Corcoran's Brooklyn Heights Office Accused of Bias
The National Fair Housing Alliance has released a rather damning report of the sales practices of Corcoran’s Brooklyn Heights office. The anti-housing discrimination group set up a sting operation in which more qualified blacks and less qualified whites went to the office posing as home buyers. The report alleges that agents in the office engaged…
The National Fair Housing Alliance has released a rather damning report of the sales practices of Corcoran’s Brooklyn Heights office. The anti-housing discrimination group set up a sting operation in which more qualified blacks and less qualified whites went to the office posing as home buyers. The report alleges that agents in the office engaged in two sorts of unsavory practices: Steering, by which prospective buyers were urged to look at neighborhoods based on the color of their skin, and selective disclosure of information. It’s unclear from the article how widespread this alleged activity was or how conscious or subconcious it was (though the anecdote given is fairly blatant). Have any readers had experiences that would support any of these allegations?
Report Alleges Bias by a Real Estate Giant [NY Times]
Frankly Im surprised Corcoran didnt get in trouble for their all white people brownstone ads over the summer, or the one where it shows white babies with a black nanny, or just old rich white people. Thanks Corcoran for such lovely images and your thoughts of brooklyn life.
Black Man from PS,
Thanks for responding to my response. Gotta say that even though you clarified, I still cannot quite see things your way. I well understand that on an individual level, in order to be a successful black man, you have to rely on numero uno 1st, that you cannot rely on the goodwill of others or govt institutions. That is black man survival lesson number one. And I also understand that in order to be successful, we have to be that much better than the next guy. I get all that, I agree with it. But that is a burden that is so very very costly to us. There are some mountains I cannot move by myself. I cannot change the world alone. Laws, regulations, and enforcement have a place in this war.
My thoughts are more closely aligned with our brother from Bed-Stuy. He said it as well as anyone could have. The problems have to be attacked on multiple levels, individually and institutionally, and that includes holding companies like Corcoran and the r.e. industry in general accountable for the behavior of their management and employees. To think that change will otherwise somehow arise from mass introspection is to be naive at best.
Dear Black Man in Park Slope,
Your clarification is very useful in our important discussion here. As I read it you think everyone has prejudices and the problem is not going to go away by focusing on one person or organization. Conservative social critics like Bill Bennett and Juan Williams argue that individuals should be left to sort things out themselves. They posit that human nature is driven by self interest and a desire to maximize our ability to consume/get our way. They place great faith in the “invisible hand of the market” (By the way, Adam Smith was was a moral philosopher interested in ethics and justice, and was a religious moderate).
Even if one accepts this rather bleak and blunt assumption about human nature there is a role here for moral leadership and the law. Fighting prejudice is a complicated matter. That complexity should not encourage us to hide from the problem, or deny it. This is not just private behavior that Corocran is exhibiting; it is in the public sphere impacting the life opportunities of others. Legally we have a system of tort laws to help us deal with that. Our laws, and how they are applied are essential to the American way of life I hope we all cherish. They provide a sense of hope that justice will always be available when their is wrong doing — when private thoughts become public actions that damage the community. When it comes to prejudice we must exercise the moral courage personally as exampled by leaders like King and Ghandi. Yet we also need the legal and administrative mechanisms to deliver justice.
In this age of growing corporate power we need the good work of government and groups like the Alliance to protect the community from the immoral and illegal practices of organizations like Corcoran. Like you I am black. I would expect us to understand this better than anyone else. Our interest has always been sacrificed for the private and corporate interest of others in America. We can and must support the proper legal and administrative fight against prejudice; recognizing that on a personal level we can do better.
Corcoran, and much of the real estate industry, operates on a set of assumptions that, as I said earlier, distort the housing market. The “racial steering†practices of Corcoran limits choices for black and white, rich and not-so rich customers. Consider this; many white customers who might have brought in Fort-Green or Clinton Hill 20 years ago but did not because of the racial steering of brokers missed out on the great appreciation in value in these neighborhoods. More importantly, they also missed out on an opportunity to know black people who share many of the same values about community. Personally, I will avoid doing business with an organization that contributes openly to racism whenever I can. The power of information, and the medium we are using now, is that it lets us as consumers know more about the behavior of firms. We can make informed choices based on (hopefully) good information. The record on Corcoran’s treatment of black customers as evidenced by the experience of many who have commented to this post is one of a pattern of discrimination. Beyond whatever sanctions they may receive legal as a result of the Alliance’s investigation, the market should punish them as well (that is us).
