Brokerage founder Frederick Warburg Peters is leaving his longtime firm for Brown Harris Stevens, The Real Deal has learned.
Peters has been a pillar of New York City real estate since he started Warburg Realty more than thirty years ago. He sold his independent shop to Coldwell Banker in 2021, though he remained at the helm until 2023.
“The choice of Brown Harris Stevens was an easy one for me,” Peters said in a statement. He referred to Hall Willkie, BHS’ New York City president, as “a peer and a good friend for decades” and added that CEO Bess Freedman has “steered the company through the 21st century with great skill.”
His departure was announced on Thursday in a company-wide email obtained by TRD. In the email, regional vice president Kevelyn Guzman, who took over Peters’ post two years ago, called his exit “bittersweet.”
“Coldwell Banker Warburg thanks its founder, Frederick Warburg Peters, for his leadership of not only the firm, but the New York real estate industry,” a spokesperson for the company said in a statement. “The company wishes him happiness and success in his next chapter.”
In his last year with the firm, Peters served as president emeritus and worked as a broker. Some of his latest deals included the $6.3 million sale of a Park Avenue co-op and the $5.6 million sale of a penthouse on East 74th Street, according to Streeteasy.
In his new role at BHS, Peters will focus on selling homes. He’s joining the firm’s flagship office on Park Avenue. His active listings on Streeteasy include two co-ops on the Upper East Side asking $5.25 million and just under $5 million, respectively.
“Fred is synonymous with New York City real estate,” BHS CEO Bess Freedman said in a statement. “His reputation and knowledge of the city, its buildings, and its people are beyond reproach.”
Peters launched his real estate career in 1980 and became a brokerage owner in 1991 when he bought Albert Ashforth’s New York City business. He was a founding member of the Real Estate Board of New York’s Residential Division and is a member of its Board of Governors’ Executive Committee.
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