Blogger of the Week
Village Agent
By Molly Heintz
New Yorkers are obsessed with real estate. To last a minute in this town you have to be conversant in the vocab of habitation—studios, lofts, two-year leases, the junior four, the classic six, co-op boards, closing costs. In other places in the country, you might make small talk about the weather, but in New York it’s about movers, storage and residential parking. Charles Lewis, a broker working in the city, recently started a blog that is the perfect combination of real estate porn (interiors pics and floorplans, including the one above of one half of Fifth Avenue’s largest apartment), New York real estate history, and insider tips. Village Agent reflects the sharp eye and wit of Lewis, who donates thirty percent of his broker commission to the charity of his client’s choice. ”Simply put, I started giving away 30% of my fee to charity because there are plenty of people who need that money more than I do. My goal is to eventually be in a position where I can give 50% or more away. I am very confident that this will happen,” says Lewis.
As you pound the pavement in New York, you’re literally walking in the footsteps of legendary figures from all walks of life and there are stories on every block. Lewis has a knack for presenting old tales that make for great cocktail party conversation. For example, did you know the Pepsi-Cola sign in Long Island City was supposedly the revenge of Joan Crawford (a Pepsi board member after her husband’s death) for getting rejecting by the co-op board of River House, the fancy East River building that was home to then president of Coca-Cola, Robert Woodruff. “As the story goes,” writes Lewis, citing the book Passion and Property in Manhattan, “Crawford erected the giant Pepsi-Cola sign directly across the river from Woodruff’s apartment, in essence giving him a big neon “f— you” for the rest of his years at River House. You gotta love it.” We do!
A native of Wichita, Kansas, Lewis remembers being absorbed by issues of Architectural Digest he found on childhood visits to his aunt’s house. He spent his early professional years working as an interior designer at an architecture firm, and when he began working in real estate, a friend encouraged him to develop an online presence. In February 2010, Village Agent was born. On his blog, Lewis pulls news and intriguing tidbits about architecture, art, and design from both higher-brow (Architect’s Newspaper) and lower-brow (curbed.com) local publications and adds original content to create a completely engaging—and addictive—read. The city itself is Lewis’ constant source of inspiration. “If you pay attention, it is virtually impossible not to see something new every day.”