Featured post

Welcome to Westchester’s First Friday Real Estate Network Group

This group consists of Westchester based professionals in real estate and related trades.  We typically meet the first Friday of each month during the school year for the purpose of networking, sharing ideas and problem solving. If you would like to be considered for membership, please contact Jeremy Glantz at jglantzrealestate.com, John Loveless at jloveless@bpslaw.com, David Perlmutter at david@perlmutterproperties.com, or Ken Fuirst at kfuirst@levittfuirst.com.

Upcoming Meeting Dates:

Tentatively schedule for October 2nd at 8:00 am at Bleakley Platt & Schmidt

 

September’s Meeting Will Happen in October!

Hi folks, things got away from us. It looks like the September meeting will not be held. We’ll shoot for October 2nd at Bleakley Platt, pending verification of the conference room’s availability.

In the meantime, please download David Perlmutter’s new iPhone app, QuantumListing. Register and he’ll give you a year’s free Premium Membership. Ken Fuirst and Jeremy Glantz have both done it, and they have both seen a 100% increase in business. Well that last bit is not true – yet….

Member Spotlight: Gordon Platt, Gotham Media Strategies

Gotham Media is a digital strategy, marketing and communications firm that empowers our clients to reach out directly to prospective clients and customers.

 Fair enough, but what does that actually mean? Simply stated, we analyze what you’re doing, what your competitors are doing and then put together a plan to do it better. Finally, we execute a seamless communications plan that might combine social media, blogging, events, SEO and traditional media outreach. No two plans are the same. They’re all customized to your individual needs.

 Our background in journalism, law, and entrepenurial business enables us to bring a unique perspective to each engagement. While there are other, often larger, firms that promise individual attention, we deliver upon our promise to work with you every step of the way. What’s more, our work is guided by data and continuous investigation, examination and re-examination, not by instinct.

Gotham Media was founded by Gordon Platt, an attorney, television producer, and former Executive Director of the Poliak Center for First Amendment Issues at Columbia University. Platt launched Gotham Media in 2007 as a conference company with a focus on innovation in media, technology, advertising, finance and law. Since then, he has transformed the company into a full service strategic communications and marketing company.

Platt began his career as an investigative journalist. Over the years he covered stories ranging from the secret Iraqi arms network to New York’s notorious Latin Kings to the disappearance of Whitey Bulger. His major investigation of a corrupt statewide drug task force in Texas led to the exoneration of dozens of falsely convicted citizens, many facing decades in prison.

Platt was, for many years, an investigative producer at ABC News Nightline. At Nightline he received numerous awards and recognition for his work, including an Emmy Award and a Dupont Columbia Silver Baton.Platt left Nightline to launch a documentary production company, Gotham Media Films. There he produced films for numerous cable and network channels, including The Discovery Channel, The History Channel, Court TV and ESPN.

It was at Gotham Media Films that he also began to produce live events. Early clients included the Ford Foundation, The New York State Court of Appeals, and the Association of State Legislatures. Platt is a graduate of Dartmouth College (summa cum laude), the London School of Economics and Harvard Law School, and is member of the New York and Massachusetts bars. He and his wife, Jodi Katz, live in Chappaqua, New York where they are employed by their three sons and Labrador Retriever, Mac.

Member Spotlight – Jeremy Glantz of Kensington Vanguard National Land Services

Jeremy Glantz is  Vice President – Business Development at Kensington Vanguard National Land Services. Kensington Vanguard is a full service national title insurance agency, offering settlement, escrow and 1031 Exchange services for transactions across all real estate asset categories, from office buildings, hotels and development projects, to individual homes, condominiums and new construction. Kensington Vanguard underwrites its title insurance policies through the most established and respected title insurance underwriters in the nation.

Jeremy is a 1990 graduate of Princeton University, and a graduate of Brooklyn Law. He is the founder of the Princeton University Real Estate Network, a LinkedIn Group with close to 750 members that meets throughout the country with Princeton Alum as keynote speakers. He is also a founding member of the Network Westchester group.

Member Spotlight – Ann Marie Damashek of Weichert Realtors

Here’s what a couple of Ann Marie’s recent customers had to say about working with her:

From a home seller: Ann Marie brought expertise, integrity and over all calmness to the process of the sale of my parent’s home of 54 years. She was intelligent and sensitive to the needs of seniors, as well as being responsive to all parties involved in a timely manner. I will call upon Ann Marie again in the future as the need arises.

From a home buyer: My husband and I worked with Ann Marie throughout our home search. During this time, Ann Marie was incredibly patient, professional, knowledgeable, understanding, and accommodating! She got to know us personally as a couple and as a family, and she recognized our needs and wants- even as they changed throughout our time working together. She was prompt, and always available to show us homes, even on short notice at times, and even when we asked her to show us numerous houses at a time. She was easily reached at nearly all times via cell phone calls, texts, or e-mail- so our myriad of questions never went unanswered! She remained optimistic and patient throughout the extent of this process, and it had been an absolute pleasure to work with her! When she said the words, “I found the home you are going to buy”, she was right! Less than three months later, we are blissfully enjoying our brand new home- the perfect place for us to raise our growing family! Our journey to home ownership had been longer than we had anticipated, however, Ann Marie made it worth the wait as we learned from her throughout the process, and as she remained certain that she would help us find the right home for us, no matter how long it took. We simply cannot say enough good things about her! We would highly recommend Ann Marie as an agent- she is outstanding!

 

Post by Mail

I’m sending this to the NetworkWestchester website via Post by Mail. It’s a WordPress feature that allows you to send a post to our website via e mail. It had been “broken” for a while, but in the most recent update seems to be working again. I’ll send you a vCard with the information.

I invite you to write a brief description of what you do, and what you would consider a good referral to post on the website via e mail.

Member Spotlight – David Perlmutter of Perlmutter Properties Inc.

David Perlmutter is the President of Perlmutter Properties Inc., a real estate brokerage licensed in New York and Connecticut.  Although Perlmutter Properties’ primary focus is on retail, representing both landlords and tenants, David and his company are also experienced office brokers and have represented the sellers of small to medium sized commercial properties. David has also developed and renovated more than a million square feet of retail space, including Ridgeway Shopping Center in Stamford, New Roc City in New Rochelle, and in New Jersey, Bergen Plaza, Palisades Court, Watchung Commons, Ferry Plaza and the Village at Livingston.

A good introduction for Perlmutter Properties is any of the following: a tenant looking for retail or office space, a landlord looking for exclusive representation where a principal of the brokerage will be involved in the marketing and leasing of the property, or someone looking to sell or purchase a commercial property.

Please think about introductions that would be great for David. Remember, you get what you give!

Ken’s Bike Ride Featured in Inside Chappaqua Magazine

NetworkWestchester member and insurance broker extraordinaire Ken Fuirst’s coast to coast bike ride was a featured article in the December issue of Inside Chappaqua. You can read Dan Levitz’s story by clicking here.

If you are interested in reading Ken’s first hand account, and checking out all the great pictures that go with it, visit KensBikeRide.com.

And of course, if you’re looking for great advice on insurance, be sure to visit Levitt Fuirst’s website!