BOND New York recently announced the opening of its first Brooklyn location in Williamsburg, strategically located at 713 Lorimer Street, just one block from McCarren Park on the border of the Williamsburg and Greenpoint neighborhoods. The 1,000 square-foot corner retail office will serve as a home base for approximately 40 agents specializing in Brooklyn’s local markets, and a real estate resource center for residents and businesses of the surrounding communities.
BOND New York has recruited Walter Steffen to be the office’s managing director, where he will be tasked with growing the firm’s already-significant presence in the borough. Steffen is a Brooklyn native, and comes to BOND with 22 years of real estate experience, most recently at Corcoran, where he led that firm’s top-producing residential rental team for Brooklyn and Queens. Previously, he worked in the borough as an accomplished agent at both Compass and NestSeekers, and has deep professional and personal roots in the Greenpoint neighborhood. Steffen holds a degree from the State University of New York at New Paltz.
Co-founder Bruno Ricciotti explains that BOND New York’s emergence in Brooklyn has been a long time coming, as he and partner Noah Freedman have been interested in expanding there for the better part of the last decade. “Though our origins over 22 years ago were primarily in Manhattan, we do a tremendous number of sales transactions right here in North and West Brooklyn, and we actually have even more buyer side Brooklyn business than we do in Manhattan,” says Ricciotti. “It’s been a vibrant market here for quite some time, and I believe we generate more buyer leads in brownstone Brooklyn and the Williamsburg / Greenpoint / Bushwick areas than any other firm in New York. An outsized portion of our sales business has been derived from those neighborhoods for years now.”
Co-founder Noah Freedman adds that he also sees a personal connection to the new location. “I actually lived in Greenpoint in my early 30s and it’s always had a special place for me. It’s been interesting to see how the area has changed and I’m excited to be returning to the community,” Freedman explains.
Ricciotti thinks that Steffen will serve as a strong representation of the brand’s values as he takes on the role of the office’s new managing director. “Walter is a respected professional who has both experience and credibility with property owners and agents alike. He exclusively oversees a portfolio of over 80 buildings in the area, and has a strong understanding of the local market dynamics, while being personable and approachable to advise agents on growing their business.”
Steffen’s respect for his new firm is mutual. As he explains, “I have admired the way that BOND does business for most of my career, and have watched them grow tremendously over the past two decades – but always in organic ways, without losing their core values.” He continues, “In fact, I’ve wanted to work with this team for quite a while, which is why it’s so significant that they’ve decided to make a deeper commitment to Brooklyn by opening their first office here, in my lifelong home neighborhood. I believe that this firm has one of the most effective platforms to enhance property owners’ asset values and generate business for agents by producing superior results for their clients – and that’s what it’s all about in the end.”
BOND Principal Partners Noah Freedman and Bruno Ricciotti represented BOND New York in the deal for the corner retail office, while Nicole Restani from Myspace represented the property owner. The lease term is for five years.
