic, a developer should pay an “above market price”, right? Most developers saw: ✅ As-of-right use ✅ Density They weren't seeing: ✅ The unique characteristics of the site ✅ The upzoning potential. However, a few developers were confident about the rezoning options and the result was a bidding war and a sale at $36,000,000 or $1,200 per BSF. Without the upzoning, this would have been a whopping overpayment. Look at the after photo and it's clear to see that the upzoning was successful. So the best of all outcomes were achieved, a great sale for the seller and a great price for the buyer. #bobknakal

Another in the series of “Thoughts for the Day”- Willpower is the Spring of All Your Actions To have a positive mental attitude is so important and so powerful. You control and are responsible for, your effort and your attitude. No one else makes us unhappy. We choose to be unhappy based on the actions of another or a particular event. It is like seeing a glass half full instead of half empty. It is the difference between feeling bad after an owner hangs up on you while cold calling and feeling happy because you’re that much closer to finding a receptive seller. The more positively you are able to look at things, the better your overall results will be. There are clearly times when negative feelings are justified and warranted. However, there are times when negativity is not appropriate. There are actually very few times when our outlook should not be positive, like when a loved one passes, or we are diagnosed with an untreatable terminal disease. We can think positively about almost every other situation and try to make the most of things. In the prison camps during World War II, it has been documented that the prisoners with the most positive mental attitude came through things in the best shape. Along with positive thinking you should use will power and continuous activity in order to be successful. Every outward manifestation is the result of will, but that power is not always used consciously. There is mechanical will as well as conscious will. Therefore, willpower is the spring of all your actions. In order not to use this energy, you would have to be completely inactive both physically and mentally. Even when you move your hand, you are using willpower. It is impossible to live without using this force. Mechanical will is an unthinking use of willpower. Conscious will is a vital force accompanying determination and effort, a dynamo that should be wisely directed. As you train yourself to use conscious, not mechanical, will, you should also be sure that your willpower is being used constructively. Continued in the comments... #mondaymotivation #businessinspiration #nycrealestate #bobknakal

Taking you back... to 1995. Notice the Rolodex and the shocking absence of a computer on the desk! And those files...all the files! This was the Massey Knakal office on the third floor of a commercial townhouse at 18 East 50th Street between Park and Madison Avenues. The building was formerly occupied in its entirety by the famous Bachrach photo studio that photographed several US Presidents in the building. Because it was fully owner-occupied for decades by the studio, the elevator was in the middle of the ground floor and all of our employees had to walk through the studio space on the ground floor in order to get to the elevator to get up to our space. The building was demolished in the early 2000s to make way for venting shafts for subway tunnels. Would love to see some of the other brokers who were around then share their photos! . . . . . . #throwbackthursday #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers  #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor  #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre  #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Another in a series of "Thought of the Day" - The Influence Equation Influence doesn’t come to us instantaneously; it increases gradually over time as we demonstrate capability and do the things we say we will, when we will. Nor does influence develop by accident; instead, it grows as we purposefully take action to earn the trust and win the respect of others. Work on becoming who you want to be intentionally. And if you want to have an impact on those around you, be reliable, do what you say, gain trust, win respect, and you will possess influence. #mondaymotivational #nycrealestate #nycbroker #commercialrealestate #crebroker #cre #bobknakal #bkrea #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #newyorkcityrealestate #industrialrealestate #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarkets #investmentsalesbroker #investmentsales #developmentsite

Recently, @CynthiaCharKnak and I went to dinner at Toku in Manhasset and had a drink at the bar before sitting down. We started chatting with the guys next to us at the bar. Wouldn’t you know it? A couple of commercial real estate guys!! @Fahad_Blacklist Rajput and Raunaq Singh shared deal stories with us and memories of dealing with Massey Knakal brokers in the old days! Real estate guys are everywhere!! . . . . . . #nycrealestate #investmentsales #developmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Great to get together and break bread with this group. Pictured from left to right: @onepagecasestudies Edward Winslow, @ricemoore.j, Duane Burress Sr., @faraz.cheema.cre, Me, @coryzelnik, and @theoriginaljimmyv. It’s always a good day when you can talk real estate! Thanks to Faraz for sending me the photo. . . . . . . #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers  #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor  #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre  #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Several months ago, I did a zoom with Olivia Ramos to see her software, @Deepblocks. I was very impressed. I attended the Future City event that The Real Deal held in the Bahamas recently and reconnected with Olivia. She gave a presentation at the conference and it was so great to see the several advances and enhancements the software contained. Recently, Olivia stopped by The Knakal Map Room to provide another overview. It keeps getting better and better!!! . . . . . . #developmentsites #AI #investsmentsales #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Many of my developer clients have been building big buildings for decades. Sometimes it's great to hang with an up-and-coming developer who you can tell is going to do great things in the future. Fahad Rajput is one of those up-and-comers! I see great things ahead for this aggressive, and smart, young guy!! Great to hang with you, @fahad_blacklist! . . . . . . #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmensites

