No Conflict, Say Principals in RealtyIQ's Rainmaker Deal

RealtyIQ, an on-line provider of real estate data and content, has acquired Rainmaker Publications Group, publisher of Realty Stock Review and Property magazine. Both periodicals will continue to be edited by Barry Vinocur, chairman and CEO of Rainmaker. Vinocur also took on the title of senior VP of editorial content for RealtyIQ. The Review deals with property-linked stocks, as does Property, which is targeted to pension-plan sponsors, money managers and financial advisors.

Frontline Capital Group, headed by Scott Rechler, is a major investor in RealtyIQ. And he is president and co-CEO of Reckson Associates, a real estate investment trust.

The question is whether this relationship will influence Vinocur’s objectivity.