Newmark expands valuation, research teams; CBRE bolsters finance group; Northmarq hire pursues capital markets business

Newmark hired Jessica Morin as head of national occupier research, and she is based in Phoenix. The brokerage said this is a newly created role in which Morin will focus on tenant, labor market and macroeconomic trends related to clients across multiple industries. She joined Newmark from CBRE, where she served as director of U.S. office research, and previously worked as a regional market analytics director at CoStar Group.

In its New York headquarters, Newmark added veteran appraisers Michael Garcia, Robert Porto and John Feeney as executive vice presidents in its valuation and advisory practice. Formerly with Cushman & Wakefield, they joined a team of Newmark brokers focused on multifamily and mixed-use properties in the New York region and across the country. Newmark said Garcia and Porto will serve as multifamily specialty practice co-leads, each with 20 years of experience with multifamily properties in the region. Feeney has more than 40 years of work on large-scale projects, consulting on developments such as High Line and Hudson Yards.

Kris Lowe, Andy Scott and Michael Cosby joined CBRE’s debt and structured finance team in Dallas as vice chairs. The trio joined CBRE from JLL, where they served as senior managing directors after that firm’s acquisition of HFF. Lowe, Cosby and Scott have closed transactions totaling more than $60 billion and will handle debt and equity placements across Texas, with an emphasis on multifamily properties.

A CBRE national investor survey found the Dallas-Fort Worth region has consistently ranked among top preferred markets for investor capital over the past four years, with 72% of respondents targeting multifamily assets. CBRE is expanding its regional debt and structured finance team to position itself for growing demand as market conditions improve, said Kelly Whaley, senior managing director for investor services, in a statement. 

Northmarq added Hannah Taylor as a vice president in its debt and equity group, based in Richmond, Virginia. The brokerage said Taylor, who has a decade of experience, will arrange debt and equity financing for clients in the mid-Atlantic region, where Northmarq has recently been expanding its finance services.

Taylor served most recently as managing director of acquisitions and capital markets at Featherstone Partners, a multifamily investment firm based in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where she led transactions with an overall value topping $300 million across the mid-Atlantic and Southeast. She held earlier roles at Global ADP, Cohen Investment Group and Wheeler REIT. 

Affordable housing developer Community HousingWorks promoted Yvette Villa-Barry to senior vice president of asset management and resident services. Villa-Barry previously served as vice president of real estate asset management and will now oversee all aspects of its portfolio, including property management and resident services. She has 17 years of affordable housing leadership experience.

Community HousingWorks, a San Diego-based company, also said it promoted Lakeysha Sowunmi to senior director of resident services. She previously served as community engagement manager. The firm builds, preserves and operates affordable apartment properties in California and Texas.

Multifamily investment firm Bonaventure named Mike Auerbach chief growth officer and Barrett Lowell head of asset management. The Alexandria, Virginia-based company said Auerbach will oversee tax equity initiatives after extensive prior work on transactions, including 1031 exchanges.

Bonaventure said Lowell will focus on growing its portfolio that currently includes more than $2.6 billion in assets under management across the mid-Atlantic and Southeast.

He has prior experience in portfolio performance oversight and recapitalizations and will work in tandem with Bonaventure’s investment and development teams. 

Founded some 25 years ago, Bonaventure says it has more than $2.6 billion in assets under management.