T
he founders of Official, a brokerage firm, are facing allegations of drugging and raping women over a decade. The firm's co-founders, Oren and Tal Alexander, have stepped back from the company to minimize its impact on the business. However, this move seems to be the beginning of the end for Official, as top agents are leaving and developers are cutting ties with the firm. The other co-founders are trying to distance themselves from the Alexanders, with Nicole Oge taking on the role of company spokesperson. The website has been wiped clean of any trace of the Alexanders, and a new version of Official is being launched.

    The brothers are being investigated by the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and are demanding a return if or when they are cleared of the disturbing allegations. However, their partners are not interested in being involved in any legal action, leading to the Alexanders being left as sole owners of Official.

    The partnership between Official and the Alexanders has ended, with ties going back months or years before Official launched. Nicole Oge played a critical role in Official's branding, attracting other agents as it expanded to markets beyond Miami and New York. She had a decade of experience in real estate marketing in New York City, where she jumped from brokerage to brokerage.

    Oge left Town Residential in 2014 after violating her noncompete clause, which barred her from working for another residential brokerage in Manhattan for two years after leaving Town. She joined Douglas Elliman as global chief marketing officer, where she spearheaded a multimillion-dollar marketing campaign with the support of longtime chairman Howard Lorber. She worked with Jordan, who is now her life partner, at Elliman's development marketing's global efforts.

    Oge suddenly resigned from her post at Elliman in 2016, just two years after joining the company. The circumstances surrounding her departure remain unclear. A few months after Elliman cut ties with Oge, Wachtfogel joined the brokerage in the research and analytics department and wouldn't leave until 2022 to launch Official.

    The plan to hatch Official was already in the works, even though the Alexanders didn't leave Douglas Elliman until June 2022. They had approached Oge three years earlier and gave Lorber nearly a year's notice that they were considering leaving the brokerage. Elliman put together a comparable offer that would give the Alexanders a similar financial position to what Side was offering, according to text messages reviewed by TRD.

    Official's final act was to announce that the three partners were exiting, effective August 15. The Alexanders were seen in Aspen, trying to convince remaining agents to stay with the firm. The brothers' income was based on their commission split, and they did not receive a salary. Their licenses have been inactive since they stepped back from Official, but they are likely waiting for a handful of sales to close so the brokerage can collect those commissions.

    In New York, Official's pending sales total just over $14 million. In Miami, Official's pending deals include 222 South Coconut Lane in Miami Beach, which is on the market with Isaac Lustgarten and Liora Rahimi for $12.9 million; and Lustgarten and Lucy Donn listing for the home at 19465 39th Avenue in Sunny Isles Beach, asking $2.6 million. Official also has deals in the works at Jonathan Landau's Indian Creek Residences, a boutique new development in Bay Harbor Islands.

    Some agents left after only a few months at the brokerage, while other longer-tenured agents have stuck around, including Lustgarten, who is Oren's partner on the Alexander Team in South Florida. Sources say Lustgarten is "stuck" but will be leaving Official for a competitor. The Alexanders' plans for the business are unclear as the four civil lawsuits work their way through the legal system. All four name Oren as a defendant, and one includes Tal. An FBI child exploitation and sex trafficking task force has been interviewing women who allege they were assaulted by the brothers or witnessed the attacks.