Established in 1896 as The Real
Estate Board of Brokers of the City of New York, the name was changed in 1913 to The Real
Estate Board of New York (REBNY). A trade association for real estate professionals interested
in Manhattan real estate, including office and residential property owners and builders, brokers
and managers, banks, and architects, REBNY represents its members' concerns relating to public
policies affecting their businesses to the city, state, and federal governments.
The records include competitive office building surveys, office building
vacancy and sub-lease surveys, tables of new constructions and additions to office spaces,
analysis of operating costs for office buildings, report on gross rents received, and related notes
and correspondence from 1925 to 1997. The bulk of the surveys and reports were compiled
between 1931 and 1958, and they include information from 1870. The various surveys were sent
to building managers in different districts in Manhattan to furnish information to assist members
to gauge the condition of the market at various times of the year. The individual figures were not
given out, and the results in gross tabulations were provided only to those members who
participated in furnishing the information. The first survey made in the downtown district was
completed on February 16, 1925.
The collection is arranged
chronologically. The reports and surveys are organized geographically under districts, e.g.,
financial, insurance, city hall, Grand Central, Plaza, Times Square, and Columbus Circle, as well
as uptown and downtown.
Open to qualified researchers.
There may be some
restrictions on the use of the collection. Appointments are necessary for use of manuscript and
archival materials. For more information, contact
The Skyscraper Museum
55 Broad Street, 13 floor
New York, NY 10004
[There is no
information about materials that are associated by provenance to the described materials but
physically separated or removed.]
Collection was donated by the Real Estate Board of New York.
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Series I: Publications
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| Box | Folder | Title | Date |
| 1 | 1 | Bulletin of Building Managers and Owners Association of New York, Inc., by
Management Division, The Real Estate Board of New York, c1931, 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm.
The bound volume includes 116 pages of office building vacancy survey and new construction
and sub-lease space survey in reverse chronological order from 1931 to 1925. These surveys
were usually issued in January, May, and October of each year. Accompanying the surveys in the
back of the volume are a sampling (41 pages) of copies of correspondence and survey forms,
some filled-out and some blank, requesting information and completion of survey. | | 1925-1931 |
| 1 | 2 | Typed table of "Competitive Buildings in Grand
Central," (2 p.) and "Building in Grand Central Not Included in Original Group," (1 p.), [1932],
11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm. Includes the buildings' address, name, area square feet, and date of
erection from 1912 to 1932, as well as various annotations in pencil. | | 1912-1932 |
| 1 | 3 | Typed "List of New Construction in Downtown District from January,
1926 to May 1, 1932," (1 p.), [1932], 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm. Includes buildings' address, name
when available, number of stories, rentable area in square feet, and occupancy month and year. | | 1926-1932 |
| 1 | 4 | Typed tables of "Owner Managed
Buildings of Financial District," (2 p.) and "Agency Managed Building of Financial District," (2
p.), [1934], 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm. The former includes buildings' owner, address, unit area
and total area, and the latter includes buildings' agent, address, unit area and total area, as well as
annotations in pen and pencil. | | 1934 |
| 1 | 5 | A ledger with
handwritten tabulations and annotations in pen and pencil of office building survey, 8.5 x 11 in. /
22 x 28 cm.: 1.) "New Construction of Office Building" of financial district from 1880 to 1933,
1937 Aug. 31 & Sept. 2, (6 p.); 2.) "New Construction - Office Building Survey" of insurance
district from 1890 to 1932, 1937 Sept. 1, (3 p.); 3.) "New Construction Office Building Survey"
of City Hall district from 1870 to 1931, 1937 Sept. 1, (3 p.); 4.) "Competitive Office Buildings
Survey" of all districts from 1870 to 1937, 1937 Sept. 3, (1 p.); and 5.) "Office Building Survey"
of financial, Grand Central, Plaza, Times Square, Columbus Circle, City Hall, and insurance
district, 1937 Nov. 10, (1 p.). Includes a color print-out of scanned page from "Competitive
Office Building Survey." Condition: cover wrapper has one hole punched in each bottom corner
and stain ring and several smaller stains. Severe creasing on bottom right corner with small tear
beginning, edges around upper and lower staples frayed. | | 1880-1937 |
| 1 | 6 | A ledger with handwritten tabulations and annotations in pen and pencil
of the "New Construction Office Building Survey," from 1870 to 1937, 1937 Sept., 8.5 x 11 in. /
22 x 28 cm., 14 p. Areas defined on cover in pencil as "Uptown" and content in pen as
"Uptown," "Downtown," "Grand Central," "Plaza," "Times Square," and "Columbus Circle."
Condition: cover wrapper has pencil markings and ink stain on upper right edge, one hole
punched in each bottom corner with small tear near left hole, severely frayed along top edge,
several small tears top and bottom edges; cover sheet and back cover dirt stained; better
internally, but dirt staining throughout. | | 1870-1937 |
| 1 | 7 | An
Analysis of Competitive Office Space in Manhattan, brochure compiled and issued by
Management Division, The Real Estate Board of New York, Inc., c1938, 8.5 x 11 in. / 22 x 28
cm., 22 p. Includes maps, graphs, and tables. Publication based on surveys made by the
Management Division every four months since 1925. Study confines itself to an analysis of
occupancy and vacancy fluctuations. | | 1938-1925 |
| 1 | 8 | Operating Costs-Office Building, leaflet by Accounting & Exchange Committee, Management
Division, The Real Estate Board of New York, Inc., c1939, 8.5 x 11 in. / 22 x 28 cm. (folded)
and 8.5 x 22 in. / 22 x 56 cm. (opened). Analysis of operating costs for 1938 of thirty-seven
office buildings, twenty under 100,000 sq. ft. rentable area and seventeen over 100,000 sq. ft.
