Sep 23, 2021

Broadmark Realty Capital

Schocken

Broadmark Realty Capital announced the pending fall retirement of Joseph Schocken, one of the firm's two founders. Come November, he'll become honorary chairman emeritus of the company board. CEO Jeffrey Pyatt will assume Schocken's old position as board chair. Pyatt said in a statement, “Joe and I founded Broadmark 11 years ago with the vision of becoming a leader in providing capital to small and mid-sized builders, supporting the development of high-quality housing for families across the country.” Said Schocken, “It has been an honor to have served as chairman during these first two years of public ownership. I wish everyone much luck, success and look forward to the next great chapter at Broadmark.” The firm took its current, shorter name two years ago when it went public. Pyatt will cede his role as company president to a new hire, following a planned executive search.

Bordeaux Wealth Advisors

Myers

Bordeaux Wealth Advisors, a boutique investment advisory and wealth management firm with offices in Silicon Valley and Seattle, announced that CEO Tom Myers has again made Barron's list of Top 100 Independent Advisors. Myers has 35 years of wealth advisory services experience with a background in investments, finance and taxation. He has been recognized by Barron's 12 times in his career, and was named to Barron's Advisor Hall of Fame in 2019. Barron's uses a ranking formula that analyzes the advisor's volume of firm assets, revenues they generated for the firm, and the quality of their practice. Bordeaux manages approximately $3.9 billion of client assets. Since 1921, Barron's has been a leading source of financial news, providing analysis and commentary on stocks, investments, and how markets are moving across the globe. Advisors appearing in Barron's ranking have answered over 100 questions about their businesses in the publication's annual survey.

Department of Corrections

Darneille

Department of Corrections (DOC) Secretary Cheryl Strange has named state senator Jeannie Darneille (D-Tacoma) as assistant secretary of DOC's Women's Prison Division. Darneille has represented the 27th Legislative District for over two decades and is a leading voice for juvenile and criminal justice reforms in Washington State. She currently chairs the Senate Human Services, Reentry & Rehabilitation Committee and serves on the state Senate Law & Justice and Ways & Means committees. Senator Darneille has been an advocate on several task forces addressing poverty, homelessness, incarceration, and child welfare. Darneille's new role will oversee the development of a new Women's Prison Division within the DOC and carries with that responsibilities ranging from policy development and programming to safety and security. Secretary Strange created a Women's Prison Division early in her appointment as DOC Secretary, to advance the department's efforts to develop a gender responsive program that will better address the needs of DOC's female incarcerated population.

Opportunity International

Opportunity International, a global non-profit providing financial services to lift people out of poverty, has named retired Microsoft executive Greg Nelson to its board of directors. Nelson most recently was vice president of partner ecosystem, helping Microsoft's Business Applications Independent Software Vendors grow their business. Over his 26-year career at Microsoft, Nelson held a variety of roles spanning disciplines including engineering, partner and business development, marketing and sales. His previous work in developing economies includes teaching English in China and serving as a Rotary Scholar at the University of Cape Town, where he did a one-year post-graduate degree in African Studies with a focus on political transition. Opportunity International provides 19.4 million families with financial resources, training, and support to grow their small businesses and send their children to school.

Cushman & Wakefield

Mutzel

Cushman & Wakefield announced its recent hiring of Pat Mutzel, who joins the capital markets team in Bellevue. He makes the move from Colliers. C&W's Alison Beddard said in a statement, “Throughout his career, Pat has thrived in his ability to discover unique opportunities for real estate owners and investors and has always aimed to support his client's success first, which has led to his own longstanding success in our industry. We are excited for his bright future with us.” Said Mutzel, “As a top brand for overall client services and resources, the firm will support my business pursuits at the highest level.”

Newmark brokers $80M SLU land sale

As the DJC first reported last month, Apple Hospitality paid $80 million for the land beneath the Residence Inn by Marriott, near South Lake Union. It had since 2006 also owned the hotel building. Now Newmark has announced its representation for the seller, Qwest (part of Lumen), which had been ground-leasing the land since 1988. Newmark's national team consisted of Kevin Shannon, Ken White, Victor Frandsen, Alan Polacsek and Manuel Breidenbach, who joined forces in the deal with Newmark local Tim O'Keefe. Shannon said in a statement, “South Lake Union remains the tightest submarket in Seattle by far for both life science and office product, despite the pandemic. While alternative uses were explored for these improvements at the height of the pandemic, the clear recovery occurring in hospitality motivated the buyer to purchase this land.” Apple is based in Virginia.

NorthMarq secures $61M for Issaquah refi

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Stuart Oswald, in the Seattle office for NorthMarq, has arranged nearly $61.4 million in refinancing for the 209-unit Discovery West apartments in the Issaquah Highlands, the company announced. The FHA loan to DevCo carries a 35-year fixed rate in the mid-2% range, said NorthMarq, via the Federal Housing Authority's 223(f) program. Oswald said in a statement, “NorthMarq's FHA loan production has grown substantially in the past 24 months, as more owners are drawn to the program's high leverage and low long-term fixed rates relative to other loan programs.” GGLO designed the six-story complex, with six buildings next to the Swedish Issaquah Campus. DevCo sister company Heartland Construction completed the 3-acre development in 2016.

Concreit launches investment app

The real estate investment app Concreit began brewing about two years ago. Now the local startup has announced $6 million in new funding, led by Matrix Partners and Hyphen Capital, which coincides with the app's official launch. CEO Sean Hsieh said in a statement, “We are democratizing the real estate investing process, because everyone deserves equal access to the opportunities that can change their financial situation.” The platform allows small passive investors to own a stake in the company's first private REIT fund, which the company says achieved an annualized return of 5.47%, as of July. The fund invests in what it calls lower-risk mortgage-backed securities, from both the residential and commercial sectors. Hsieh founded the new venture with Jordan Levy, after they sold their prior VoIP communications platform, Flowroute, for an undisclosed amount. Matrix partner Dana Stalder will join the Concreit board.

Sabey goes green

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Sabey Data Centers has joined the Climate Pledge, the company just announced. The net-zero-carbon commitment, with a 2040 goal of reaching that standard, was launched two years ago by Amazon and Global Optimism. It now has some 200 signatories worldwide. SDC president Robert Rockwood said in a statement, “Data centers are energy intensive, representing 2% of all U.S. electricity use. Throughout our 25-year history, we have always given thought to the sources of electricity that power our data centers.” He added that two of its five large centers already use 100% renewable energy. “For the future, our portfolio of data centers will be ‘net positive,' energy users, producing more electricity — all from renewable sources — than we can use.” SDC has over 3.5 million square feet of data centers, including SDC Seattle, which is just south of town in Tukwila.

Evergreen Home Loans

Evergreen Home Loans announced the recent hiring of Crystal Adair, who becomes VP of loan fulfillment. She makes the move from Loan Depot. In her new role, she'll oversee loan processing, underwriting, funding and post-closing matters. Evergreen's Tamra Rieger said in a statement, “The addition of Crystal to our management team supports Evergreen's aggressive company-wide growth goals into 2022 and beyond. With her support and experience in managing high performance operations teams, we will continue to enhance both the internal and external customer experience.”