New York’s biggest MLS gets bigger after merger

New York’s largest multiple listing service is getting even bigger.

Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors, which merged with the Long Island Board of Realtors in 2018 to form OneKey MLS, has now merged with the Bronx-Manhattan North Association of Realtors, Inman reported.

New York City remains one of the only metro areas in the country without a centralized listing system, although this merger brings that possibility closer.

BMNAR previously had its own multiple listing service, the Bronx-Manhattan MLS, which will be discontinued by the end of the year. Brokers will now submit their listing inventory to the OneKey MLS, — which boasts 42,000 subscribers.

As part of the merger, top officials at BMNAR will assume roles at Hudson Gateway. Eliezer Rodriguez, the Bronx group’s former CEO, will be Hudson Gateway’s director of advocacy, commercial and legislative issues for the Bronx and Manhattan. Vincent Buccieri, formerly BMNAR’s president, will be the Bronx regional director on Hudson Gateway’s board of directors.

The merger was in the works for some time, according to Rodriguez, who described the benefits for both organizations in a statement to Inman.

“We can offer a lot of great political connections and expertise in the commercial real estate sector, and we will benefit by being able to provide all of our Bronx members with the resources that a larger organization can provide,” he said.

New York City Council member Fernando Cabrera, who represents District 14 in the Bronx, offered words of support for the merger in a press conference last month.

“This is a new beginning for all of you,” Cabrera said. “Homeownership is such an important issue, especially here in the Bronx.… The greater days of the Bronx are yet to come and you’re going to be part of that.” [Inman] — Georgia Kromrei