The Most Ingenious Deal of the Year! This week we’re going back to 2003 and a photo of me with the @REBNY Most Ingenious Deal of the Year Award for the sale of a five-story bookstore building at 41 West 47th Street. The building is located on West 47th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in Midtown Manhattan. This particular block is the epicenter of the diamond/jewelry industry in NYC. The building was one of the few non-jewelry buildings on the block where few traded hands back in those days. It was owned by Andreas “Andy” Brown who ran an old-school bookshop out of the building. On this block, things were not always done in the most straightforward manner. As the marketing program unfolded, all types of crazy offers were coming in: part cash-part diamonds, part cash-part gold, part cash-part silver, and on and on. Andy was a very straight shooter and wanted none of this. We also knew that most people on the block knew each other. To get a prized non-jewelry building on the block would be a crowning achievement for the buyer. Some buyer had shills bid low to make their offers look better. There were many offers and most were around $4.5 million. Normally, bids are kept confidential, yet here everyone seemed to know what was going on. In those days, we used to fax offers over to Andy as they came in. Remember the old fax machines where the paper curled and 5 days later the fax was illegible? So how was there so much transparency about what was happening with the process? We discovered that one of the employees in the bookshop was being paid off to read the faxes and spill the beans. He was fired and we called for final offers in sealed envelopes. Andy had lunch across the street at Berger’s Deli the day the bids were due and as he was paying his check the cashier said, “Hi Mr. Brown, so your bids are due today? I understand $5.5 million is going to be the highest bid.” Andy returned to his office and at 4pm, we opened all of the bids. There were about 23 of them. The two highest offers were both $5.5 million! Continued inthe comments... #throwbackthursday #mostingenousdealoftheyear #rebny #nycrealestate #bobknakal

Another in a series of "Thought of the Day" Most of the people you know will never achieve great success. They'll dream about it. They'll talk about it. But most of them won't possess it. Why is that? Because most people don't understand success. It isn't the lottery. Nor is it a place you find when you reach some magical time of life. Success is not a destination thing- it's a daily thing and is a manifestation of the things you diligently do every day. Sometimes, it's about being decisive. Imagine that you have to make a big decision. But you just aren't sure about it. So you put it off. Sometimes that's a wise move because the timing just isn't right. When to act is as important as what to do and where to go. I believe that timing plays a critical role in many of the decisions we make. Waiting to act can be a wise decision as we might need more information, or perhaps the people who will be affected need to be prepared. But when you wait, are you always practicing good timing? Or do you put things off unnecessarily? In those cases, you may be procrastinating. Courage teaches us what should be feared and what should not be feared. Only by taking action do we gain that knowledge. So, to be a bit Shakespearian, “You must decide: To act, or not to act, that is the question? . . . . . . #mondaymotivational #nycrealestate #investmentsales #developmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Another in a series of "Thought of the Day" Most of the people you know will never achieve great success. They'll dream about it. They'll talk about it. But most of them won't possess it. Why is that? Because most people don't understand success. It isn't the lottery. Nor is it a place you find when you reach some magical time of life. Success is not a destination thing- it's a daily thing and is a manifestation of the things you diligently do every day. Sometimes, it's about being decisive. Imagine that you have to make a big decision. But you just aren't sure about it. So you put it off. Sometimes that's a wise move because the timing just isn't right. When to act is as important as what to do and where to go. I believe that timing plays a critical role in many of the decisions we make. Waiting to act can be a wise decision as we might need more information, or perhaps the people who will be affected need to be prepared. But when you wait, are you always practicing good timing? Or do you put things off unnecessarily? In those cases, you may be procrastinating. Courage teaches us what should be feared and what should not be feared. Only by taking action do we gain that knowledge. So, to be a bit Shakespearian, “You must decide: To act, or not to act, that is the question? . . . . . . #mondaymotivational #nycrealestate #investmentsales #developmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Another in a series of "Thought of the Day" Most of the people you know will never achieve great success. They'll dream about it. They'll talk about it. But most of them won't possess it. Why is that? Because most people don't understand success. It isn't the lottery. Nor is it a place you find when you reach some magical time of life. Success is not a destination thing- it's a daily thing and is a manifestation of the things you diligently do every day. Sometimes, it's about being decisive. Imagine that you have to make a big decision. But you just aren't sure about it. So you put it off. Sometimes that's a wise move because the timing just isn't right. When to act is as important as what to do and where to go. I believe that timing plays a critical role in many of the decisions we make. Waiting to act can be a wise decision as we might need more information, or perhaps the people who will be affected need to be prepared. But when you wait, are you always practicing good timing? Or do you put things off unnecessarily? In those cases, you may be procrastinating. Courage teaches us what should be feared and what should not be feared. Only by taking action do we gain that knowledge. So, to be a bit Shakespearian, “You must decide: To act, or not to act, that is the question? . . . . . . #mondaymotivational #nycrealestate #investmentsales #developmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

