Kat: One of my favorite memories—when my husband and I were purchasing our apartment at 1105 Park Avenue – the super asked me if I was related to Roger Tuckerman. The super who has been with our building since 1982 said that Roger had hired him. Brown Harris Stevens had managed the building and Roger often hired many of the superintendents in the Park Avenue buildings that are still there today.

 

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I have been at Brown Harris Stevens now for 16 years! I think it took quite a while not to be seen as Roger and Edith’s daughter but I’ve managed to carve my own path. I don’t ever take for granted this legacy though.

 

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I have a great amount of pride coming from a Brown Harris Stevens family. Many of the brokers still here saw me grow up – they’re like my aunts and uncles. I have been surrounded by real estate junkies my whole life. I remember work cocktail parties Roger and Edith would throw at 1112 Park Avenue in the ‘80s where I grew up. I used to greet brokers and managers at the door and lay their fancy coats on my bed. My brother and I would weave amongst the big hair, big shoulder pads, sharp suits and listen to the constant chatter about cooperative boards, interest rates and of course many real estate jokes. There was a Monopoly designed cake one year for my father’s birthday. It was very glamourous back then.

 

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Kat: Trust is first and foremost. Second, like any successful partnership, I think we benefit from having someone who you can bounce off certain ideas or thoughts. We don’t always agree but that’s ok—often that’s helpful to see many different sides of a listing. In every deal we also seem to take a role of either sweet or spice and that can shift depending on the deal. The seller or buyer can choose what perspective they want to hear that day...

Edith: We laugh a lot. I love working with Katharine. She has learned so much and is more savvy than I - she is now the boss!

 

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Edith: One of my favorite buildings is 834 5th. My grandmother lived there and it was one of the first apartments I sold.
Kat: 770 Park Avenue for me. I have been extremely fortunate to have sold a couple apartments in this majestic building. The room sizes and ceilings are out of control. We were clearing out a gorgeous sprawling 11 room here a couple years ago and discovered there was a loaded pistol from the 1930s in the apartment! And finally, my great aunt and acclaimed interior designer, Dorothy Draper, designed the lobby too.

 

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Kat and Edith: We are not as doomsday as many have become about the market. No one ever sells anything by being pessimistic. We think there are a lot of pent up buyers out there- waiting (impatiently) for new inventory. Once we see a break in the interest rates, sellers will list and we will see a lot of activity. We are excited for the next 6 months. We think right now, as brokers, we have to have a lot of patience and be very on top of listings. If you’re not seeing a price drop, that doesn’t mean the sellers aren’t willing to negotiate.

 

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