Principal Profile: Meet Richard J. Cohen

Richard J. Cohen, President

“I have always been a hard worker, but what I have endeavored to put across to my customers now and then is that their interests have always come first and before my own. This is never going to change.”

As a result of his experience and his total commitment to winning in business, Richie is known for his tenacity, diligence, creativity and forthright communication style. This rare combination of attributes allows him to stand out among his peers, first by understanding the unique conditions that make up every scenario and then by knowing how to successfully bring buyers and sellers, tenants and landlords to a satisfactory meeting of the minds.

Richie’s career in the real estate industry began when he was just 16 years old, painting and repairing family rental properties. By 22, after graduating Ohio State University, he managed over 3000 multi-family housing units in Manhattan, Queens and the Bronx. Later, at age 28, he started his career as an industrial broker and by 1990, he founded his own firm, Ashlind Properties (named after his daughters Ashley and Lindsey). Despite many recommendations against opening a new real estate agency on the heels of the savings and loan crisis and during a severe recession, Richie managed to secure over 600,000 square feet for the likes of Meadowbrook Distributing Corp. (local Pepsi bottler), Elm Freight Handlers, American Tissue Corp. and others. As Long Island’s most prolific individual realtor, Richie has continued to close at least one million square feet of deals each year.

Because his name has become synonymous with industrial brokerage on Long Island, he has been written up in various business journals and periodicals over time. Articles about Richie and Ashlind have appeared in Newsday, The Long Island Business News, Real Estate Weekly, Real Estate Journal, CoStar Advisor, Commercial Property News, and the Hauppauge Reporter.