You never know who you will run into walking down the street in Manhattan. Last week, I ran into my good buddy, @coryzelnik and a new friend, @bklynbricks on Madison Avenue. When three real estate guys get together, the deal stories fly!! Gotta love NYC! . . . . . . . #commercialrealestate  #crebroker #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

I have always enjoyed speaking at and attending Anthony Kazasis’ NYC Real Estate Expos. This past week William Brown from the Expo came over to The Knakal Map Room to shoot some promotional video for the upcoming expo that Anthony promises to “be the biggest expo yet!”. I will be doing a session with my good friend and super marketing genius, @RyanSerhant. Can’t wait for the expo and to do this session with my buddy! . . . . . . #investmentsales #Developmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

The Value of Specialization and Market Expertise If you follow my writing and my videos, you know that I believe specialization is the best way to differentiate yourself from everyone else trying to do what you do, and that differentiation creates a competitive advantage. A big part of my brokerage practice revolves around land sales in NYC. Given the number of development sites we are selling at any one time, we see changes in the market almost instantaneously. This access to real-time market data helped us secure the listing and sell 415 Seventh Avenue several years ago – a parking lot at the southwest corner of 31st Street and Eighth Avenue. At the time, top land sales in Manhattan were topping out at about $400 per buildable square foot. We were selling two sites on the upper west side and assumed we would get around $400. Over just a few weeks, the offers started to climb by seemingly $50 per week and we signed a contract at a surprising price of $600 pbsf. Because it was just a contract signing and not a closed transaction, no one else knew about this deal price. We then called Christopher Schlank at Savanna Partners, whom we knew were interested in selling their Eighth Avenue site for some time, and told him we could get him over $600 pbsf for the site. Savanna interviewed three other brokers, all of whom told them the Eighth Avenue site was worth around $400. When Chris called me back, he said he thought we were bullshitting him about the value. We told him we would set our fee such that we were greatly incentivized to get over $600 pbsf. We were retained and sold the site for $65 million, $608 pbsf. Market expertise and specialization, allowed us to provide great advice to our client. Swipe to see what the seller had to say... . . . . . . #testimonialtuesday #commercialrealestate  #crebroker #crebrokers  #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Another in a series of “Thought of the Day” “May You Have Happiness” – an Irish Blessing May your joys be as bright as the morning, and your sorrows merely be shadows that fade in the sunlight of love. May you have: Enough happiness to keep you sweet; Enough trials to keep you strong; Enough sorrow to keep you human; Enough hope to keep you happy; Enough failure to keep you humble; Enough success to keep you eager; Enough friends to give you comfort; Enough determination to make each day a more wonderful day than the one before; Enough wealth to meet your needs. And one more thing: Enough faith and courage in yourself to banish sadness. . . . . . #mondaymotivation #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Great to see old friends!! Kent Swig and Andrew Simon stopped by The Knakal Map Room to talk shop. Sounds like some very exciting things are happening over at HelmsleySpear. Thanks for coming over, guys!! . . . . . . #theknakalmaproom #investmentsales #developmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Another is a series of "Thought of the Day": The University of Adversity By the time we graduate from high school, we have sat in a classroom for about 14,500 hours. But in all that time, what did we really learn? Yes, we know what pi is, can calculate the area of a triangle, and know how to diagram a sentence. Then, at college age, we can tell who is best at going to school and taking tests, but you can’t tell who the best people are. So in all that time, what have we learned that is going to help us succeed in life? I say that attending the University of Adversity is probably the best place to learn ways to succeed in life. And the good news is that we have all attended, or are attending, that institution! Pay close attention, as those lessons you will learn will benefit you for the rest of your life! . . . . . . #mondaymotivational #nycrealestate #investmentsales #developmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Another in a series of "Thought of the Day": You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret to your success is found in your daily routine. What daily activity will change your life? . . . . . . . #mondaymotivational #commercialrealestate  #crebroker #crebrokers  #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Market presence, not just in the present! Market participants in the commercial real estate market need to establish market presence. This presence keeps you top of mind when a decision-maker decides it is time to make a move. It doesn’t matter if you are an investor, developer, banker, lawyer, environmental consultant, or, especially, a broker. If you subscribe to the adage that "it's not who you know, it's who knows you," market presence becomes a key element of any business plan. Today’s Throwback presents the very first profile piece ever done on Paul J. Massey and me. This was back in 1988 when social media didn’t exist and all there was was print media and hard mail. I have already shared our first newsletter, a publication that we printed every quarter for over 26 years without missing a quarter (105 consecutive quarters). Additionally, we sent monthly mailers to our client base, which would typically consist of listings we were marketing, sales we just closed, or other market information that we thought owners would have interest in. When it came to print media, how were two young kids with limited track records going to get coverage? We attacked it strategically. ➡️ 1st - We made up a list of all the publications in NYC that covered commercial real estate. ➡️➡️ 2nd - We made up a list of all reporters at those publications. ➡️➡️➡️3rd - We systematically called them pitching story ideas and sending them mail about our activities. Back in those days, The Real Estate Weekly was the top real estate publication in the market. CB had about 60 brokers and we asked if anyone knew the editor of REW, Roxanne Donovan. Remarkably, no one knew her. So we called her and asked her to have lunch with us - at Prime Burger on 51st Street – where else? We had lunch, talked about what we were doing, nurtured the relationship, and many months later, Roxanne wrote this profile in the REW. Continued in the comments... #throwbackthursday #investmentsales #printmedia #earnedmedia #capitalmarkets #bobknakal #nycrealestate

