ICNY 2024: Live updates from Inman Connect New York

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NEW YORK, NY. — The biggest names in real estate are gathering at the New York Hilton Midtown this week for the most exciting industry event of the year.

The 27th annual Inman Connect New York conference kicks off in earnest Tuesday with can’t-miss sessions featuring Ryan Serhant, CoStar Group founder Andy Florance and literally dozens of the sharpest minds in real estate.

But with speakers ranging from Anywhere Real Estate CEO Ryan Schneider  and Compass CEO Robert Reffkin to Adam Goldberg of Open AI, the company behind disrupter ChatGPT, the three-day event is bound to be one for the books. Check back early and often all week long for updates from Inman’s reporters, including color from the conference, announcements and after-hours gossip.

You’ll find it here, all week — at Inman Connect New York.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 25 — DAY 3

5:13 p.m. EST — Concluding Connect: Inman Connect New York wrapped up Thursday, though the big names kept coming right up until the end. And before the day was done, there were portal war fireworks, predictions about the future, and even donuts courtesy of Brad Inman. Here are the highlights from the last day:

• Zillow President Susan Daimler provided an update — and defense — of her company’s much-touted “super app.”
• Damian Eales, the new-ish CEO of Realtor.com, said he doesn’t mind metaphorical knife fights with other portals.
• Compass’ Robert Reffkin took sides in the portal wars, praising Andy Florance and saying he’s rooting for Homes.com.
• A group of proptech innovators argued for MLS standardization. — Jim Dalrymple II

3:50 p.m. EST — Brad Inman’s health kick: Shortly after turning 71 years old, Inman founder Brad Inman has embarked on a new venture to live much longer. But he’s not stopping there.

Inman recently announced he’s hosting a health and wellness conference in Palm Beach this March. On Thursday, the final day of ICNY, Inman told a packed room that he’s launching a new media company focused on health.

“I decided to make a global media company around longevity,” Inman said. The company is unaffiliated with the real estate media company Inman founded in 1996.

He didn’t provide many details about the forthcoming media company. But he made clear that after seven decades he wants to be proactive about his health, and he wants to help others do the same.

“I’ve had a lot of ups and downs in my life,” Inman said. “A lot of crazy things have happened to me and not all have been good.” — Taylor Anderson

3:55 p.m. EST — Remote work: Lee Lin knows that the accepted wisdom in the rental world is that you should own where you live.

But Thursday at Inman Connect New York, Lin — the CEO of RentHop — said that the world has changed, and that wisdom no longer holds true.

“There are tools that make it easier to be a remote landlord,” he said, adding that there is even new technology property owners can use to become remote Airbnb hosts.

Lin made the comments during an afternoon panel on rentals that also featured Ryan Barone, CEO of RentRedi. And during the conversation, the two leaders urged agents to help their clients invest in rental properties — which can turn a one-time buyer into a repeat client. — Jim Dalrymple II

2:28 p.m. ET — Cash ain’t king: After years of intense competition for houses and the proliferation of all cash offers, Shant Banosian said Thursday that motivated sellers need to be open minded about buyers with loans.

“In order to be the most marketable type of listing, you have to be open to financing,” Banosian, a vice president at Guaranteed Rate, said on stage at Inman Connect New York.

He went on to say that financing itself has also evolved.

Banosian’s company, for instance, has a product that approves borrowers for a loan in a single day. And the accepted wisdom that it takes 30 or 45 days to close a deal is no longer true. “You can close a mortgage in eight days now,” he said.

Cash is still a powerful tool when it comes to being competitive as a buyer, but the advantage is shrinking. “We’re turning financing to look and feel like cash,” he said. — Jim Dalrymple II

1:50 p.m. EST — To no one’s surprise, OpenAI was the most talked about tech tool thrown about this week at Inman Connect. And moderator Clelia Peters had the opportunity to chat with someone from the absurdly popular leader in consumer-facing AI, Adam Goldberg, calling him, “the face of the most sexy and exciting technology who everyone wants on a panel.”

And his tech-bro standard Patagonia vest confirmed it. Joining them was Avenue 8’s Michael Martin, whose company developed this nifty interface for its agents. — Craig Rowe

12:20 p.m. EST — Compass CEO Robert Reffkin announced his support of CoStar Group’s Homes.com portal Thursday while chatting with Brad Inman on the final day of ICNY. His support comes amid steep competition between some of the biggest names in real estate, including Realtor.com, Zillow and Redfin, among other. We want to know where you stand.— Taylor Anderson

9:40 a.m. ET — Hard times: Robert Reffkin, CEO of Compass, was the first Inman Connect speaker Thursday, and he used his time to weigh in on the hard times of 2023.

“Last year, I’ve never seen so many top agents question whether they should leave the business,” Reffkin said.

We went on to recall seeing agents crying about their lack of deals. Others began considering retirement. Some even “questioned their manhood” because they couldn’t provide for their families. And Reffkin stressed that these weren’t low-performing agents, they were the cream of the crop.

Despite the hard times, though Reffkin said he expects both 2024 and 2025 to be better. Read the full story here. — Jim Dalrymple II

9:04 a.m. ET — Donut day: The first speaker at Inman Connect New York Thursday morning was Compass CEO Robert Reffkin. But before Reffkin went on stage, session moderator (and Inman founder) Brad Inman showed up at the back of the packed ballroom with box of donuts. He then proceeded to walk through the room offering the pastries to members of the audience.

When he reached the stage, Inman explained that the gag was a reference to title reps who show up to the office in the morning with a box of donuts. Anyway, it’s just another day at Connect. — Jim Dalrymple II

6:17 a.m. EST — Good morning from New York City, where the mercury is gradually rising. By this afternoon, expect temperatures to approach 50 degrees before the threat of light rain around dinnertime.

It’s the last day of sessions, but the Hilton Midtown is still chock full of big names, from opener Robert Reffkin of Compass at 9 a.m. in the Grand Ballroom, to a host of leaders following on the main stage this morning, including Zonda’s Ali Wolf on the state of the housing market, Zillow President Susan Daimler, and the Realtor.com CEO Damian Eales.

This afternoon, Clelia Warburg Peters is moderating panels on Inman’s “Funding the Future: Proptech Innovations” track in the Grand Ballroom, with the founder of Point, Eoin Matthews, kicking off the tech-themed talks at 1:30 alongside Jarred Kessler of EasyKnock and Ryan Barone of RentRedi.

A finally, stay tuned for a presentation from Brad Inman at 3:30 on the main stage as he shares his path to a more fulfilling life. —Jotham Sederstrom

5:48 a.m. EST — Refresh and recap: Day two of 2024’s Inman Connect New York continued to see packed ballrooms, big names and plenty of news making. It also included an impromptu Dancing with the Stars performance. Here’s what you need to know:

• Mauricio Umansky danced across the stage Wednesday morning before revealing new details about the NAR rival he and Jason Haber are working on.
• Anywhere CEO Ryan Schneider argued that his company will have a competitive advantage because it settled several big commission lawsuits.
• MIT’s Dr. R. David Edelman talked about the dangers of artificial intelligence — but said the technology can be controlled.
• Tarek El Moussa, of HGTV fame, dished on how he turned distress into an opportunity. — Jim Dalrymple II

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 24 — DAY 2

5:32 p.m. EST — While some have been calling for a separation between Realtor associations and multiple listing services, at least a few prominent MLS executives opined Wednesday that the way things are set up now is just fine.

At Inman Connect New York’s “MLS Reinvented” track, Annie Ives, a chief executive of The MLS/CLAW, addressed criticisms that MLSs make decisions too slowly because they are tied to Realtor associations, noting that her MLS is “nimble.”

‘I just don’t think the system is broken,” Ives added.

“It doesn’t matter what your governance structure is” so long as your decisions are “evidence-based” and you do the “appropriate research,” John Dimichele, CEO of the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, added.

“I think that governance structure has gotten a bad rap in a way that’s largely unfair because the structure is not necessarily the problem,” added Austin Board of Realtors CEO Emily Chenevert. “The process, maybe the people, the way things evolved is potentially problematic.” — Andrea V. Brambila

4:47 p.m. EST — Happy hour got a bit sweeter with these good boys and girls who joined ICNY for free pets on Wednesday. After panels were over, some flocked to the open bar for wine or beer. Others came to say hi to these three dogs from Second Chance Rescue.

“Should we steal them?” one attendee asked two friends.

