09/06/08

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Doing deals for a cause

Rod Aragon

Real estate deals and charity generally do not mix, but a California-based real estate broker is hoping to bring to New York a real estate referral service that contributes money to charities.

RealtyGiving.com will contribute half of its referral service fees to local charitable chapters. The company was founded in January in Santa Monica as CFRealtyNetwork.com, with the referral fees initially benefiting organizations supporting cystic fibrosis.

"We're creating a lead generator for charities, starting with cystic fibrosis," said founder and broker Rod Aragon, whose sister died from the disease in 1981.

Aragon is launching RealtyGiving.com, which is aimed at consumers who are relocating, and later this year hopes to establish it here while operating out of California. Aragon intends to set up co-branded relationships with charitable organizations so consumers will be able to decide where the referral dollars will go.

"Charities have a very limited way to get funds. We are forming relationships to expand and raise money," said Aragon, who opened a branch office for Prudential California Realty in Santa Monica several years ago.

Aragon has a Rolodex of 1,000 real estate associates and brokers in more than 500 cities; he has established a formal relationship with 25 percent of them. In New York State there are 24 brokers in his referral pool, of which 12 are based in New York City. The company is vetting agents and is putting his contacts to use.

Without corporate clients, RealtyGiving.com is not likely to generate a lot of money. Take a $1 million residential sale in New York City, with a traditional 6 percent commission that amounts to $60,000. Whether or not the broker represents the buyer, the seller or both, RealtyGiving.com will only receive one referral fee, so that cuts the $60,000 in half. If the company sets a 25 percent referral fee, which is at the low end of the scale, that means RealtyGiving.com's take is $7,500, with $3,750 given to charity and $3,750 profit.

Kathy Braddock, co-founder of New York City-based referral company Braddock + Purcell, said although the idea is "sweet," she "wouldn't choose a relocation firm because they are altruistic. I would choose the firm that has the best knowledge of the market."

CFRealtyNetwork.com, she added, "is not about finding a good broker. This is about cystic fibrosis."