This time, it was indeed “Who you know”! This transaction involved the sale of a 76,000-square-foot development site in Long Island City with 444,000 buildable square feet. The site had a subway tunnel under the property, which created a significant obstacle as a portion of the site could not be economically developed, creating a circumstance under which the full Zoning Floor Area could not be massed under the height restriction in the zoning district. A zoning variance from the Board of Standard and Appeals would have to be obtained – no easy task in NYC. The seller was from out of town and, therefore, interviewed 6 firms for this assignment, which is many more than usual. Given the competition that the seller put the brokerage community through, getting retained was a key part of this transaction, and being able to obtain key information from BSA and using that information to our maximum advantage helped secure the exclusive listing for us. Years of relationships with BSA personnel were key here. With this key information in hand, we walked into our pitch very confidently. We told the seller we would help them craft a case for the hardship by enlisting the help of several third-party professionals who could make compelling arguments for the variance. After an exhaustive discussion about all of the what-ifs, the conversation turned to the likelihood of getting the BSA variance – the key variable in the value of the site. The seller was of the opinion that they would go through the BSA process themselves and deliver the site to the market with the variance in place. I then told the seller that I had a comprehensive conversation with the folks at BSA and knew exactly what they would be looking for in a presentation to grant the variance and who their “favorite” attorney was that presented variance cases in front of the Board. Swipe to see what the seller had to say... Continued in the first comment...

Another in a series of "Thought of the Day": We must be proactive and creative, not reactionary. While this issue pertains to life in general, I believe it is particularly true in business, and more particularly our commercial real estate brokerage business. There are so many things going on each day that it is easy to sit at your desk and just react to things all day long. If you spend all of your time reacting, you cannot focus on what your goals and objectives are. You cannot focus on your plan. You cannot check things off of your to-do list. You cannot get where you want to go. People who have trouble getting where they want to go, have a basic problem; they are reacting to people all day long. In this state, they generally wallow in their negative emotional reactions to people. If this is you, you do not need to go through a huge change, just a gentle shift. You need to shift from reacting to creating. The difficulty in changing habits lies in the fact that we are changing something that feels completely natural to us. Good habits feel natural; bad habits feel natural. This is the nature of a habit. When you change a bad habit that feels natural to a good habit that feels natural, you feel exactly the same. It’s just that you get completely different results. Ask yourself the question first asked by Ralph Waldo Emerson many years ago: “Why would my happiness depend on the thoughts going on in someone else’s head?” This question, no matter how we answer it at any given moment, gives us the mental perspective we need to start seeing the possibilities for creatively relating to others instead of just reacting to them. Think about what you want to accomplish each day. Do what you need to to get those daily goals achieved. We want you to achieve your goals, get where you want to get, and have a happy, successful, and fulfilling life. The following quote from Rita Mae Brown is particularly appropriate: “A life of reaction is a life of slavery, intellectually, and spiritually. One must fight for a life of action, not reaction.” Continued in the comments... #mondaymotivational #nycrealestate #bobknakal #investmentsales #developmentsites

“Get that damn sign down right now!” Can you believe that back in 1985 I had a buyer actually yelling at me for putting a for sale sign on one of our buildings. Let me take you back there.. When Paul and I started brokering back in 1984, we wanted to be able to differentiate ourselves from everyone else who was selling buildings in NYC at the time. We were going to specialize and be able to clearly articulate our value proposition to potential clients. How did we do it? Very simply: we were going to work in small adjacent neighborhoods (which we called “territories”) and we were going to: 1) only sell buildings, 2) only represent sellers and 3) only work on exclusive listings. This was very easy to explain to potential clients. “We focus on your neighborhood and we only….” We would say it over and over, day after day, week after week and month after month. After a short while, everyone knew exactly what we did and how we did it. So taking this approach, of only representing sellers, we knew we had to get the very highest prices possible for the properties we were selling. After all, if we got low prices for our clients, who would ever hire us again? But if we got very high prices, everyone would hire us! This was the fundamental basis of our success. So how do you get the highest prices? By maximizing the exposure of every exclusively listed property. We would send mailings of the set up to investors, users, brokers, bankers, appraisers, and anyone else that we thought could buy the property or might know someone who might want to buy it. Our activities also included putting ads in the paper (the NY Times classified section was the social media of its day), and putting For Sale signs on our buildings – signs were not common back in those days. One of the photos attached to this post is of 1421 Third Avenue, the first building we ever sold. In the circle is a sign. I remember getting a call from investor Dan Abramson, who was a very active buyer back in those days. He said, “I got your set up and was interested in the property but then I went to go see the building and saw that you put up a For Sale sign. Why did you do that?” Continued in the comments...