— Taylor Anderson

2:18 p.m. EST — Connect attendees who brought an empty suitcase to fill up with swag should have plenty to take home.

A stroll through vendors alley offers a cornucopia of branded merchandise: tote bags from Luxury Presence, water bottles from Realty.com, skull caps from Solink, and tote bags and water bottles from SignMore.

Not to be outdone, Lofty was passing out baseball caps, agent health insurance outfit peo4me was giving away hand sanitizer bottles. Meanwhile, Marq had water bottles, Localize had shirts and beanies and Side has been handing out coffee cups.

Did you pick up any swag? Let us know in the comments. — Ben Verde

1:15 p.m. EST — Have four minutes to spare between conversations or your next session? Here’s the best way to spend it: Take the Inman Intel Index survey and share your insights with the community!

12:15 p.m. EST — Picture time: ICNY attendees flocked to snap a pic with HGTV star Tarek El Moussa just before lunch on Wednesday.

The home-flipping TV personality spoke on the second day of the event, before then meeting and snapping pics with hundreds of attendees.

— Taylor Anderson

10:27 a.m. EST — Anywhere CEO Ryan Schneider spoke publicly for the first time about his holding company’s decision to settle with homeseller plaintiffs last year ahead of the Sitzer | Burnett trial in October.

“Once you have a clear vision about what’s the right thing, then you have to get there,” Schneider said. “Do I want to spend my time and money on litigation, or do I want to spend it on agents and franchisees?

“We wanted to make sure our agents and franchisees got protected,” he added.

When Inman publisher Brad Inman asked if someone joined Anywhere today if they would be covered by the settlement, Schneider said, “That’s not how it’s structured.” Read the story here. — Lillian Dickerson

9:57 a.m. EST — Broker and reality TV star Mauricio Umansky shared more details on his plan to launch a competitor to the National Association of Realtors with Compass agent Jason Haber on Wednesday morning at Inman Connect New York, saying this morning that the American Real Estate Association is meant to “to improve our industry.”

9:45 a.m. EST — Dance dance revolution: Mauricio Umansky kicked off the second day of Inman Connect New York with a mini revenue of his recent turn on Dancing with the Stars.

Though Umansky spent much of his time on stage discussing a new trade organization that is meant to rival the National Association of Realtors, he walked out on stage as a much-memed song called “More passion more energy more footwork” blared on the PA.

Umansky took the song to heart and, before he and session moderator Brad Inman sat down to talk, he began dancing across the stage.“I’d never danced before in my life,” he said of his time on the reality TV dancing competition.

But he added that after training intensely for the show, “there’s an opportunity. I can lift any of you girls if you wanted me to. We could do a bunch of fun stuff, flips and all kinds of crazy things.”

Later in the session, the show came up again and when Inman asked if there were any volunteers to dance with Umansky, a woman from the audience ran up to the stage. Then Umansky and the audience member danced for a moment as Inman called for the music to play again. “If you want to live long, dance,” Umansky later said, just before leaving the stage. Read the story here. — Jim Dalrymple II

8:27 a.m. EST — Connect catch up: Day one of Inman Connect New York 2024 is in the books. It was a day filled with packed ballrooms — the early birds got a seat, the late risers had to stand — and big names. Here’s the essential reading:

• CoStar CEO Andy Florance reignited the portal wars, this time taking aim at both old rival Zillow, as well as new rivals Redfin and Realtor.com.
• Ryan Serhant argued that real estate has some problems, and he’s afraid they’ll be repeated.
• Million Dollar Listing New York star Kirsten Jordan dished on balancing work and life.
• And like it or not, big changes are definitely coming to real estate, according to James Dwiggins.

5:37 a.m. EST — Good morning and welcome to the second day of Inman Connect New York. Today’s highs are in the low 40s in Manhattan, with a chance of rain in the evening. From the Hilton, the Bronx is up and the Battery’s down.

At 9 a.m. in the Grand Ballroom, expect a standing-room crowd when Mauricio Umansky of The Agency takes the stage with Brad Inman to reveal more of what he and Compass agent Jason Haber teased in a New York Times story Tuesday about their launch of an alternative to the National Association of Realtors.

While details are scant, the new trade organization will be named The American Real Estate Association, or AREA, and funding in the realm of $50 million to $100 million will be drawn from investors, they told The Times. No dues will be expected of new members in the first six months. And for a slogan to rival NAR’s “That’s Who We R,” the duo have a double entendre for a tag line: “Trade Up.”

Check it out, and come back later this morning to tell us what you thought.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 23 — DAY 1

5:01 p.m. EST — When you’ve got the funk, you bring it. Or at least that’s what you do if you’re Renee Funk

The team leader of The Funk Collection at eXp Realty strutted out onto the stage at ICNY on Tuesday to the groovy walkup beat of “We Want the Funk” from legendary bandleader George Clinton to deliver some hard truths to agents and brokers in the audience.

Funk said one of the biggest mistakes any business owner can make is to give and receive advice without context.

“Pause, take a deep breath, and ask yourself, could it be possible I am wrong?” Funk declared. Then she challenged Inman Connect attendees to pause when interacting with others in the hallways at the Hilton Midtown and ask two additional questions of their fellow attendees to promote greater understanding with one another.

“The last agent standing will seek to understand and serve humans at the highest level,” Funk said. “The last agents standing will be the curious agents.” — Lillian Dickerson

4:33pm EST — Representatives of three prominent real estate brands took to the stage at Inman Connect New York Tuesday afternoon to offer attendees a peek into vastly different approaches to growth.

“Our differentiate factor really revolves around not being just a real estate company, but we are a media company, we are a PR company, an ad agency,” said Rainy Hake Austin of The Agency.

Because of @properties’ acquisition of Christie’s International Real Estate, the brokerage’s “value proposition has been radically upended,” the firm’s head of growth, Natalie Hamrick, told attendees.

In addition to a brand almost synonymous with luxury, “now we’re able to offer everything an agent needs to run their business, proprietary technology, referrals, marketing, technology training, a robust collaborative network,” she said.

RE/MAX VP Peter Luft noted The Agency and Christie’s are luxury brands, which is not a differentiator for RE/MAX, but that providing “maximum service” by “the best of the best agents” is. — Andrea V. Brambila

3:45 p.m. EST — What say you: During an afternoon session at ICNY on Tuesday, real estate broker and reality tv personality Ryan Serhant took the industry to task, saying it’s awash in buzzwords and empty trends that rarely move the needle when it comes to enacting change.

“We jump on trends, but we don’t actually push the industry forward,” Serhant told a standing room only crowd at the Hilton Midtown.

It made us wonder, do you agree? Take the poll. —Jotham Sederstrom

3:02 p.m. EST — Brad Inman took to the Connect stage Tuesday afternoon to urge agents to stay optimistic.

Among other things, Inman recalled the experiences of his mother, who grew up during the Great Depression and who was sent off to live away from her family as a young girl. Inman recalled that when he asked his mom how she made it through such hard times, she replied that optimism is how to fight fear.

Later, Inman had his own chance to put the lesson to the test.

He recalled that he and his first wife were living in Los Angeles as young adults when they first found out they were going to have a child. They had both wanted to be parents and rejoiced, but their joy was soon shattered when the learned that the baby might have health problems.

However, Inman then showed a picture of a young man with a child — Inman’s now adult son and grandson.

In the end, things worked out for the young family.Inman’s point was that optimism is an invaluable tool in hard times. And he argued that that’s especially true right now for real estate professionals, who are facing a sluggish market and an array of other potential challenges. — Jim Dalrymple II

1:34 p.m. EST — Real estate rockstar Ryan Serhant took to the Inman Connect stage Tuesday afternoon and revealed some new details about his career trajectory.

Among other things, he noted that his very first day in real estate was the exact same day that Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy — an event that helped usher in the Great Recession.

Serhant described chaos in the office, even as he felt gung ho about beginning a new career.

Fast forward to 2017, and according to Serhant he decided he should start interviewing with new brokerages to see what they had to offer. Serhant continued to interview with those brokerages through 2019, but he said most of their pitches were similar — and unconvincing. And in the end, Serhant decided to start his own brokerage. Read the story here. —Jim Dalrymple II

1 p.m. EST — Every week, Inman’s Pulse column asks readers to weigh in on a topic related to the week’s news, a theme month focus, or something we’re curious about.

