New York – Rockland County’s Village of Chestnut Ridge has joined portions of Queens and the Bronx on the state’s list of official cease and desist zones, making it illegal for real estate professionals to approach registered homeowners about selling their property as of July 1st.
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The designation as an official cease and desist zone was created in response to complaints of “unwanted, intense and repeated solicitations from homeowners” at a public hearing which concluded that homeowners were in need of protection from aggressive real estate brokers
according to Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office.
Legislation regarding state enforced cease and desist zones was first passed in 1989 to prevent homeowners from being harassed by real estate brokers according to The Daily News. The law survived lengthy legal challenges and was upheld in a 2002 decision, giving homeowners
in the designated zones the ability to register their residences with New York State’s Division of Licensing Services in order to avoid unwanted solicitations from those who are regularly engaged in the buying and selling of homes.
Once created via public hearing, cease and desist zones remain in effect for five years, with the state publishing updated lists of registered properties on the first of every month. Violators can face a variety of punishments ranging from reprimands, to fines of up to $1,000, to suspension and revocation of their licenses.
Chestnut Ridge joins the College Point, Malba, Whitestone, Bay Terrace, Bayside, Auburndale, Murray Hill and North Flushing sections of Queens and the Country Club section of the Bronx on the state list. The Queens and the Bronx areas were designated as protected zones last October, with over 1,100 Queens homeowners and 59 Bronx properties listed on the state registry.
In recent years, Chestnut Ridge has seen an upsurge of Orthodox Jewish and Chasidic residents homebuyers, with residents complaining of realtors utilizing aggressive tactics to encourage them to sell their homes, as reported by The Journal News.
While Chestnut Ridge, which is located within the Town of Ramapo, is the first village in Rockland County to apply for the designation as a cease and desist zone, the Village of Airmont and the towns of Clarkstown, Haverstraw, Orangetown and Stony Point have all created “no knock” registries to prevent unwanted solicitations.
The cease and desist zone applies equally to single and multi-family residential homes and does not affect commercial properties.
The Chestnut Ridge area has become a popular place where frum mishpachos have moved. One of several advantages it has compared to other areas in Rockland County, is that you wont find any street that is over populated. Homes are spread out and there is much space for young children to play..
I would suggest a modified, more balanced, approach.
A person is allowed to approach a homeowner ONCE.
If the homeowner is not interested in selling, the person is obligated to desist from any further sales talk.
Chestnut is 40% frum anyway, the value has doubled in 5 years people who lived there are looking to cash out and move, they are calling the agents so the ban wont help Sorry Preserve Ramapo and its fans such as Lion of Zion
A cease and desist order is issued when overzealous buyers or real estate agents aggressively attempt to get existing homeowners to sell, or hinting that their neighborhood is changing with the arrival of different types (read Chassidim) who will cause their pristine area to decline in nature based on their different life style.
What has happened in Chestnut Ridge is not unlike the blockbusting that took place in Canarsie about 50 years ago. These brokers who use scare tactics to get a listing may have their licenses suspended or revoked. It would serve them right. How would they like it if different brokers started moving black families into so-called heimishe areas, and then went door to door trying to scare the Yidden into giving them a listing?
I’m sure a realtor can still send a nice glossy postcard in the mail. Probably more cost effective too.