Do we sell all or just a portion? This transaction was an offshoot of a much larger transaction. We had sold a portfolio of 4 office buildings for $198 million in a transaction that was purchased by two investor groups that teamed up. One of those groups ended up with ownership of two assets at 9 East 38th Street and 14 East 39th Street. 9 East 38th Street was a 12-story block-through office building with 47.5’ of frontage on 38th Street and 25’ of frontage on 39th Street. Also on the 39th Street frontage was a three-story, 25’ wide commercial building. The layout of the office building was a bit cumbersome, with just a narrow strip on the 39th Street frontage. The fact that 14 East 39th Street was just 25’ wide and three stories presented the owners with additional “air rights,” which would allow a larger building to be constructed on the site. When we were selling the four-property portfolio originally, we pitched the 39th Street frontage as a development opportunity. This would necessitate subdividing the 39th Street wing of the 38th Street property off of that building and combining it with the smaller building on 39th Street, demolishing both buildings and creating a 50’ wide development site on which a new building of 65,000 buildable square feet could be constructed. When the owner of the two assets on 38th & 39th Streets, ClearRock Properties, approached us about potentially selling the property, we suggested both properties be sold, or just the to-be-created 39th Street development site, the idea being to bring down the cost basis of a to-remain building on 38th Street and to hold onto that property. We were able to convince the seller that we could go down two paths simultaneously: a sale of the entire property or just the development site. The seller retained us to market both opportunities simultaneously. A subdivision of the 38th Street property was effectuated, and we sold the 39th Street properties to one of my favorite buyers, Sam Chang, the hotel developer, for about $32 million. Sam has built a Hyatt-branded hotel on the 39th Street site. Continued in the comments... #tuesdaytestimonial #nycrealestate #investmentsales

Another Throwback Thursday, another magazine cover. This one was from 2007 and the “long hair days.” How ironic that the quote pulled out of the article was about our business not being the real estate business, but it being the information business. The same quote was pulled out of the profile the New York Times did on me this past weekend! I miss the long hair days!! . . . . . . #commercialrealestate  #crebroker #crebrokers  #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Another reason why I think hard mail is so underrated! This deal story will not divulge any secret sauce or brilliant negotiating technique. The sale of 333 West 38th Street is an example of simply good old-fashioned “blocking and tackling”. The building was owned by a Polish newspaper publisher, Nowy Dziennk Publications. I had called the company back in 2003, two years before the Hudson Yard’s Rezoning was approved. The rezoning had been proposed, and based upon all of the support the rezoning had gotten, it was clear that it would pass. I moved my territory focus from the upper east side to Hudson Yards. That move paid off in a big way, as I have sold over 30 development sites in the area since then and created so much value for sellers in that area. My first call to Nowy Dziennk Publications produced a curt response from someone who would not identify themselves, saying in a thick accent that the building was not for sale, was the headquarters for the company, and would NEVER be sold. I called again a few months later and got the same response. A few months later and the same message was relayed. Notwithstanding this feedback, I made my quarterly calls, put them on my mailing list, and sent hard mail over there every month, just like I did to every owner in the area. Our mailings were compelling. We were gaining fast traction in the Yards, and with each new sale, a mailing discussing the transaction was sent to all owners. We were doing detailed market reports. At one point, we mailed out a map with dots and thumbnail photos of all of the development sites we had sold in the neighborhood. It was a very powerful marketing piece. In early 2011, the phone rang: “Bob, This is Barbara Wierzbianska from Nowy Dziennk. We own a building at...” “333 West 38th Street," I completed her sentence. I could hear her smiling on the other end of the phone. She told me she had been getting our mailings for years and wanted to chat as the company needed larger quarters and wanted to sell the building. We set up a meeting. Jonathan Hageman and I went over to their offices and met with Barbara and her CFO. Continued in the comments... #testimonialtuesday

We are selling a 26-unit apartment building in the Dumbo section of Brooklyn at 260 Water Street. No rent regulation here! 20 of the units were recently renovated and includes parking for 19 cars. Surging location. Strike while the iron is hot!! Email me for info: [email protected] Or send me a DM and I'll send you the link to the listing. . . . . . . #forsaleinnyc #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

