Brian Phillips, CRS, prides himself on being a full-service agent
Since 1997, Brian Phillips, CRS, has been an active REALTOR® in the state of New York. In 2003, he transitioned from Long Island to Manhattan, where the price points are more lucrative. Although Phillips works for Douglas Elliman Real Estate which is known for luxury, he accepts all price-points. He is a full-service REALTOR® adept at representing sellers, buyers, developers, landlords and tenants.
Phillips is a member of both the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY), which governs Manhattan, and the Hudson Gateway Association of REALTORS® (HGAR) based in Westchester County. His affiliation with both trade associations enables him to effectively serve all of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Long Island, Westchester and the rest of the Hudson Valley. His team members reside in each of these counties, and he has personally transacted in each of them over his 25+ year tenure.
Being a full-service REALTOR®
A major benefit of being a part of both REBNY and HGAR is having access to two multiple listing services. This allows Phillips to share his exclusive listings to a broader audience as well as to search for homes in counties his buyers may not have considered. His wide data access makes him an ideal referral candidate. Brian also has full access to Co-Star for commercial searches. “When agents and REALTORS® refer business, they feel comforted knowing that I have access to all databases to better serve their clients,” says Phillips.
When speaking with other REALTORS® across the country, Phillips is surprised how many don’t do rentals. This is where he sees a difference in his market. In Manhattan, it’s quite profitable for an agent to represent landlords and tenants and he is always happy to represent either side. Phillips says he prides himself on being a full-service REALTOR®; moreover, that his vast experience and repertoire of closed transactions makes him well versed with all thing’s real estate.
Designations and connections
Why did Phillips become a CRS Designee? Because, for him, it is the highest designation a REALTOR® can achieve. He enrolled in several online courses to complete the program and became a CRS Designee in November of 2022.
While attending an installation ceremony at the Council’s 2022 November Governance Meetings in Orlando, FL, Phillips discovered that there is more to the CRS Designation than education. “I learned from sitting with people that it’s a referral network. When [RRC members] look to refer business, they search for CRS agents.”
With aspirational leadership plans, Phillips states that he is striving to follow in the footsteps of past NAR Presidents, many of whom hold the CRS Designation.
Serving at his local and state boards, attending national and international conferences as well as acquiring designations is how Phillips continues to remain visible in the real estate industry. “I’m a better agent for it. I’m more educated [and] I can bring something to the table that other agents aren’t doing,” says Phillips.
Phillips serves on committees at REBNY, at HGAR and at the New York State Association of REALTORS® (NYSAR). Among his committee appointments this year is Vice-Chair of New York City Issues Working Group at NYSAR. Phillips is a sitting board of director both at HGAR and at NYSAR; moreover, he is enrolled in NYSAR’s Leadership Academy class of 2023. He says having a hand in improving the industry, relationships, collaboration and referrals is what he gets out of being involved.
Phillips wishes to further his leadership roles within RRC as well. In the future, he hopes to volunteer to serve on RRC’s Leadership Committee and/or its Masterminds Divisions Committees. He is also interested in applying to serve as a Regional Vice President.
His advice to new agents is this, “Find a mentor and become active in your local board. Start with one committee and then see if you can add another. Becoming active can help you with your referral business, and [build] relationships.”
The future of DEI and fair housing
When looking to the future, Phillips is eager to see how diversity, equity and inclusion efforts continue to improve our real estate industry in making it equitable for all REALTORS®. He says diversity comes in many forms. With more and more brokerages as well as real estate associations implementing DEI, he’s excited to see the changes that will transpire to create more of a balance.
Another topic that resonates with Phillips is fair housing. There is fair housing legislation at the state and federal levels. He’s interested to see which group will be the next protected class. “Fair housing is crucial to our business and to the communities we serve,” says Phillips. He believes all REALTORS® across the country would benefit by undergoing cultural competency and implicit bias awareness as part of their continuing education, as New York now requires.
