JLL’s capital markets group has hired senior housing veterans Richard Swartz and Jay Wagner from rival Cushman & Wakefield to bolster JLL’s presence in the growing property sector. Swartz and Wagner, who worked more than three decades at Cushman combined, now co-lead JLL’s national seniors housing division. Both brokers were vice chairman at Cushman, the highest level producers can attain at the firm. They’re based in Boston.

In his career, Wagner has overseen more than 360 transactions, representing a total of more than $20.4 billion of investments and financings. At Cushman, Swartz played a key role in forming the senior housing capital markets group he now co-leads with Wagner at JLL.

Across the country in San Diego, their teammate Aaron Rosenzweig also left Cushman for JLL, where he’ll focus on investment sales and financing deals across the U.S.

Colliers is beefing up its urban core division with the addition of veteran retail broker Sam Azar, who’s working in both landlord and tenant representation. The 20-year veteran who’s worked with clients from boutiques to major companies is based in Miami and part of the team led by Mika Mattingly.

Highwoods Properties Chief Financial Officer Brian Leary knew Heather Lamb would be an ideal candidate to replace the retiring Jim Bacchetta. During the past three years leading Colliers’ office landlord services group in Atlanta, she and her team doubled the size of the practice and leased more than 2 million square feet in leases valued at more than $700 million.

"She was my target and has a knack/thirst for leading others — something we can give her a platform for while she gets the backing of our balance sheet, 30M SF portfolio and as an officer of a REIT,” Leary said in an email. Lamb started at Highwoods last week.

As for the departing Bacchetta, Highwoods CEO Ted Klinck said in a statement, “We are forever grateful for Jim’s nearly two decades of exceptional performance and wish him the very best in his well-earned retirement.”

Global real estate group Lendlease has tapped Nick Iselin, who had been overseeing its large developments in Boston, and Kinjal Patel, an 18-year company veteran, to lead its business in Chicago and the central United States. Chicago is a primary gateway city and "is crucial to our growth as a company," Lendlease Americas CEO Claire Johnston said in a statement.

Lendlease said Iselin will lead the development business and Kinjal Patel will oversee the construction unit as the firm integrates its leadership in the region.

Under the leadership of Iselin and Patel, Lendlease said it will explore opportunities in high-growth secondary markets in the central part of the country as well as Chicagoland. Lendlease's developments in the Windy City includes The Reed at Southbank, a brand-new 41-story high-rise with 440 apartments and condos

Boutique tenant rep shop Whitebox Real Estate has opened a Washington, D.C., office just steps from the White House lawn as it works to establish seven locations as many years, firm President Grant Pruitt said. The brokerage tapped Ben Crancer to lead the new office, and he’s relocating from Dallas to the nation’s capital.

PGIM Real Estate has picked Jamie Shen, who serves as the investment firm's chief investment officer and head of its agricultural equity business, to replace Jess Jarratt as overall head of agriculture. The plan is for Shen, who joined PGIM about six years ago, to take over on Oct. 1. PGIM said Jarratt will retire at year end.

“We have ambitious plans to grow our agriculture platform, and Jamie’s appointment is central to them," Bryan McDonnell, PGIM's head of US debt and agriculture and chair of global debt, said in a statement. "Agriculture assets tend to have stable, long-term income characteristics and can act as a strong inflation hedge."

The Solomon Organization has named industry veteran Daniel McInerney as its new chief operating officer. In his new role, McInerney, who oversee senior management and the firm's day-to-day operations at the Summit, New Jersey-based owner and operator of more than 70 properties across nine states. He most recently served as executive vice president of Midwood Investment & Development, where he oversaw asset management and operations for its portfolio of commercial and multifamily properties.

He joins the company as former COO Marshall Rosen retires after 38 years at the company. Under Rosen’s leadership The Solomon Organization increased its holdings to more than 21,000 multifamily units. Rosen “played a key part in the growth of Solomon for nearly four decades," Andrew Rosen, principal of Solomon," said in a statement.