True accountability has three parts: First, acknowledge that you had some to do with what’s happened. Second, explore your response options. Third, take corrective action. Then don’t look back. We cannot change the past; we can only alter the future. Focus on what you are doing to alter the future! . . . . . . #mondaymotivational #investmentsales #landforsale #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Lessons Learned - Knakal Knuggets #49: Create a One-Page Case Study for Every Transaction. Closing deals is a great thing. You have a happy client, have added to your track record, and have some money in the bank. But there are several other benefits and opportunities a closed deal affords you. One of the benefits you get from closing a transaction is the ability to use that transaction to help you get more of them! You can demonstrate your capabilities, show how you helped a client achieve their objectives, highlight the techniques you used to overcome adversity and helped your client and, importantly, you have an opportunity to have someone else say something nice about you, which is infinitely better than saying something nice about yourself. My coach, Rod Santomassimo, @themassimogroup prefers we call them “Success Stories” as opposed to case studies. Regardless of what you call them, these write-ups on your deals should be done each time. I regret not having done these since the beginning of my career. I have been doing them for years now and they are among the best and most powerful marketing materials that you can use to get new business. We call our success story write-ups “CARTs” and they include information on the Challenges we faced in the marketing of the asset, the Actions we took to overcome those challenges and the Results that were produced. Then, perhaps the most important part of the write-up is the Testimonial that you get from your client articulating what a great job you did. I have hundreds of these Success Stories written up and have created a book of them. Whenever we are pitching a new client, we bring the book with tabs on the pages for those transactions with similar circumstances to this present potential client. Let’s say the client is facing a partnership dispute. We will review the transactions we closed where there were partnership disputes. This shows the client we understand their predicament and have helped folks before who were in the same situation. Continued in the comments... #knakalknuggets #fridayfeelings #successstoryinthemaking #marketingtips

He was THE real estate transactional attorney of his day!! A few weeks ago, I mentioned the sale of several parking garages we sold for The Cromwell Group that did an LBO on Kinney Parking Systems in the mid-1980s. David Lender was the Executive Director of Cromwell and two of the equity partners were Lewis Katz and Andy Heine. Andy was the head real estate partner at Finley Kumble, one of the most active real estate law firms in NYC back in the 1980s and 1990s. After an initial round of sales to retire the $30 million of short-term debt that was part of the LBO which we completed in 1987, there was more work to do. The “long-term” debt as they called it, should have been referred to as “longer-term” debt as some of it had to be retired by the end of the following year. In early 1988, David and Andy called us and told us there was another batch of assets that had to be sold. We got the assignment and several additional assets were sold for them. As closing gifts, we bought the guys Waterford crystal clocks to sit on their desks. The attached letter is the one I got from Andy thanking us for the gift. So glad I held onto this one, as it serves as a reminder of some great deals and some great memories with great clients! . . . . . . #throwbackthursday #investmentsales #developmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Sometimes, the most rewarding deals aren’t the biggest! When I first starting canvassing in 1984, I called Vincent Guinee who owned a small mixed-use building at 230 East 63rd Street. Vincent was easy to get on the phone and we had a great rapport right off the bat. That is generally a bad thing because that type of owner will typically speak to everyone. Vincent lived in Houston and was one of the nicer owners I spoke to on my cold calling trails. We continued to call Vincent regularly, sending him hard mail every month and sharing detailed market information with him. After a couple of years of consistent contact, I knew I had earned Vincent’s trust given a call he made to me. New York City was planning on building a subway tunnel that would run under east 63rd Street and all owners on those blocks were sent a letter explaining what was happening. When Vincent got the letter, he called me to ask my opinion and it was apparent that he hadn’t spoken to anyone else. I was on my way to becoming a trusted advisor to Vincent. After several more conversations, Vincent let me know that he and his wife would be making a trip to NYC and wanted to get together. I met with Vincent and his wife, Nancy, who couldn’t have been nicer and had lunch at Bravo Gianni’s restaurant, which was a tenant in the building. Vincent and Nancy explained that the building had been in the family for decades and there was an emotional tie to the building for them. They had an apartment on the top floor of the three story building that they used to use when they were in town but had been staying at hotels for many years as the condition of the apartment was not great. They didn’t want to sell but were interested in knowing what the building was worth. We did a BOV. Over the next many years, the constant communication remained intact. Quarterly phone calls and monthly mailings were always sent. Anytime the Guniees had a real estate question, they called. Sadly, in 2010, Vincent passed away. Nancy was on the fence about what to do but decided to hold on. Then in mid-2011, Bravo Gianni closed, a victim of the Great Financial Crisis which they couldn’t recover from. Cont. in the comments...

Another in a series of “Thought of the Day” We often talk about market presence and the importance of implementing initiatives regularly over time to get the maximum results from them. These include prospecting calls, email blasts, text campaigns, hard mailings, face-to-face meetings and networking. These things all need to be done and need to be done all the time. With regard to all of these revenue-generating activities, remember that your motivation gets you going but discipline keeps you growing! That is the Law of Consistency. Consistency makes all the difference. Doing things intermittently dilutes the efforts significantly. It doesn’t matter how talented you are, how good your information is, or how many opportunities you receive. If you are not doing these things like clockwork, you will not get nearly the return on the investment that you could if your cadence is consistent! If you want to grow and get the most out of your efforts, consistency is the key! . . . . . . #commercialrealestate  #crebroker  #crebrokers  #nycbroker  #nycbrokers #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

