Good Ethics In Real Estate

Real estate mogul Fred Peters has enjoyed rediscovering New York City throughout his career for the past thirty years. After working as Sales Director at Albert B. Ashforth, he worked to acquire the 95-year old business, renaming it Warburg Realty in 1991. Peters has since doubled the size of his company, become co-chair of The Real Estate Board of New York's Board of Directors (REBNY), and been awarded the Kenneth R. Gerrety Humanitarian Award.

Peters has been wildly successful throughout his career, building Warburg Realty on a foundation of good ethics and giving back to their surrounding communities. His agency has expanded from one office with 40 agents to 130 agents working out of 4 Manhattan offices. He knows all of his agents personally, and trains them to work under his company slogan of "Integrity, Intelligence, and Innovation."

"I want to operate the business in the way that feels right to me. I have no desire to run an agency with 800 agents," he explained. "I believe we have an obligation to the greater community in which we live to try and make the quality of life in that community as strong as possible."

In addition to improving the quality of life of the Upper East Side's real estate value, Peters has also been extremely charitable to the arts community. Growing up he had wanted work as a contemporary classical composer, and pianist. He frequently supports different musical organizations and non-profits around New York. Most notably, he is the board chair of Music USA, which is one of the largest composer advocacy organizations in the United States.

Peters uses his platform as a board member of REBNY to instill the same good ethics that he expects of his agents with the entire real estate industry. He is the biggest contributor to the Warburg blog, and is constantly evolving to stay current with popular demands. In a recent blog post titled "Is Money Everything?" he discusses the changing morals of his industry.

"When did money begin to trump morality in the real estate marketplace? I know when I began as a real estate agent in 1980, buyers and sellers almost always kept their word," he wrote. "In spite of the cultural messages which bombard us to the contrary, we all know: money truly isn't everything."

Peters brings a refreshing approach to the stereotypically money hungry real estate industry. He is passionate about creating an environment among agents in New York that is fair, and has become an example of good character in his own agency, and through his work with REBNY.

Fred Peters has a complete appreciation for New York, and considers discovering new neighborhoods one of the best perks of working in real estate. He has enjoyed discovering the real estate changes in Harlem, spends his free time discovering the contemporary operas at BAM in Brooklyn, and frequents the restaurant E.A.T. on the East Side with his wife.

Neighborhoods are transforming across the city, sometimes so quickly it feels like it happens over night. Real estate agents play a major part in cultivating the neighborhoods we live in, and if Fred Peters continues to work as a leader in his industry there is now doubt New York will remain the greatest city in the world.