New York, NY (July 28, 2016) — Newmark Grubb Knight Frank (NGKF) is pleased to announce the hire of market-leading Seattle leasing brokers Jesse Ottele, Cavan O’Keefe and Brody O’Keefe. The dominant landlord and tenant rep brokers are known as some of the most prolific dealmakers in Seattle and will firmly establish NGKF’s leasing presence in this market.
“The addition of these accomplished professionals drives NGKF to the forefront of Seattle’s office sector,” said Chuck Seufferlein, president of NGKF’s western region. “Ottele and O’Keefe will further enhance our synergy on the West Coast between our leading capital markets coverage in Los Angeles and Seattle, our preeminence in the San Francisco Bay Area and our premier retail and office brokerage throughout California.”
“Our client base, both on the capital markets and agency side, has made it clear that the Pacific Northwest is a critical market for them,” said Robert Griffin, U.S. head of capital markets at NGKF. “Bringing on Ottele and O’Keefe is a testament to our commitment to identifying extraordinary talent across all service lines and building out our practice in this region and all major markets around the country.”
Ottele joins NGKF as an executive managing director. Prior to NGKF, he served as a senior vice president at CBRE, focusing on landlord and tenant advisory services Seattle metropolitan region. He has worked in commercial real estate for 17 years and in 2015 alone, he closed more than 60 deals, which totaled more than 950,000 square feet of properties in the Puget Sound area. Ottele was the SIOR Office Broker of the Year for the Puget Sound region in both 2011 and 2014 and was consistently a top-10 producer in the region at his previous firm.
“Joining NGKF grants our clients access to the top-of-the-line resources and expertise of a leading full-service, entrepreneurial and global platform,” said Ottele. “We are thrilled to collaborate with the firm’s energetic market movers throughout the West Coast to create seamless, dominant coverage in this region.”
“NGKF is growing at an exciting pace, throughout the West Coast and nationally,” said Cavan O’Keefe. “We are excited for the opportunity to blaze a trail inside a top-tier firm that will value our energy to assemble an unparalleled regional capability to deliver enhanced service to our clients.”
Cavan O’Keefe joins NGKF as a senior managing director, having previously served as first vice president at CBRE. His work is comprised of Downtown Seattle client representation and investment advisory services. He has 12 years of experience in the field and completed more than 100 lease and sale transactions in Seattle in 2015, totaling more than half a million square feet.
Brody O’Keefe joins NGKF as a director. Prior to NGKF, he served as an associate at CBRE, specializing in tenant representation and investment advisory services in Downtown Seattle. He brings experience in finance, leasing services and real estate development to his new role at NGKF. In 2014, he was CBRE’s Rookie of the Year for the Puget Sound region.
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 12,800 professionals operate from more than 370 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., a leading global brokerage company servicing the financial and real estate markets. BGC’s common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol (NASDAQ: BGCP). BGC also has an outstanding bond issuance of Senior Notes due June 15, 2042, which trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol (NYSE: BGCA). BGC Partners is led by Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Howard W. Lutnick. For more information, please visit http://www.bgcpartners.com/.