He was the dean of investment sales brokers in NYC. @REBNY 's Most Ingenious Deal of the Year Award is named after him. Everyone in the industry loved him. I didn’t know Henry Hart Rice exceptionally well. I did speak to him regularly, as he owned many properties in my territory. And I did see him at REBNY’s Sales Broker’s Committee luncheons every month (and always positioned myself to try to sit next to him whenever I could) but I did know him well enough to know at least some of the reasons Henry was so beloved. In early 1990, Massey Knakal moved out of our first office, an 18-month sublet with 3 rooms and a pink shag carpet at 16 East 52nd Street. We moved to larger quarters at 226 East 54th Street and grew to just over 1,000 square feet—a big accomplishment for us at the time. We sent out an announcement about our move and, of course, Henry Hart Rice wrote a letter to us to congratulate us. This was only one of many letters Henry sent me over the years that I have saved. I wonder how many thousands of letters Henry sent out during his career? For someone of his stature to send a letter like this tells you everything you need to know about the man. And it meant enough to me to hold onto the letter for these 34 years since he was so kind to have sent it! So why do I take the calls I do? Why do I respond to as many of the emails and DMs I get as I possibly can? Because I remember what Henry did for me, and if I can inspire folks even a fraction of the way Henry inspired me, I will feel great! . . . . . . #throwbackthursday #mentorshipmatters #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #developmentsites #investmentsales

A not-so-obvious development site. Sometimes the key to making a deal is simply understanding the asset. 5 East 44th Street was a small, 27-foot-wide, six-story office building containing about 16,000 gross square feet. The building was owned and occupied by Overseas Courier Service Co. LTD, a Japanese company that was the equivalent of the FedEx of Japan that also operated in the US. This location was their US headquarters. When OCS decided it was time to sell their building and move to larger quarters, they interviewed three brokerage firms. As is normally the case, we always try to present last as that is generally an advantageous position. The client knows what the other folks have said about the value and in your marketing presentation you may bring up things the others didn’t or forgot to. If you forget something and one of the other firms brings it up, the client is very likely to ask you about it, giving you an opportunity to address the issue. This was an unusual asset as the width was relatively narrow and the existing building had been occupied by OCS for many years. Many of the buildings of this nature in midtown Manhattan are owner-occupied. The folks who were in charge of the OCS offices in NYC were not the folks who were around when the building was purchased. When we went into the pitch, we immediately said that the highest and best use of the property was for development. Either a hotel or residential condo would produce the highest land value. The sellers were surprised to hear about the over 19,000 buildable square feet of unused development rights that were sitting on top of the building. The other brokers hadn’t mentioned it. Perhaps it was the narrow width or perhaps they were under the impression the “sliver law” applied, which inhibits the development of lots less than 45’ wide in most Manhattan zoning districts. However, some of the zones in midtown are exempt from this restrictive law. Zoning in NYC can be complicated but this should have been known. Swipe to see what the seller had to say... Continued in the comments... #testimonialtuesday #nycrealestate #investmentsales #developmentsites

Another in a series of “Thought of the Day.” If you fail at something, learn from it, forget about it, and move on!! Failure is okay and is actually a good sign. If you are not failing at some things you are probably not pushing the envelope hard enough nor challenging yourself enough. The Irish playwright, George Bernard Shaw, was quoted as saying, “A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.” Why “useful”? Because they are opportunities to learn. Think about why you weren’t successful. What could you have done differently? Could you have prepared differently? Could you have gotten input from someone who could have helped? Professor S.I. Hayakawa would often say there are two kinds of people: those who fail and say, “I failed at that,” and those who say, “I am a failure.”. The first person is in touch with the truth and the second is not. The second is also setting themselves up for future failures if they are so down on themselves and think so negatively. So when something doesn’t go just right, learn what you can from your failures and move on, knowing that you need to keep getting out of your comfort zone to really grow. . . . . . . #mondaymotivational #commercialrealestate  #crebroker #crebrokers  #nycbroker #nycbrokers  #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker  #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting  #nycrealestatebroker  #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

The New York State Society of Certified Public Accountant’s Real Estate Committee held its annual event recently and I was honored to be a keynote speaker. At the event I saw many old friends including Gerry Nocera whom I worked with back at CB back in the 1980s. It was great to catch up with my old friend who has become a very successful investor on the principal side of the business as the Managing Partner at Resolution Real Estate Partners LLC. So happy for your success my friend!! . . . .. . . #commercialrealestate  #crebroker #crebrokers  #nycbroker #nycbrokers  #bobknakal  #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate  #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets #investmentsales #developmentsites

