I’m currently at the Javits Convention Center in New York City attending the Inside Bitcoins Conference. In keeping with the spirt of the day, I want to highlight this story of a NYC resident who just completed a real estate rental transaction entirely in Bitcoin.
While I previously highlighted the fact that Alvic Property Management in NYC had announced it would accept BTC, this is the first instance I can recall of someone paying rent, security deposit and a broker fee all in Bitcoin. The total was $18,000.
From Crain’s:
The head of a bitcoin-friendly real estate firm based in SoHo late last month completed what it is billing as the first real estate transaction in the country to fully use the virtual currency.
Nick Spanos, founder of Bitcoin Center NYC, an advocacy organization that promotes the use of the currency, who also happens to be the head of real estate brokerage Bapple, said that on March 24 a tenant paid in rent and deposit to a unnamed landlord in NoLita and commission to the brokerage for a total of nearly $18,000. The lease began on April 1.
The transaction was handled by Bapple broker Jeff Goolsby. He said by going the bitcoin route the tenant saved money by avoiding having to pay fees for certified checks and wire transfers that typically come with a lease signing. He also confessed that the transaction had at least one other, less tangible benefit for him personally.
Bapple had been promoting the use of bitcoins for real estate transactions for months on a chalkboard outside of its Prince Street office, although Mr. Spanos believes this is the first instance of an entire real estate transaction in the country to take place entirely with the virtual currency.
Full article here.
In Liberty,
Michael Krieger
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