Alpha Properties NYC

These people work only through email and never get back to you! They say the agent is literally always in a meeting just to not speak to you over the phone! They don’t follow up. If you can use a different group then you definitely should. Don’t waste your time with them

Very good service, Michelle Llivizaca was the broker who helped me and she was very efficient and responsive, and she was upfront about the fees and costs. I recommend working with her and with Alpha.

When I met with Alpha Properties broker Michelle Llivizaca I expressed to her that communication and honesty were very important to me when working with a brokerage firm and broker. She took me to an open house and as a result I applied. After making an application and being approved I learned that it was a no fee unit. A fact that she conveniently left out of our communication, while we negotiated a fee I felt like I didn’t have all the facts as a basis for my negotiation. When a tenant broker is involved on a no fee deal it is customary to negotiate 1 months rent or 8.8% as a fee. By not disclosing this info the negotiated fee benefitted her and the playing field was not leveled. I expressed this as a problem that she wasn’t forthright in her communication and her professionalism went out the window. Michelle is knowledgable on the area and the process but she lacks integrity. If you value open and honest communication look for a brokerage and broker that values the same.

Sunny contacted me to resolve the situation described in my previous review. He offered to help in the future anyway possible and resolved the situation we were in. Willing to work with you in difficult situations.

Sunny contacted me and assured me that he has fired this agent based on my experience (see my original review), which as far as I’m concerned is exactly what should have happened.
I can’t speak to any other aspects of the business since understandably, I stayed far far away. Sunny is clearly up on his Unilocal reviews and honestly I feel bad for any real estate business owner, as the agent bar is very, very low in this city. It really is about the professionalism of the individual agent, so I encourage anyone looking for a place to find an agent with some good references over a business with a good Unilocal review (both would be optimum but that seems to be asking a lot).

I worked with this company several years back when I was first looking for an apartment and had no issues. This summer I contacted the company to find an apartment that I saw listed on Craigslist for 2450. It turned out that the asking price was actually 2550, not 2450, but the broker was sure he could get it down to 2450 and I filled out paperwork and wired money for the deposit and application with 2450 written on my paperwork. Well, after taking my 100 for the application, they said that the apartment price was non-​negotiable. While this may be common practice for brokers in NY to list one price online and actually have a different price in mind, it was nonetheless frustrating that I was not able to get the application fee back. I never would have applied for the apartment if the price was non-​negotiable.

Joe was wonderful!
Not only was he super helpful and friendly, but he was also very accommodating. He helped me find my perfect apartment and I’m super grateful for his help. Thanks Joe, you are the best!

Their advertising misleads and misrepresents, and the agent I dealt with was untrustworthy.
They had posted the same exact pictures to ads for several similar units. I saw all of them, and all the pictures had come from the best ads. had pictures of the best unit for all 4 of the units I saw.
They posted the ad to craigslist as «by owner» rather than «broker fee.» I met an agent to view a property that was advertised as «by owner», and there was definitely a broker fee.
The agent I met with (Mike something) was as fast-​talking and shifty as a car salesman. In his defense, he discovered early in our interaction that another real estate agency had just shown me apartments in the building we were scheduled to view together, so he immediately had to go into competitive mode. But notwithstanding, he said a lot of things that were explicitly derisive of what I said the other agent had told me, and he said a lot of things that I simply couldn’t believe.
I don’t know whether the misleading on the craigslist ads was done by the agent I met or by someone else at the brokerage.

My roommate and I are recent college grads. Michael Chang was very responsible and knowledgeable about the document requirements, which just made our apartment hunting so much easier. He’s also very responsive about text, email, and phone calls. A five star rating without a doubt!

When everyone said we were crazy to move to NYC with no apartment and a 5 day goal. Alpha Properties made it happen.
Joe Mor was fantastic, was on time to our viewing. Very transparent with the process, rushed our application and even met us on a saturday to sign the lease. He really had our best interest in mind and we really appreciate it. Moving across country couldnt have been easier.
Not only do we LOVE our apartment, Joe introduced us to the super personally and just made it even more seamless.
Thank you Alpha Properties and Joe Mor!

Unprofessional and untrustworthy. This review is specifically for Ethan Sharoni, but avoid the organization as a whole. They lied about the price and availability of the apartment we applied for. By the time Ethan got around to returning our calls, the apartment was gone and we had 5 days to find a new place. With so many other brokerage houses in this city, don’t choose this one.

