Reppin’ Real Estate in Rockaway— Meet Annette Farina of Belle Harbor Realty

By Kami-Leigh Agard

“Reppin’ Real Estate in Rockaway,” is a series by The Rockaway Times highlighting the movers and shakers behind the peninsula and Broad Channel’s real estate scene. In this installation, meet Rockaway real estate icon, Annette Farina of Belle Harbor Realty.

From stay-at-home mom to real estate queen—for almost four decades, Annette Farina of Belle Harbor Realty (BHR) has witnessed firsthand how the peninsula and Broad Channel’s real estate market has evolved. Like a homegrown surfer riding the unpredictable waves of Rockaway’s neighboring Atlantic Ocean, she has valiantly navigated the highs and lows of the local real estate market. From brokering the largest commercial real estate sale at $2.7M in Rockaway to date in 2021, selling two houses on almost every block in the uptown neighborhoods of Belle Harbor and Neponsit, successfully selling a home in Breezy Point for a record-breaking $2.2M—the petite real estate mogul, Farina, is a force not to be underestimated. And what’s even more endearing about the NY Yankees-diehard fan, Farina, is that her firm, Belle Harbor Realty (BHR), is a family affair with her sons, both retired NYC first responders, Richard and Anthony Farina, both involved in the biz.

Farina, a Brooklyn native and a decades-long Belle Harbor resident, shared that her first dip in real estate began in the late 1980s.

“In 1987, I was a young housewife with two sons, Richard and Anthony. My husband worked; I did not,” Farina said. “One day, my neighbor, Kathy Kenny of Bry Realty, had to go someplace, and asked me to sit in her office just for the day. To her surprise, when she came back, I already had someone interested in the sale of a house and I scored an apartment rental. She said, ‘I think you’d be good at this!’ So, I went and got my license, worked for her, and when she retired, I took the business from her, bringing on a dynamic team of women.”

Thus, Belle Harbor Realty was born, and to this day, Farina considers herself a Rockaway ambassador for sellers, buyers and renters looking to make the peninsula home.

She said, “When people walk into our storefront office on Beach 129th Street and ask me my opinion about a sale or rental, I just honestly share my decades-long knowledge and expertise. With sales, we get a housing engineer and thoroughly read the report together. If anything’s wrong, I guide clients on how to proceed. And then of course, I get an attorney to guide them. In the long run, I want to ensure it all works out well for all parties involved.”

As for what lured Farina to Rockaway to raise her own family, she frankly stated—”the beach community.”

“My husband owned a beauty parlor here. And, one Sunday, I went to the beach and said, ‘I love Rockaway. I never want to leave.’ We rented an apartment that very day. Then we bought a house in Belle Harbor, and then another house, and have never left ever since. As neighbors, we treat each other like family,” she said.

Fast forward to today, BHR has evolved into a family affair with Farina’s sons, Anthony and Richard. Just walk into the office and see for yourself why both men not just planted their respective families in Rockaway but joined their mom’s real estate firm.

Richard Farina, who lives in Neponsit with his wife and two children, retired in 2014 from the NYPD with the rank of detective. He shared, “When I was younger, I always wanted to be a police officer, to help the community. I did 21 years of service with the NYPD, but I had my real estate license all along, working part-time with our mom. Then, when I retired, I got my broker’s license, so now, I’m actually an associate broker.”

Like his brother, Belle Harbor husband and father, Anthony Farina, was a city worker, who in 2020, retired from the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY).

Both sons shared that they like working with their mom as working in real estate is an extension of their lives as city workers serving the public. In unison, they said, “Real estate is about helping people. It’s not a boring job as we get to interact with people every day.”

On her sons’ involvement, Annette Farina said, “I first gave them a taste of renting apartments, and I saw how they loved it as they are both people persons.”

Regarding how the mercury of the market spiked, waned, then spiked again over the years—the real estate pundit, Annette Farina, said, “Years ago, it used to be on a Sunday morning, people were lined up outside our office to buy houses here. Then, periodically, it gets slow, but now it’s definitely warming back up.”

As for the real estate forecast for 2026, Annette Farina said, “For buyers, I see the market slightly heating up again as mortgage rates are slowly dipping. Home prices are steadily on a slow incline.

“For renters, it’s busy right now because some people can’t afford the mortgage, interest rates, plus home and flood insurances have gone up. Plus, taxes have gone up.  So, more people, especially young couples are electing to rent,” she said.

Like the NY Yankees winning a hard-fought MLB World Series, Annette Farina with her two sons, Richard and Anthony, continue to step up to the plate, knocking quite a few balls out the ballpark for nearly 40 years.

It helps that Rockaway is an endlessly desirable location with homes that bring happiness. As Farina shared, “We live here, we love here. When people come in and say, ‘That was the best apartment or home you found for me. We love the block the block, the people.’ Making people happy is really the end goal. It’s very rewarding.”

Belle Harbor Realty is located at 432 Beach 129th Street. For more info, call: 718- 945-1801, visit: https://belleharborrealty.com/ and don’t forget to check out Belle Harbor Realty’s ad full of both homes and rental listings every week in The Rockaway Times!