People on the Move – August 2014

TPG Capital JV Buys DTZ, Taps Brett White as Investor

Brett White

A private equity consortium led by TPG Capital, PAG Asia Capital and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan has agreed to buy global property services firm DTZ from UGL Ltd. of Australia for AUD$1.2 billion, or U.S.$1.1 billion. The group has also tapped former CBRE CEO Brett White as an investor and expects him to take a future leadership role at DTZ.

The agreement comes about four months after Sydney-based UGL said it was evaluating interest in selling DTZ, which it had owned since 2011. It had also considered a de-merger, but the board of directors concluded it was in the best interests of shareholders to sell the real estate services company so that UGL could focus on its engineering and construction business primarily in Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia. The cash-only sale, which must be approved by regulators, is expected to close in late September.

Reed Joins MVP REIT as President

Steven Reed has joined the executive team at MVP REIT as president. He will also serve as president of MVP Realty Advisors L.L.C. and MVP American Securities L.L.C., the REIT’s advisors and affiliated broker-dealer, respectively. MVP REIT intends to operate as a publicly registered, non-traded hybrid real estate investment trust with a diversified portfolio of income-producing commercial real estate properties and loans. Prior to joining the firm, Reed was product manager of ARC Realty Finance Trust. Previously, he spent three years with NorthStar Realty Securities as divisional vice president.

Colliers Acquires Leading Property Specialist in London

The FirstService Corp. subsidiary of Colliers International has acquired H2SO Property Consultants, one of London’s leading independent commercial property specialists. Financials were not disclosed. The deal will help build Colliers’ rapidly growing U.K. operations, specifically in investment and office agency, and follows the recent acquisition of a leading retail brokerage firm. Founded in 2009, H2SO took its name from its four principals: David Hanrahan, Rob Hayes, Paul Smith and John Olney. The name, however, will change to Colliers International. The four principals will lead the combined Colliers Central London team of more than 40 professionals in two offices.

Greystone Names Hires as Managing Director, Portfolio Lending

Keith Hires has been named managing director at Greystone, where he will focus on bridge and mezzanine-lending products targeting borrowers in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions in the company’s portfolio lending group. Hires brings more than 25 years and more than $7 billion in transactional experience to the post. He was most recently a managing director in Guggenheim’s Atlanta office. Previously, Hires served as a managing director at Prudential Financial, where he developed the capital markets and Fannie Mae programs for the firm’s eastern region.

Berkadia Acquires Keystone Commercial Capital

Berkadia Commercial Mortgage L.L.C. will add three offices and more than $2 billion to its servicing portfolio with the acquisition of Keystone Commercial Capital, a full-service mortgage banking company headquartered in Phoenix. Keystone was founded in 2007 by managing partners Charlie Williams and Scott Holland. In addition to its founders, Keystone partners Jon Krieger, Ryan Nelson, Gene Kim and the entire origination and support staff will also join Berkadia. Williams will continue to oversee the former Keystone offices in Phoenix, Boston and San Diego.

PM Realty Group Expands Services, Adds Trujilo, Gilpin

PM Realty Group has grown its Washington, D.C., landlord agency representation staff by hiring Eduardo Trujillo as senior vice president of leasing and Andrew Gilpin as a senior leasing associate. Both men will work from PM Realty’s Washington office alongside David Parker, executive vice president & managing director of the Northeastern division. Trujillo has nearly 30 years of experience in Washington’s commercial real estate market, including senior roles with Brookfield Properties, Archon Group and Grubb & Ellis Co. Gilpin previously was an associate broker at CBRE Group Inc., representing landlords and tenants in office leasing in the Washington area. 

NGKF Opens New Raleigh Office, Hires Armstrong to Lead It

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank is bolstering its regional and national operations by opening a new office in Raleigh, a city well known as a hub for pharmaceutical, tech and R&D companies. Brad Armstrong was welcomed onboard as executive managing director, and will work in both Raleigh and NGKF’s New York headquarters. The nearly 20-year corporate real estate veteran has been a CoStar Power Broker for the past six years. Doug Brock will also join the Raleigh office as director, as will both Dan Thomson and Geoff Berrios in associate director roles.

DTZ Launches Latin American Operations with Regional HQ in Mexico City

Global property services firm DTZ has opened its Latin America regional headquarters in Mexico City. The move represents the firm’s entrée into the region. Veteran commercial real estate executive Guillermo Sepulveda was appointed to serve as president of DTZ in Latin America and Mexico. Sepulveda has a quarter century’s worth of experience in the business, and has held executive leadership positions at JLL and CBRE Group Inc. Additionally, Emile Sarraf was named COO. Sarraf has held prominent corporate roles in Mexico and Latin America for General Electric, American Express, Citibank and Grupo Salinas.