I am writing this from a tenant’s standpoint (they were showing my apt to others). My first broker at this place was Shawn Maman. He made me make a copy of keys for him which I dont think is protocol but I did it anyway. He then switched the broker to Joe Mor without telling me. Joe was probably 23 yrs old and very inexperienced. Then Joe started getting very aggressive in showing the apartment, he also took pictures of my apt without my permission and posted it on craigslist with all my personal items in view. He rearranged things in the apt for the pictures when I wasn’t even home. I was away and he asked if he can show the apt in 5 mins (he had a key that I gave him) and before I could answer I got a text from my roommate saying he barged in while he/​she was changing. Another time he asked to show the apt and I said no at which point he texted me repeatedly and called. The last straw was when I sent him a schedule to abide by and he started texting me about the times of the schedule and asking if he can show the apt at a time that was not on the schedule and when I refused he kept texting me. Joe also instructed me not to answer calls from any other brokers and told me he would «smash the other pricks.» I complained to the company and they said they would take care of it. They assigned me Gal Gindi who was nice and abided by my schedule. However towards the end of the month I was finishing moving out of the apt and Joe unlocks the door with a potential tenant. Alpha reneged on their promise to keep Joe away from the apt, which I am pretty sure is illegal. I also received random texts from Shawn throughout this time who was totally oblivious to anything going on and was focusing on finding me a new apt. I dont even think a lot of them are licensed in real estate.
My recommendation would be to avoid this company, or at least know to trust nothing they say and take it with a grain of salt. The company also told me that Joe was relieved of his duties but he reappeared on their website with a slightly different name. At least give him a new name right? It shouldnt be THAT obvious, if your gonna cut corners at least be good at it.

**UPDATE — So after my god awful experience with Ethan, the VP (or so he says) of Alpha called me — Shawn Maman. He pretended to care and that he would help return my full deposit back and help me try to get this apartment seamlessly. I was actually pretty happy that someone gave a shit at Alpha. but that soon took a turn.
Not only did he ignore all of my phone calls, this guy actually tried to make me believe that it’s normal to pay 1^st month, last month, and 2 Months of security ALONG with a broker fee that neither he nor his shitty company deserved. Obviously I laughed in his face and told him I want all of my money back and to lose my number. No wonder all of his reviews are terrible. I have also since then worked with two other brokers which have NEVER even heard of Alpha Properties. Is this place even a real company? What a joke! This place will be non existent fairly soon. What an awful company. Stay away! Much better brokers in NYC!

This review is specifically for the broker Mike Chang:
Mike is a kind-​hearted broker — the one that anyone would want when they are looking for a place to live.
In the world of apartment searching, there are many lies and deceit, but NOT with Mike! He is a 100% genuine person, and a pleasure to work with. Very friendly.
My first experience was in January– I had a friend living in Chicago who needed a place in NYC, but didn’t have a chance to fly out here to secure an apartment. This friend asked me to do him a huge favor and meet up with Mike to look at some places… it was GREAT! Mike was awesome. It was cold, but he was able to take me around in his SUV. We saw 15 – 20 places, many of which were quite different from one another, which is a great trait to have when viewing places. My friend in Chicago chose one of those places, and when cashier’s checks needed to be given, Mike met me at my office (all the way down in the Financial district) during my lunch hour to pick up the checks. He is great.
And when I needed a place to live a couple months later, you can guess who I called. Mike Chang. A broker king among broker peasants.

.I can’t believe these guys are still around.
Similar to other reviewers, I feel like I was taken advantage of due to the need for a quick move to NYC.
The employees are distracted & rude, and only run you through the mill. Their listings are nothing special; only seem to be what you can find anywhere online.
They were more than happy to take money for a ‘deposit’ on an apartment they knew was already filled, but not particularly interested in helping me hunt for anything else, and VERY much not interested in returning my so-​called ‘deposit’.
Please avoid.

I had a great experience working directly with Yana in our apartment search. She was very responsive and easy to work with throughout the whole process. I spoke with her briefly over the phone to explain what I was looking for in an apartment rental and she met me on a Sunday and a Monday holiday to show me units that were exactly what I had asked for. The apartment we wanted was a co-​broker apartment and there was a slight hiccup with an aggressive co-​broker, but Yana fought on our behalf and she ended up delivering what she promised. I’ve dealt with a lot of shady, aggressive, unorganized brokers in the past, so I’m glad to have ended up working with Yana. Highly recommended!

This review is based on my interaction with Yana Ataman during my apartment search in December 2013/​January 2014. We were looking for a one bedroom apartment in a luxury building. Although we were on a budget, Yana was patient with us and showed us different properties in the city. We were moving here from Pittsburgh and she was very responsive over emails and phone. She even agreed to meet us on Sunday evenings to accomodate our work schedules and crazy timelines. Yana is an interesting person as well and she was comfortable chatting with my wife & myself about interesting coffee places and travel experiences. This made the process well grounded as apartment hunting in the city can be a pain! I would certainly recommend Yana to my friends looking for apartment in the city. Thanks Yana!

The most horrible short term lease experience I had in NYC for 15 years. They charge 3000 a month for a tiny studio in Manhattan, in a stinky building– where super is never available, apartment is freezing cold and dirty, we have rodent and roach issues in the apartment… It’s just totally unacceptable!!! Never again!

I had the easiest experience working with David Spittler. Late last Monday, I saw an ad on craigslist, emailed, got an instant response — saw the apt Tuesday, applied and signed the lease the same day! He was extremely easy to work with — even met up with me at the apt the next day so I could take measurements. David actually went above and beyond to get me the deal that I needed to make it work.
I never thought I’d use a broker to get a lease (I’ve never had one in 9 years in NYC) and this experience totally changed my attitude about them.

Amos Guetta (Ami) is by far the most accommodating and well prepared broker I have had the opportunity to work with.
He is the epitome of polished extremely knowledgeable and honest.
Excellent to work with.