9:00 AM
Newmark Grubb Knight Frank (NGKF) continues to draw the region’s top talent to its growing Metro D.C. and Northern Virginia offices by adding the veteran capital markets team of Joe Donato and Maury Zanoff, and tenant representatives Junius Tillery, Brian Liss and Chethan Rao.
“These are D.C.’s heavy hitters of commercial real estate in their own specialty,” said Brendan Owen, chairman of asset services for the Washington D.C. Metro area. “They further deepen our expertise and credentials at NGKF, so we can optimally serve our clients in this market no matter the discipline, property type or submarket. It’s a privilege to welcome them to our office and I look forward to watching them excel.”
Mr. Donato and Mr. Zanoff, vice chairmen, will lead the Mid-Atlantic region debt and structured finance business and work to accelerate the growth of the national platform. Previously, as vice chairmen at CBRE and one of its leading finance teams, the pair executed more than $40 billion of equity and debt deals across the country, averaging over $2 billion in transaction volume yearly for the last four years.
A formidable capital markets duo, Mr. Donato and Mr. Zanoff were named the Top Regional Finance Agents by the Commercial Real Estate Brokerage Association of Greater Washington, D.C., (CREBA) in 2011. The pair have executed high-profile financings for CityCenterDC, Sentinel Square I, II and III, Metropolitan Park, Annapolis Towne Centre, and Exelon Tower at Harbor Point, to name a few. Involved in many of the largest and most complex national assignments, they have long-standing relationships with a varied mix of capital sources such as life insurance companies, agency lenders, pension funds, investment banks, real estate funds, and domestic and foreign commercial banks.
Mr. Donato and Mr. Zanoff worked on the principal side at Clark Enterprises, Inc., prior to joining Insignia ESG (now CBRE) in 2000 and 2002, respectively. Mr. Donato, who later held positions with The Rappaport Companies and The Zitelman Group, graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from The State University of New York at Oneonta, a Masters of Science in Real Estate from Johns Hopkins University and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in the Commonwealth of Virginia. At Clark Enterprises, Mr. Zanoff structured joint venture equity and debt, as well as developed public bond offerings for large public-private projects and military housing privatizations. Prior to that, he was employed by Lend Lease, Goldman Sachs and began his career at CRIIMI MAE. Mr. Zanoff graduated from Georgetown University, where he studied finance and theology.
Tenant advisors Mr. Tillery, Mr. Liss, both executive managing directors, and Mr. Rao, a senior managing director, represent Washington area-based companies with global portfolios in excess of two million square feet and with more than 100 national and international locations, along with local corporations requiring office selection in metro D.C., Northern Virginia and suburban Maryland, similar to their previous focus at DTZ. Combined, they offer nearly six decades of commercial real estate experience.
At DTZ, Mr. Tillery served as executive vice president, and Mr. Liss and Mr. Rao each served as senior vice presidents, working extensively with major government contractors in the aerospace and defense industries such as Boeing, Northrup Grumman, General Dynamics, TASC, CACI and Kratos Defense. As lead negotiators on some of the largest transactions in the market, they also represented major corporations in the technology and financial services industries such as Verizon, Unisys, Capital One, American Express and PricewaterhouseCoopers, Vocus and Alarm.com.
Mr. Tillery, a consistent top producer, also worked at Trammell Crow Company, where he was awarded its Brokerage Excellence Award for Corporate Advisory Services.
Mr. Liss’ prior experience includes positions at McShea & Company and Studley Inc. He has received numerous awards throughout his career, including the Best Office Lease Deal Award from the Washington Business Journal.
Mr. Rao began his commercial real estate career in 2005 with DTZ. Two years later, he received the company’s Rookie of the Year Award.
Mr. Tillery graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Mr. Liss holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Maryland. Mr. Rao holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Indiana University.
About Newmark Grubb Knight Frank
Newmark Grubb Knight Frank is one of the world’s leading commercial real estate advisory firms. Together with London-based partner Knight Frank and independently-owned offices, NGKF’s 12,000 professionals operate from more than 320 offices in established and emerging property markets on six continents.
With roots dating back to 1929, NGKF’s strong foundation makes it one of the most trusted names in commercial real estate. NGKF’s full-service platform comprises BGC’s real estate services segment, offering commercial real estate tenants, landlords, investors and developers a wide range of services including leasing; capital markets services, including investment sales, debt placement, appraisal, and valuation services; commercial mortgage brokerage services; as well as corporate advisory services, consulting, project and development management, and property and corporate facilities management services. For further information, visit www.ngkf.com.
NGKF is a part of BGC Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ: BGCP), a leading global brokerage company primarily servicing the wholesale financial and real estate markets. For further information, visit www.bgcpartners.com.