Recently we were fortunate enough to host Skylight Real Estate Partners at The Knakal Map Room. I have known each of the principals, Benjamin Joseph, Andrew Miller, & Gavin Evans for many years, as they were all at different places years ago. They have now joined forces to form Skylight and are looking for development opportunities in Manhattan. We already have them on a great site and hope to have a contract out shortly. Magic happens in that room!! Guys, let’s get this one done!! . . . . . . #TheKnakalMapRoom #developmentsite #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Never need an excuse to see my good friend @ShlomoChopp. We had breakfast to discuss a few interesting topics—real estate related, of course!! Can’t tell you where that breakfast was as it might give too many clues about the undisclosed location of The Knakal Map Room!! Always great to see you, Shlomo!! . . . . . . #theknakalmaproom #nycrealestate #investmentsales #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Never know when a chance meeting might pop up. I was making prospecting calls and verifying some development comps and got Jack Ezra on the phone. Turns out his office is very close by The Knakal Map Room so Ryan Candel and I popped over two minutes later to say hello in person. Gotta love NYC!! Great to meet you Jack!! . . . . . . #TheKnakalMapRoom #investmentsales #developmentsits #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

How cool is it that The Knakal Map Room hosted folks from The Rockefeller Group recently? Our good friends Meg Brod and Isaac Henderson came over and we spent over two hours pouring over The Map and discussing opportunities. With over 900 potential single-parcel development sites we have identified in Manhattan south of 96th Street, there’s lots to talk about. We may have discussed almost all of them!! Meg and Isaac, thanks so much for the insightful conversation!! . . . . . . #TheKnakalMapRoom #developmentsites #investmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Leaders can have concerns, but shouldn’t “worry”. We don’t inspire anyone by worrying about what is happening, and in today’s market, who would blame someone for having worries? Well, leaders don’t help anyone by worrying. It is said that “worry” is a misuse of imagination. We need to upgrade our worries into concerns. After you express your concerns, you then must create a pathway of solutions to address those concerns. My old partner, Paul Massey, used to always say to colleagues who would “complain” about something, “Don’t throw-up a hairball on the table without suggesting an idea about how to solve the problem”. Leaders imagine and suggest solutions. Instead of worrying and demonstrating that worry to those you are leading, imagine some action you can take now to address the problem. Something bold, beautiful, and potentially ground-breaking to solve the so-called problem. If you routinely do this, it will inspire those around you and encourage folks to come up with their own suggestions for solutions to perceived problems. It also leads to a happier life if you are a problem solver and that love of life is motivating to people within that ecosystem. Worrying leads to deflation within others within the ecosystem. So if you are worried about something, convert that worry into a concern but do everything you can to come up with a thoughtful solution to overcome that concern. It will be inspiring to those around you! . . . . . . #mondaymotivational #investmentsales #developmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

Could anything be more fitting than having an active construction lender visit The Knakal Map Room? We were so pleased to have Vincent Martucci Senior Vice President and Team Leader at an active construction lender from Popular Bank over to talk about deals we are seeing in the market and the active developers who are changing the skyline of Manhattan. It's always a learning experience to have active market participants over to look at The Map! It was wonderful to have you over, Vinnie!! . . . . . . . . #theknakalmaproom #nycrealestate #investmentsales #developmentsites #commercialrealestate #crebroker #crebrokers #nycbroker #nycbrokers #bobknakal #commercialrealestatebroker #commercialrealestateinvestor #commercialrealestateinvesting #nycrealestatebroker #nycrealestate #nyccre #newyorkcityrealestate #industrial #commercialrealestatebrokers #jll #isellbuildings #isellnewyork #capitalmarket #capitalmarkets

I’m a restaurant guy; help me!! It is remarkable to me how many restaurant owners own their buildings. The average restaurant in NYC has an expected longevity of less than 2 years. And those who make it often have issues when their leases expire if their landlord knows they are doing well. One of the ways to avoid getting held up by a landlord who sees how well the restaurant is doing is for the restaurateur to purchase the building the restaurant is in. Owning the building creates certainty for the operator. Interestingly, while real estate is not their main business, I have found restaurant operators to be extraordinarily interested in real estate. They are likely to take your calls and always want to know what else is going on in the neighborhood and on the block. They are the perfect prospect for a broker wanting to build long-term relationships. Over the years, we have sold dozens of buildings for restaurant guys. Anthony DiSeverio was one of those clients. He owned and ran Abruzzi Restaurant at 37 West 56th Street. The three adjacent buildings to the east were owned by an attorney. I spoke to him several times but he never would meet with me and when he decided to sell his buildings, he sold them himself for about $9 million each to an active developer. Meanwhile, I spoke to Anthony regularly, every quarter or so. I also sent him mail (hard mail in those days) every month with information about the neighborhood. Each time I called Anthony, we had a nice conversation and he would regularly invite me over for some pasta and to talk about the market. When he was approached by the developer who purchased the three buildings next door, he called me right away. “Bob, I need your help. Come over for some penne. I have to talk to you!” I loved his penne with vodka sauce with prosciutto added to the sauce! Over lunch, he told me that he got a great offer and thought it was time to sell and move on. Continued in the comments... #testimonialtuesday #investmentsales #nycrealestate #nycrealestatebroker #developmentsites #investmentsales #capitalmarkets #bobknakal #theknakalmaproom #nyctopbroker