Shrugging off a short-lived career in accounting, he followed his childhood memories
Ron Koenigsberg, president of American Investment Properties Inc. (AIP), hadn’t planned on becoming a commercial real estate broker.
As a youth growing up in Plainview, Long Island it seemed his destiny was to be an accountant. His father, Milton, a retired financial planner, property syndicator, and real estate owner, once gathered his sons and told them their futures, Koenigsberg recalled. “My father put one hand on my brother Jay’s head and one on my head and said, “one is my attorney and one my accountant.”
Koenigsberg’s brother, Jay, has practiced law since 1984. Ron Koenigsberg, meanwhile, went on to study accounting at American University in Washington, D.C., and got a job in the late 1980s with Arthur Andersen, then one of the so-called “Big Five” CPA firms. Koenigsberg soon realized he wasn’t cut out for accountancy, despite a talent for meeting the rigorous demands of the numbers-oriented environment. “I’m a people person,” he explained. After a year, he decided that he had enough and, during an exit interview at Anderson, he was told by a supervisor, “You weren’t meant to be an accountant. Go sell something.”
And he did. He sold real estate. A lot of it. Indeed, in just 16 years he has become one of the most successful brokers on Long Island. He recently was recognized by Long Island Business News as Commercial Broker of the Year.
Koenigsberg, now 53, said he chose to enter the real estate business because childhood memories of watching his father survey buildings and construction sites tugged at him. “Helping people like my father find the perfect property to call their own eventually became my ultimate dream,” he said.
Deciding to put to use the insights into the tax and financial aspects of real estate he learned at Anderson, Koenigsberg went on to earn a master’s degree in real estate and development at New York University’s Real Estate Institute in 1990. He then joined the New York office of Japanese insurer Chiyoda Mutual Life as head of real estate acquisitions. There, handling an annual budget of $360 million, he demonstrated an aptitude for large-scale capital management and deepened his financial expertise. His next move took him to a Long Island–based commercial brokerage firm, where he applied the knowledge he’d gained at Chiyoda to the opportunities and challenges of the Long Island market.
In 2001, Koenigsberg set out on his own, establishing American Investment Properties Inc., where he represents and sells all type of commercial properties to investors. The firm is unique in that it does no leasing and it handles only exclusive listings. Koenigsberg provides his clients with investments that will provide them annual returns and long-term appreciation.
When he struck out on his own, Koenigsberg did so within the offices of a long-time family friend, the late developer Vincent Polimeni. “He took me under his wing like a son,” the broker recalled. Koenigsberg operated on his own from Polimeni’s offices until 2006, when he reaped enough success to move AIP into its own, larger space. He didn’t go far, finding offices in Polimeni’s I.M. Pei-designed building at 600 Old Country Rd. in Garden City. AIP has since included other real estate brokers, salespeople and a variety of support staffers.
Koenigsberg, who in 2015 completed the rigorous Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) designation process, doesn’t want to stop there. “In terms of investment sales on Long Island, we’re going to be the dominant market leader and we’re going to grow,” he said. ” “We really and truly want to build a dynamic firm.” Koenigsberg also added that AIP is always looking to add more brokers to its team.
In 2016, Koenigsberg sold properties valued at about $50 million, including 246,515 square feet of commercial space. Among his most significant transactions was the sale of 117,000-square-foot Cherry Valley Shopping Center in West Hempstead, which was sold for $27 million to a 1031-exchange buyer who needed a replacement property for a recently sold building. The transaction at $230 per square foot represented a cap rate of just 5.15 percent on actual income.
Koenigsberg says that AIP distinguishes itself among its many competitors in that the firm only handles—at least for now—properties on Long Island, representing only sellers. “We align our interest with our client, the seller,” said Koenigsberg. “We co-broker all of our deals. Any broker who says they will not market a property to other brokers is only interested in keeping 100 percent of the commission. I say the greater the exposure, the greater the price. That’s ultimately our goal—to bring the seller the absolutely highest profit.”
He and his staff begin each assignment by developing a complimentary evaluation, or as he calls it, a broker price opinion—a detailed description of the property market and an analysis of what a property is worth and why it’s priced at that point. “I’m in the information business,” he says, “I provide the seller with as much information as humanly possible.”
He also blogs regularly for his business and produces videos for his web site, discussing a variety of issues, including a recent item headlined “Cannabis in Commercial Real Estate.” And, he often is on the phone, chatting with past and current clients. Many of his clients are repeat customers, and he enjoys speaking with them to see if he can add value for his clients.
Koenigsberg’s successful marketing efforts win kudos from his clients, including from James Bassil, for whom he recently sold three adjacent properties in downtown Franklin Square totaling 41,000 square feet. Bassil said he hired AIP after interviewing several brokerage firms and after hiring a national commercial real estate firm to market his three buildings before hiring American Investment Properties. “AIP went right to work, bringing in bids and eventually selecting a buyer. The deal was long and complex and I often called Ron on his cell at all hours of the day, nights, and weekends. In the end, Ron and his team got me top dollar for my property,” Bassil said.
There is more to Koenigsberg than selling real estate. He’s a family guy, who enjoys spending time with his wife and two young boys. And Koenigsberg is a New York Jet’s season-ticket holder—he’s been one for 23 seasons—and also roots for the New York Mets. He is a member of the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity and the Long Island Real Estate Group.
Add Comment