MARKET OUTLOOK, REAL ESTATE TECHNOLOGY
PRweb | May 23, 2023
Global real estate brokerage The Agency proudly announces the launch of its first franchise office in Indianapolis, Indiana. The new locale, which will be known as The Agency Indianapolis, is the firm’s first office in the state of Indiana, and second in the Midwest following Birmingham, Michigan, which opened in 2022. The Indianapolis office joins the brokerage’s growing network of more than 80 offices in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Europe and will be led by industry veteran and Managing Partner Traci Garontakos. Traci and her team will service the greater Indianapolis region with a focus on the city’s thriving suburbs of Zionsville, Carmel, Westfield, Noblesville, and Fishers.
“We’re thrilled to continue our expansion across the Midwest with the launch of our first office in Indiana,” said Mauricio Umansky, CEO and Founder of The Agency. “We’re delighted to partner with Traci Garontakos, a well-respected and accomplished professional in our industry, as we unveil our new location in Indianapolis.”
The Agency has rapidly expanded its presence across the globe throughout the past year, making it one of the fastest-growing luxury boutique brokerages in the world. The Agency’s independently-owned brokerages are referred to and integrated as true global partners. Every Managing Partner, from both corporate or independently-owned offices, operates cohesively as one true global network. Rather than simply using brand likeness in their marketing, The Agency’s global partners enjoy the same access to leadership, marketing, public relations, training, tools, and technology as our corporate offices. In Q1 of 2023 alone, The Agency launched eight new offices, with more on the horizon in the coming months.
“Indianapolis is a thriving market that holds great synergy with The Agency brand as we continue to deepen our brokerage’s presence in the Midwest,” said Jim Ramsay, Executive Vice President of Franchise Sales at The Agency. “We look forward to servicing this thriving destination as we bring The Agency’s unparalleled network and resources to buyers and sellers throughout Indianapolis.”
Traci Garontakos serves as Managing Partner of The Agency Indianapolis and is a proud resident of Zionsville, as well as a highly accomplished real estate professional with more than 20 years of experience in building lasting business relationships. With a passion for design and a personal commitment to working tirelessly for her clients, Traci has established herself as a trusted and respected figure in the local real estate industry. As a top producer for many years, Traci has a deep understanding of the luxury real estate market and has developed a keen eye for identifying the best opportunities for her clients, who appreciate her attention to detail and ability to make the buying and selling process as stress-free as possible. She has a reputation for going above and beyond to ensure her clients are satisfied and happy with their real estate transactions. Traci has built a team of dedicated professionals who share her commitment to excellence, resulting in $50 million in annual sales in 2022. As a top producer in the luxury real estate industry, Traci’s reputation for exceptional service and results speaks for itself.
“The Agency’s global brand presence and innovative marketing align perfectly with the culture of our business and the city of Indianapolis,” said Traci Garontakos. “I am excited to lead our team and continue to serve the greater Indianapolis region and its suburbs, which continue to experience unprecedented growth and development while maintaining the charm, beauty, and idyllic Midwestern lifestyle afforded within our local community.”
With solid infrastructure, The Agency has a renowned brand that is featured on international television shows including “Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles,” “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” and “Buying Beverly Hills,” which debuted on Netflix on November 4, 2022 and just announced its second season. The Agency has grown to more than 80 corporately owned and franchise offices across the globe, making it one of the fastest-growing luxury boutique brokerages in the world. Poised for further expansion with like-minded partners in strategic markets, The Agency is noted by The Financial Times as one of America’s Fastest Growing Companies and has ranked among Inc. 5000’s list of fastest-growing private companies in the country for six consecutive years. Recently, The Agency ranked 18th on the 2023 RealTrends 500 list, and ranked as the fifth-largest privately held independent brokerage in the nation by sales volume. In August 2022, Inman named The Agency Luxury Brokerage of the year.
The Agency Indianapolis is situated within a historic farmhouse known as The Holliday House at Holliday Farms, located at 3546 South US 421, Zionsville, IN 46077.
The Agency
The Agency is an agent-first, tech-driven boutique luxury global brokerage representing clients worldwide in a broad spectrum of classes, including residential, new development, resort real estate, luxury leasing and vacation rentals. Breaking away from the traditional brokerage model, The Agency takes a collaborative approach to the business, fostering a culture of partnership in which all clients and listings are represented in a collaborative environment. Agents and clients benefit from the shared resources and networks of the entire global team, including in-house creative, public relations and cutting-edge technology divisions. The Agency has closed more than $57 billion real estate transactions since 2011, comprising over 80 offices in ten countries, and counting, as one of the fastest-growing boutique, luxury real estate brands in the world. Watch The Agency on Buying Beverly Hills, a new real estate occu-soap highlighting the high-stakes world of luxury real estate in Los Angeles, currently streaming on Netflix.
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REAL ESTATE TECHNOLOGY, MORTGAGE AND LENDING
Businesswire | May 08, 2023
Axar Capital Management LP (“Axar”) and Morning Calm Management, LLC (“Morning Calm”) today announced the launch of Morning Axe Management (“MAM” or the “Company”), a real estate lending platform formed to offer capital solutions by originating senior loans and mezzanine loans in commercial real estate nationwide. The Company will invest and manage discretionary capital on behalf of life companies and other institutional investors. Morning Axe will setup dedicated headquarter operations in Des Moines, IA with future origination teams spread across the country.
