Jim leads REBNY’s work to promote effective public and industry policy, support REBNY members with resources and educational opportunities, and foster partnerships between industry leaders and other stakeholders. He previously served in various private sector and government roles including chief of staff for Deputy Mayor for Economic Development Daniel Doctoroff. He was executive director of the Hudson Yards Coalition and, as the first executive director of the Downtown Brooklyn Council, he oversaw the creation of the Downtown Brooklyn redevelopment plan.

Sandhya leads REBNY’s organization-wide strategy and operations for programs, products and services. She works across departments to help ensure that REBNY is delivering the best possible results for its members across New York City. Prior to REBNY, Sandhya was Global Vice President at ICSC where she managed learning and innovation initiatives in retail real estate. She also previously worked at Harvard University as Senior Program Officer for the Americas.

Basha leads REBNY’s policy work on issues related to housing, land use, zoning, resiliency, and community development. Her work has helped to secure City and State legislation expanding access to housing vouchers and advance major projects delivering much-needed housing for New Yorkers. She previously served as senior land use advisor to Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer and, prior to that, worked for the New York City Department of City Planning.

As REBNY’s chief legal officer, Carl supports the organization with its compliance, legislative, corporate and legal needs. He also administers REBNY’s arbitration services, complaint tribunals, and assists with the organization’s litigation efforts.  Prior to joining REBNY, Carl led voting rights and immigration reform policy on behalf of a national Asian-American civil rights organization, held senior policy and legal positions in the Bloomberg Administration, and was an Assistant District Attorney in New York County.

Ninve leads REBNY’s work to support residential brokerage members across New York City, including oversight of REBNY’s Residential Listing Service (RLS), Residential Brokerage Events and Program and Residential Professional Development . She led REBNY’s work with CoStar Group to launch and operate Citysnap, the first-ever consumer-facing search website and mobile app for REBNY’s RLS. Previously, Ninve served as vice president of Realtor.com and, prior to that, she was a member of the New York City founding team at Trulia.com.

Yvonne oversees REBNY’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and leads the direction for REBNY’s social impact projects. She has played a key role in REBNY’s work to expand real estate internships for diverse CUNY students, as well as supporting early- and mid-career real estate professionals of diverse backgrounds. Prior to REBNY, Yvonne spent 16 years at TD Bank, where she most recently served as Vice President of the TD Charitable Foundation.

Aravella Simotas spearheads REBNY's government affairs, political and advocacy efforts at the city, state, and federal levels. She collaborates with REBNY's divisions to engage members, discuss legislative priorities with public officials, provide industry testimony at public hearings, and develop advocacy campaigns. Prior to joining REBNY, Aravella led state and local government affairs at BNY Mellon Corporation, served as a member of the NYS Assembly from Northwest Queens and advised a member of Congress and the NYC Council. Aravella began her career as a federal law clerk and later practiced complex commercial litigation.

Colleen drives HR initiatives and solutions across departments, including staffing, performance management, compensation planning, succession planning, training, rewards and recognition, organizational effectiveness, labor relations and employee communications. Colleen created and runs REBNY’s Summer Associate program. She was previously head of Talent Acquisition for Related Management and Hudson Yards and prior to that was Vice President, Human Resources at Bank of America. 

Zach leads REBNY’s policy work on issues including taxes, budget, labor, sustainability, building operations, economic development, construction, and real estate market conditions. His work has helped to advance sensible City and State policies that support building owners in their efforts to reduce carbon emissions. Prior to REBNY, Zach was Deputy Policy Director in the Office of the New York City Comptroller and worked for former U.S. Senator Tom Harkin.

Kay leads the organizational messaging and external communications for the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY). In this role, she oversees a dedicated team focused on crafting impactful communications that effectively connect REBNY to the communities we serve and a diverse range of key stakeholders. Before joining REBNY, Kay served as the Head of Impact Communications at Audible and held key positions within city and state government, including roles at Empire State Development, the New York City Department of Transportation, and the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs.