Unlike most 16-year-olds, Judah Fried knew exactly what he wanted to be when he grew up. Now a top real estate agent in New York City, Judah discovered his calling after spending many Shabbat weekends with his grandfather Joseph.

After surviving the Holocaust, Joseph moved from Netanya, Israel to the United States. He began a storied career in construction, building properties throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn. Spending weekends with the family, Joseph taught Judah all about building, development and the challenges he encountered along the way. Judah found it all fascinating and realized he wanted to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps.“He told me that it is very hard to start off with real estate but he thought I had it in me to become successful in the industry. So I took what he said and I ran with it.”

During his senior year at Westchester Hebrew High School, Judah enrolled in a real estate course at New Rochelle High School. Right after graduation, he passed the real estate exam, earning his realtor’s license. He was well on his way and he was just 18 years old.

But before he began his meteoric rise to the top of the New York City real estate scene, he spent a gap year in Israel at Ashreinu. At Ashreinu, mornings were spent immersed in Torah study, while afternoons were devoted to volunteer work. Judah’s father, two uncles and brother are all doctors, and he found himself drawn to medicine, helping people and giving back to the community. So for his community service he chose to join Magen David Adom and worked as a chovesh (EMT) for the year.

When he returned to the States, Judah went to work at LG Fairmont, a brokerage in New York City right across the street from Pace University where he attended college.

With an entrepreneurial spirit Judah regularly cold-called management companies. Acutely aware that competition in New York is fierce, he asked himself, “What can I bring to the table that’s different?” What would it take for these landlords and companies to take a chance on him?

The answer was enhanced marketing—from staging photos, professional photography, video tours and 3D floor plans and more. “Real estate is really technology-driven now. There’s a lot of digital marketing involved.”

Knowing that several of the management companies and landlords he was calling were Modern Orthodox, he would proudly introduce himself as Modern Orthodox and then pitch them his services.

Believe it or not, it actually worked a few times, and a handful of landlords took a chance on the young, but passionate real estate ingenue. Appreciating his energy and enthusiasm, they gave him one building to prove himself. “One building turned into three buildings. Three buildings turned into eight buildings, and it just kept going and going,” Judah recalled.

His efforts, passion and vision paid off, and after his first year at LG Fairmont he was awarded “Rookie of the Year” for 2017. In 2018 he earned the distinction of having the most rental transactions, and by 2019 he was given the “Rising Star” award after closing the most deals at the company.

Shortly after, Judah was invited to join Compass, the largest brokerage firm in the U.S. He formed The Fried Team, a group that includes him and two other agents who work for him. The Fried Team provides brokerage services, including sales and rentals for over 60 buildings in Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Then COVID hit, and Judah’s methods and talent for digital marketing proved not only beneficial but absolutely essential to doing business in a pandemic. “Nobody was coming to see apartments. People were relying on video tours.”

Reflecting back on 2020, it certainly wasn’t the best year for Judah in terms of his business. But he feels the opportunity to be on the front lines every day and give back to the community was priceless.

With COVID significantly impacting real estate in New York City, business slowed considerably. The year that Judah spent with Magen David Adom in Israel was never far from his mind. Even as he was working hard to build up his successful career in real estate, he realized how much he missed being a chovesh. So he made the decision to join Hatzolah on the Upper East Side and threw himself into the role at the height of the pandemic, responding to one COVID call after another. He hasn’t looked back since. “If I have some free time in my day, I like to be able to give back. That is one of the reasons I joined Hatzolah.”

Now that COVID restrictions are easing, 2022 promises to be Judah’s best year ever. However, he still remains steadfast in his commitment to Hatzolah. Judah is an inspiration to other young business men in his ability to juggle his professional life with community service.

Relishing any opportunity to give back to the community, Judah has now also joined up with his local Friendship Circle chapter, offering his time, services and resources whenever he can. But when he’s not busy giving back, you’ll find Judah expertly staging listings, matching up his clients with their dream homes and getting them offers that exceed their expectations.

To contact Judah Fried, call 914-584-0185

By Ronit Mershon