My apologies to all for this long response on an important topic.
(Siged-Brother in Bed-Stuy)
Anon 7:55 PM, I’ll address your comments because they were thoughtful and somewhat accurate.
I think that you as well as many other people misunderstood my comments.
I do believe in fighting for our rights and I do know that we still face discrimination in housing. I don’t sanction or condone it.
My comments,however, suggest that this discrimination is more a reflection of our population and its attitudes and not that of the corporate culture of Corcoran. I’m not trying to give Corcoran a pass, but rather I’m trying to address the root of the problem: Housing discrimination exists because we still all have prejudices.
Going after Corcoran may make you feel like you’re solving the problem. But nothing is solved. Corcoran is just a broker. The owner of that garden floor-thru apartment is still going to rent it to whomever they wish.
So I acknowledge the problem, but the solution of blaming it on Corcoran is a “Cop Out”.
I fall back on what my father always told me. If someone is treating you unfairly, then you’re just going to have to be that much better.
If you can’t rent an apartment near Prospect Park, then you’re going to have to find a way to buy one. If a broker isn’t going to show you a listing, then you need to do your homework and look it up on-line. If you’re not getting adequate service from a white salesman, then you need to contact the black saleswoman in the office (find her on-line).
It isn’t an easy solution. But it has a chance of working. I still believe that finding scapegoats for the problems that we have in our hearts isn’t going to solve anything. My opinion.
PS.
For the ignorant folk who think I listen to Juan Williams and who think I have a white wife, you couldn’t be more wrong. (Although I have no problems with mixed marriages)
I do, however, watched the Cosby show and liked it and am proud that I liked it! (I really don’t know what that has to do with anything)
Black Man in Park Slope (4:54), I too am a black man in Park Slope. So, I guess that makes two of us.
I’ve lived in Park Slope for 15 years, I’ve purchased and sold a co-op in PS thru brokers and I now own a brownstone, purchased thru a broker. And, yes, I’ve experienced all manner of bias in the r.e. industry despite being generally more financially qualified than 99% of the pop. I would never let some half-witted bigot stop me from getting what I want, but it is a terrible shame that I have to put up with this time and time again.
I have to say that I am somewhat disappointed with your comments. Excusing racist behavior and accepting it as something that is simply natural is not going to resolve anything. For those of you who think that brokers only think in green, think again. Just because it would be in their best interest to operate without bias does not mean they are smart enough to know that.
Corcoran was targeted because they are the big gorilla on the block, and making an example of the leader has huge instructional value for the industry.
Looks to me like the investigation found real evidence of bias. True, I would think they could come up with something more substantial, so yes, it looks like a witch hunt. But, we both know that virtually all the firms (though not necessarily individual brokers) are guilty of a certain level of bias.
There is nothing wrong with highlighting the issue and fighting it. Surely you are not suggesting that the govt has no role in regulating any industry. I don’t know what you do for a living, but if we had no anti-discrimination laws or regs, I suspect your life would be a lot harder.
Difficult to know what to say to someone as truly cynical as you are.
MY EXACT SENTIMENTS–
Posted by: Anonymous at October 11, 2006 9:26 PM
Park Slope Black Man. Take a deep breath, kiss you white wife, watch your re-runs of the Cosby show and go back to reading your Juan Willams. Your behind can keep denying the reality, but Corcoran and the many black folk that have walked in their office know the truth.
To all of you who said not all brokers at Corcoran are doing this, I say so what. The “good brokers’ know the deal more than anyone else. Why don’t they speak up? If they did they could change things more than most. Clearly, they don’t so if Corcoran gets their wings clipped a bit all of their staff bear some responsibility.
interestingly enough, corcoran has been doing major PR surrounding how they are doing outreach and education for al their agents. there’s a huge spread with frank’s ugly ass picture in the Brooklyn Eagle. sounds like they are trying to damage control
i kinda doubt that poster is even sincere. i think they’re just bored and think they’ll get a reaction out of people.
Re: 9:04
It’s funny, the post from 9:04 doesn’t really bother me. People who are that ignorant don’t have any power or influence. They attract attention, but most of us just feel sorry for them.
In the 50s or 60s, you might take someone like that seriously. But today, you just want to make sure that they don’t get a job at a local post office.