rentable area, prepared from reports from surveys conducted by the Accounting and Exchange
Committee. Includes rentable area, elevator and electricity information, number of employees,
supplies, water, and repairs costs, etc. | | 1938-1939 |
| 1 | 9 | Typed table of "Report on Gross Rents Received in Commercial Buildings, 1929-1944," 1944
July 25, 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm., 1 p. Includes rentals from 1929, 1934, 1939, and 1944 with
the sq. ft. and price per sq. ft. for stores and offices located in Grand Central, and above and
below 14th Street. Note "Duplicate" in pencil on upper left corner. Condition: some light
wrinkling. Small tear above the middle of the right edge. Small holes from a removed staple
upper left corner. | | 1929-1944 |
| 1 | 10 | Survey of the Financial
District of New York City, pamphlet by the Schlang Bros. & Co., Renting and Managing Agents,
67 Broad St., New York, c1941, 9 x 6 in. / 23 x 15 cm., 12 p. Name stamp crossed out on cover
and note in pen on top right corner, "Lower Manhattan." Condition: first and last page split at the
bottom of signature fold. Body loose from lower staple. | | 1941 |
| Box | Folder | Title | Date |
| 2 | 1 | Cumulative addition of new office space on Manhattan Island since 1925, by
Research Department, The Real Estate Board of New York, Inc., [1951], 8.5 x 11 in. / 22 x 28
cm., 1 p. [Photostat] of graph labeled as "Fig. 1," showing new spaces added and vacancies each
year in millions of square feet, using data compiled from 1925-1951. | | 1925-1951 |
| 2 | 2 | Office Building Construction, Manhattan, 1901-1953, brochure by
Gordon D. MacDonald, a Director of Research [Department], the Real Estate Board of New
York, Inc., c1952, 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm., 12 p. Includes a map, tables, graphs, appendices,
and definitions listed on inside back cover. A reply card is attached with two staples to inside
front cover. | | 1901-1953 |
| 2 | 3 | Construction Activity in the
New York Area, January 1945 - June 1953, report by Statistics Division, Forecasts and Statistics
Bureau, System Engineering Department, Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc.,
1953 Oct., 11 8.5 in. / 28 x 22cm., 8 p. Spiral bound report includes maps, graphs, and tables
based on detailed reports on office building and apartment house construction prepared by
REBNY, as well as The City Housing Authority reports. Cover stamped with "Library, The Real
Estate Board of New York, Inc." and "GD McDonald" in pen crossed out in upper right corner. | | 1945 -1953 |
| 2 | 4 | The Financial District of New York City,
compliments of Schlang Bros. and Co., Real Estate, 27 William Street, New York, [1955].
Pamphlet. 9 x 6 in. / 23 x 15 cm., 16 p. Cover has "GD MacDonald" in pen on top right, and
"Bo-g-3430" in pencil on top left. | | 1955 |
| 2 | 5 | Office
Building Construction, Manhattan, 1901-1953, Supplement No. 5, 1957, brochure by Research
Department, The Real Estate Board of New York, Inc., c1958, 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm., 26 p.
Includes a map, tables, graphs, appendices, and definitions listed on inside back cover. | | 1901-1958 |
| 2 | 6 | Office Building Construction, Manhattan,
1901-1953, Supplement No. 6, 1947 - 1961" leaflet by Research Department, The Real Estate
Board of New York, Inc., c1959, 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm. (folded), 11 x 17 in. / 28 x 44 cm
(opened). Analysis includes year, district, location, building name, stories, and rentable area. First
page has "Davis Service, McGraw Hill" in pencil on top left, and "Mr. Ba[ckme?]" in pen on top
right. | | 1901-1961 |
| 2 | 7 | Office Building Construction, Manhattan,
1947-1963, brochure by Research Department, The Real Estate Board of New York, Inc., c1962,
11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm., 29 p. Includes a map, tables, graphs, appendices, and definitions listed
on inside back cover. | | 1947-1963 |
| 2 | 8 | Office Building
Construction, Manhattan 1947-1967, brochure by Research Department, The Real Estate Board
of New York, Inc., c1964, 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm., [28 p.] Includes tables, graphs, appendices,
and definitions listed on inside back cover. | | 1947-1967 |
| 2 | 9 | Office Vacancies in Manhattan, 1967, Office Series #55, pamphlet by Research
Department, [The] Real Estate Board of New York, Inc., 12 East 41 Street, New York, New
York 10017, [1967], 9 x 4 in. / 23 x 10 cm., 11 p. Includes a map, a graph, and tables. | | 1967 |
| 2 | 10 | Rebuilding Manhattan: A Study of New
Office Construction, brochure by Samuel B. Kuckler, a Director of Research Department, The
Real Estate Board of New York, Inc., New York, for the Economic Surveys Committee of the
Board, c1972, 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm., vi, 129 p. Includes tables and appendices. | | 1972 |
| 2 | 11 | Manhattan Office Buildings, Midtown, 1984, published
by Yale Robbins, Inc., 31 E. 28th Street, New York, 1984, 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm. | | 1984 |
| 2 | 12 | Rebuilding Manhattan: A Study of New Office
Construction, brochure by Research Department, The Real Estate Board of New York, Inc.,
c1985, 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm., iv, 63 p. Includes tables and appendices. | | 1985 |
| 2 | 13 | Rebuilding Manhattan: A Study of New Office
Construction, 1947-1997, brochure by Research Department, The Real Estate Board of New
York, Inc., 1997, 11 x 8.5 in. / 28 x 22 cm., 88 p. Third Edition. | | 1947-1997 |