Morning Calm is a vertically integrated real estate investment and management platform with a focus on special situation investing. Axar is a value-oriented investment firm focused on highly flexible, opportunistic investing in the corporate middle market. Since their respective inceptions, Morning Calm and Axar have deployed over $5.0 billion of capital, including real estate investments in target property sectors.
The MAM platform launches with access to approximately $250 million of capital via a separately managed account. MAM has also engaged Raymond James to support additional institutional fund raising. MAM’s strategy is to bring new solutions to commercial property borrowers as traditional lenders work through legacy issues and otherwise seek to deleverage in a rapidly changing market environment. MAM’s new credit and structured finance platform aims to fill that gap. Target property sectors include industrial, multifamily, retail, self storage and office, among others.
“The convergence of rising rates and the decreased availability of real estate credit has created an opportunity for MAM to be a solution to borrowers looking to acquire properties or refinance existing loans. As liquidity remains scarce in the real estate capital markets, we will be well-positioned to be a preferred partner to leading sponsors,” said T.J. Heither, Head of National Originations. “The combination of Morning Calm and Axar Capital bring complementary skill sets, a long history of successful partnerships and significant infrastructure that will allow MAM to efficiently scale and diversify our portfolio of investments.” Prior to joining MAM, Mr. Heither was most recently the Senior Vice President, National Commercial Real Estate, at Susser Bank. Prior to that he held origination and investing roles at Mutual of Omaha Bank and Principal Global Investors.
“This new platform will help borrowers access capital in a challenged market that has seen some of the largest lenders reducing their appetite for risk,” said Mukang Cho, Founder and CEO of Morning Calm. “The real estate credit market has diversified and grown significantly in recent years, and its recent dislocation creates a large void for MAM to fill.”
About Axar Capital Management LP
Axar Capital Management LP is a value-oriented investment firm focused on highly flexible, opportunistic investing in the corporate middle market. Axar's investment team focuses on opportunities across the capital structure in complex situations as a provider of debt and equity solutions that allow its management teams and portfolio companies to realize their long-term value potential.
About Morning Calm Management
Morning Calm Management is a vertically integrated real estate management firm with a focus on special situation investing. Through its affiliates, the firm owns and manages approximately 10 million square feet of commercial real estate throughout the United States on behalf of private and institutional capital.
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REAL ESTATE TECHNOLOGY, REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT
Globenewswire | May 17, 2023
HqO, the world’s leading workplace experience platform, today announced a strategic partnership with Savills, North America’s largest tenant-focused advisory firm. The partnership will enable Savills to provide its clients the ability to demonstrate the value of real estate through unique, actionable insights into connecting with and empowering employees, increasing flexibility in the workplace, and reimagining how the modern workplace enhances productivity and community.
HqO and Savills – both renowned for their steadfast commitment to advocating for occupiers across the globe, as well as for their cutting-edge technology, market data, and workplace insights – formed the alliance in an effort to best advise corporates navigating a real estate ecosystem that is currently experiencing a generational disruption.
“Savills modern and differentiated approach to translating data and market intelligence into actionable insights for occupiers across the globe, coupled with HqO’s position as a proven leader in the tenant experience space, makes this strategic alliance mutually beneficial for both parties,” said Sarah Dreyer, Executive Vice President, Information, Technology and Digital Strategy at Savills.
Due to the firms’ respective areas of expertise, the partnership will allow Savills and HqO to empirically demonstrate which layouts, amenities, and workplace programs drive employee engagement and maximize the ROI of every dollar spent on office space.
The partnership will provide granular visibility into how employees experience and interact with their workplace. In turn, corporate leaders will be able to evaluate and optimize their office performance to reimagine a modern workplace that enhances productivity, promotes community, and energizes employees.
“The last three years have radically transformed how people connect with each other and the places they work. Being able to activate those trends from users to physical real estate properties is mission-critical today,” said Chase Garbarino, Co-Founder and CEO at HqO. “Savills shares the same vision as HqO, and the overall belief that the future of the workplace will be driven by their experiences. This partnership represents the significant shift in overall mindset towards customer-centricity for the first time in the larger commercial real estate industry.”
About Savills Inc.
Savills helps organizations find the right solutions that ensure employee success. Sharply skilled and fiercely dedicated, the firm’s integrated teams of consultants and brokers are experts in better real estate. With services in tenant representation, workforce and incentives strategy, workplace strategy and occupant experience, project management, and capital markets, Savills has elevated the potential of workplaces around the corner, and around the world, for 160 years and counting. For more information, please visit Savills.us.
About HqO
HqO, ranked No. 75 on the Inc. 5000 list, is transforming how people connect with each other and the places they work. The HqO Workplace Experience Platform makes it easy for companies and commercial property teams to create modern workplaces through world-class amenities and services that allow people to thrive and produce the best results. Active in over 250 million square feet in 25 countries, 57% of the Fortune 100 rely on HqO to enhance their workplace experiences, improve employee satisfaction, and drive operational excellence.
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