David Fernandez
Founder and Principal
Team Fernandez, Compass
Years in Business: 12
Size: 5 agents
Regions Served: All five boroughs of New York City
2019 Sales Volume: $57 million
2019 Transactions: 100
David Fernandez serves as founder and principal of Compass’ Team Fernandez, representing real estate in New York City. He has more than a dozen years of real estate experience, including working alongside a major South Brooklyn developer as an owner’s representative.
“While we represent real estate in every corner of New York City and at every price point imaginable, we love launching new buildings that contain compact units in lesser-known pockets of Brooklyn where the prospective purchasers can attain so much more for their dollar,” he says.
How would you characterize the New York City market over the past year?
David Fernandez: 2019 was a rollercoaster ride where we experienced some of the sweetest highs mixed with disappointing lows. With the unique nature of the current political and economic climate, there have been twists and turns that exemplify a cautious market. When we have listed desirable product at a very effective price from day one, the property had the same demand and traded just as fast as it would have in a pure seller’s market.
Are there any market segments/niches you’ve recently expanded into, or are considering expanding into?
DF: Team Fernandez is most synonymous with new development in Brooklyn. While we have done a healthy amount of business in all five boroughs, Brooklyn is typically where the majority of our business takes place. In 2020, however, we will be launching our first new development project on the border of the East Village and Lower East Side, and we are working on securing two additional projects in Manhattan right now (at press time).
How do you stay on top of trends and innovations?
DF: Our five team members come from varied professional backgrounds, and we all keep one another grounded with interesting news and information from our areas of interest. In addition, we focus on staying up to date with industry publications, neighborhood blogs and podcasts.
What are some new technologies you’ve implemented, and how are they helping your agents and consumers?
DF: Compass has led the way for implementing new technology into our business practices. Coming Soon has enabled us to pre-market our listings without accruing days on the market, while Bridge Loans has helped save deals that otherwise might not be possible. Most importantly, Concierge has enabled us to spruce up and physically stage entire properties in order to raise value and marketability.
What’s the biggest mistake you ever made in the business?
DF: Passing up on a new development building a few years ago (that was directly offered for us to represent). At that time, we believed it was lacking certain critical elements and that it would not be a successful project. This developer went on to sell out the building in a decent time period and then unexpectedly grew to build more elaborate buildings in more prime areas very quickly. We’ll never turn down a development opportunity ever again without first doing an extraordinary amount of due diligence.
Keith Loria is a contributing editor to RISMedia.