As we move into 2024 in earnest, we’re curious about how new agents are faring. This isn’t an easy time to start a career in real estate, so what rookie mistakes do you see agents making now, and what advice would you offer? Take the poll here. — Christy Murdock

12:45 p.m. EST — During a Connect session this morning titled “How Today’s Top Agents Are Taking Their Marketing To The Next Level,” Carrie McCormick of Christie’s International Real Estate said she uses the company Modwell to create a digital twin of her who narrates tours of her listings in a digital showroom.

“She lives online and she’s super nice,” McCormick said, making the audience chuckle. “And she’s me.” —Andrea V. Brambila

12:30 p.m. EST — While attendees at ICNY are focused on running the conference circuit, ERA Real Estate Brand President Alex Vidal is also focused on running — and biking and swimming — in another upcoming event.

At a time when the Inman Power Player is spending time on the road being the face of ERA, Vidal told us he’s also training for an Iron Man he’ll be competing in Texas in a few months.

Vidal said might not be showing up to as many after parties or networking events this time around, saying he’s focusing on healing some tendinitis before his race in Houston this April. — Taylor Anderson

10:59 a.m. EST — Amid a series of scandals and executive turnover at the National Association of Realtors, a pair of industry gadflies have revealed plans to launch a rival association.

The Agency’s Mauricio Umansky and Compass’ Jason Haber are calling their new organization the American Real Estate Association, or AREA. News of AREA’s debut was first published in The New York Times Tuesday, but the duo plans to formally lay out their plans Wednesday at Inman Connect New York.

Though details remain sparse, AREA aims to offer participants a national database of listings, and to let agents set their own commissions. Haber additionally told the Times that AREA will have a different organizational structure compared to NAR.

The announcement of a formal rival to NAR comes after arguably NAR’s roughest year in memory. In mid 2023, now-former president Kenny Parcell was accused of sexual and racial harassment and later resigned. His replacement, Tracy Kasper, also later resigned, alleging that she was being blackmailed. CEO Bob Goldberg also stepped down a year earlier than expected.

At the same time, NAR has been fighting a multi-front legal battle over its commission rules. In cases such as Sitzer | Burnett, Moehrl, and numerous others, home sellers have accused NAR of participating in a conspiracy to inflate consumer costs.The result has been widespread discontent with the state of NAR — some of which has led calls for rival organizations. The new project from Umansky and Haber appears to be the first serious attempt to build such an organization. — Jim Dalrymple II

10:09 a.m. EST — Attendance at Inman Connect New York appears to be high, Inman founder Brad Inman said Monday night.

“Unexpected,” Inman wrote in a post on LinkedIn the day before the event kicked off. “Looks like record crowd for Inman Connect NYC!”

Inman is set to deliver opening remarks today at 1 p.m. in the Grand Ballroom before some of the biggest players in the real estate industry appear on stage. — Taylor Anderson

9:45 a.m. EST — As Connect gets underway this morning in Manhattan, we want to know what you’re looking forward to this morning. Give us your thoughts below and check back for more shortly. —Jotham Sederstrom

 

5 a.m. EST — Good morning, and welcome to the first day of Inman Connect New York, coming to you from the Hilton Midtown in Manhattan. Showers are forecasted this morning with clouds this afternoon and a high of 40 degrees.

Up first in the Grand Ballroom is “The Future of Media and What it Means For You” at 9 a.m. EST featuring Griff O’Brien of Estate Media, Devin Emery of Morning Brew and Rich Antoniello of Complex. 

Stay in the room after that for “Your Custom 2024 AI-Powered Content Plan” at 9:30 featuring Phil Stringer of AI Agent Academy. For Tuesday’s full agenda, click here, and for a full list of the week’s scheduled guests, click here.

MONDAY, JANUARY 22 — WELCOME TO ICNY

12 p.m. EST: Food & Drinks: As the real estate industry descends on Manhattan this week for Inman Connect New York, power lunches will be had, four-star meals will be devoured and after-dinner drinks will be enjoyed.

But where to go, you ask? From one of the best Cuban sandwiches in the five boroughs to the legendary former sight of the iconic Four Seasons restaurant — still a luxury worth indulging if you can secure a table at either The Grill or The Pool — Inman reporter Taylor Anderson has you covered with a spotlight on the best dinner, breakfast and drink spots in the vicinity of the Hilton Midtown this week. READ THE STORY HERE.

Email Taylor Anderson