Bess Freedman

Above, Bess Freedman. Recently, while traveling, I went to the gym at a little hotel. When I walked in, there was a small counter offering protein bars, trail mix, Gatorade and water—all available on the honor system. A simple sign read: “Please take what you want, leave your name and room number and we will…

The past few weeks, I’ve heard from more than a few friends and colleagues and even relatives outside of New York: “Are people really leaving? How bad is it? Are you moving?” It’s an understandable sentiment given the flood of national headlines suggesting that New Yorkers are once again packing up for Connecticut or Florida,…

If you are smart enough to rely on experts to guide you through a process,  then that means you are also smart enough to know when some so-called “experts” are faking it. Unfortunately, sometimes that wisdom doesn’t come until it’s too late. When you see smart people with money choose to do something, you assume…

The real estate industry woke up Sept. 22 to find that two of the country’s largest residential brokerages were merging. Compass announced it is acquiring Anywhere in a broad stroke that combines Corcoran, Sotheby’s Coldwell Banker, Better Homes & Gardens and Century 21 under the same umbrella. While yes, this is big news–I cannot say…

Understanding history helps guide tomorrow, and in the context of real estate—it is incredibly prescient. Likewise, the sharing of opinions and information is a fundamental underpinning of free markets; trying to stifle discussion is suppressive and a bully tactic.   Last week, I received a Cease and Desist letter from Compass related to my recent opinion…

For months, Compass has been touting a Private Exclusive Network as part of a three-stage marketing strategy for homesellers, and while it sounds great in marketing jargon, its core purpose is much more dubious. Private Exclusives are a way for Compass agents to grab both ends of a transaction away from the public market. At…