Corcoran’s Paula Novick Guides Clients Through Home Buying and New York Living
How many brokers update clients past and present on the latest art auction? For Paula Novick, it’s not only a part of the job, it’s a part of her life.
Over a three-decade real estate career, infinite patience with her clients, a vast knowledge of New York’s neighborhoods, and a love of the arts have made Novick, an associate broker at Corcoran, successful. But for her the benefits of her work extends beyond that. Novick not only finds her clients homes, but she works to also enhance their lives, recommending or hosting them at events, texting, and generally keeping in touch. The type of personalized service Novick provides keeps her clients coming back to her time and time again, through multiple transactions.
“Many of my customers have become friends,” Novick said.
It isn’t unusual for Novick to host clients at gallery events, the ballet or opera, or to recommend various events for those new to Carnegie Hill, the Upper East Side, or the Upper West Side. This knowledge is a result of Novick’s 30 years in the industry (the last 15 with Corcoran) and her own love of the arts.
Originally a fashion stylist after attending the New York School of Interior Design and the New York School of Photography, she came into the real estate industry, believe it or not, in search of a more consistent schedule.
“As a stylist, I could work for a week of buying then shoot and then a week of returning, and those days could last from 6 a.m. to midnight. I had a small child at home and that didn’t work,” Novick recalled.
A friend suggested she take the real estate exam and work with a small company. But the business in the late 1980s bore no resemblance to the high-tech industry it is today, she noted. Exclusives were unheard of, and the industry was much smaller, with many brokers working in the business as a sideline rather than a full-time career.
“If someone called looking for a classic six, we had large loose-leaf books and we’d call back in a day or two,” she said. “It was a free-for-all, really.”
But Novick and the industry clicked, and she went on to work with larger firms, including Douglas Elliman, before moving to Corcoran.
“I have such a passion when I [work],” she said. “I’ve come across such amazing people.”
Though based in Carnegie Hill, she has worked with clients on the Upper East Side, and even the Upper West Side, at a time when few brokers (or clients) crossed the park. Raising her own son through the public and private school systems in the city helped to familiarize her with various neighborhoods, and gave her a keen instinct as to what works to promote a property, and to match a buyer and home.
“I could sell downtown or I could go to Flushing,” Novick stated.
The result is a wide range of clients, from best-selling authors seeking large townhomes and penthouses to an up-and-coming artist looking for a small Carnegie Hill studio on a minuscule budget. She guides her clients through the purchase and board approval process thoroughly, resulting in multiple client letters of that cite her leadership, negotiating skills and understanding of the market.
And those relationships have resulted in some unusual perks: Her client list includes celebrity author Jude Devereaux, who dedicated a novel to her, referring to her as a “realtor extraordinaire” and thanking her “becoming a friend along the way.”
Deveraux isn’t alone. Many of Novick’s clients have become friends after the closing, and turn to her again for real estate guidance. That loyalty has continued through multiple generations—she found an apartment for a parent at her son’s school, and decades later worked with the same parent’s child.
“I’m waiting for the granddaughters to pop up and say they need an apartment,” Novick said while laughing.
The key, she says, is spending time with her client; And she did just that as she took one to 60 different listings.
“Finally, [the client] was exhausted,” she said, and Novick recommended they wait a little longer before visiting more properties. The next week, the right home became available at the right price. “It’s never about the price. It’s always about what’s best for the client, even if that apartment was a lower price.”
For sellers, her background in design and as a stylist help her to promote and stage apartments. A recent listing had been dormant for two years with another broker. Novick staged it, and sold it quickly.
Unlike many residential brokers, Novick has not built a large team, preferring to handle the details herself.
“I love making the deals and meeting the people,” she said. “Every deal is different.”
The markets are different, too, she noted, with the Upper East Side drawing fewer young professionals, though that may change as they start families and want proximity to the area’s schools.
“It’s changed where the neighborhood has expanded. Not everyone can afford Brooklyn. I’m keeping an eye on markets including Elmhurst and Long Island City,” she observed.
Transportation also is a factor. The debut of the Q train along Second Avenue has even made Novick’s own life easier, allowing her to get from her own home on the far East Side to other areas of the city much faster.
An art aficionado, theatergoer, golfer, and member of four museums, Novick also remains active in philanthropy, running Corcoran Cares, through which she assists Search & Care, a Carnegie Hill-based organization that looks in on the elderly in the community, running errands, and offering emotional support. Corcoran staff donate from their paychecks, with the sums donated once or twice yearly.
“It’s such a nice charity, and it’s here,” she said. “I could choose a larger, better known organization, but I feel we can make a greater impact with Search & Care.”
As Novick continues to make an impact with Search & Care, she also continues to make an impact on her clients, by creating long-lasting friendships and finding the perfect home.
Paula Novick
Associate Broker
Corcoran
1226 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10128
212-360-1671
pln@corcoran.com
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