Lisa Renee Olaso and her fiancé initiated legal action against the brokerage, one of its agents, and a property owner. The couple had arranged to view a rental apartment on 26th Avenue as part of Olaso’s relocation from Delaware to pursue a job opportunity. The broker, who had not previously met the couple in person, reportedly sent a text message to the property owner from a distance, which unintentionally included Olaso.
They are Black,’” Olaso told WABC. She later confronted the broker, who claimed the message referred to Black tenants in the neighborhood who had previously caused trouble, according to Olaso.
WABC identified the broker as Helen Tzelios, a Bayside-based agent who joined Elliman in 2000 as a licensed sales associate, bringing extensive experience to the role. Upon learning of the lawsuit filed this week, Elliman terminated her employment with the company.
“Douglas Elliman has a zero-tolerance policy for discrimination of any kind, and the agent is no longer with the company,” the brokerage stated in a public statement.
The incident follows a previous lawsuit against Elliman under the Fair Housing Act. In 2023, Shaniqua Newkirk, who is Black, sued Elliman and several top agents, alleging they either ignored her requests for assistance with a Section 8 housing voucher or failed to respond to her inquiries. Newkirk claimed she reached out to brokers listed among the city’s top agents in June 2021 but received dismissive or no responses.
Elliman rejected the claims as “predatory and baseless,” asserting its zero-tolerance policy and rigorous fair housing training for agents within the organization. A federal judge dismissed the 2023 lawsuit against the firm and its New York City agents in March 2025. Elliman stated at the time, “We pride ourselves on our agent training programs, which include rigorous education on fair housing laws.”
