Avison Young hires prominent investment sales team to join New York City office

Vincent Carrega, Neil Helman, Jon Epstein, Charles Kingsley join as Principals; strategic hiring of eight-member team adds depth to Avison Young's rapidly growing Tri-State market presence

NEW YORK CITY, May 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - Earl Webb, President, U.S. Operations, for Avison Young, Canada's largest independently-owned commercial real estate services company, announced today the hiring of a leading investment sales team to join the company's rapidly growing New York City office.

Effective immediately, Vincent Carrega, Neil C. Helman, Jon Epstein and Charles B. Kingsley join Avison Young as Principals. The news follows the announcement of Avison Young opening its first office in New York City last month and the hiring of industry leader Arthur J. Mirante, II as Principal and Tri-State President.

Prior to joining Avison Young, Carrega, Helman, Epstein and Kingsley worked in the New York offices of Grubb & Ellis. The four professionals collaborated as a top-producing investment sales team with expertise in all aspects of the acquisition and disposition of investment-grade real estate, as well as development and redevelopment transactions on behalf of both institutional and private capital clients. Collectively, they have completed assignments totaling more than $4.5 billion over the past several years. The team's extensive experience encompasses all property types in the Tri-State market, with a focus on Manhattan.

"The addition of this prominent team to Avison Young's New York City office expands the depth of our capabilities and is aligned with our focus on creating a culture of collaboration to ensure we are able to provide the highest quality of service to our clients," comments Webb. "We are excited to welcome Vincent, Neil, Jon and Charles to our team, and will look to them to leverage their broad-based experience to further develop our relationships and business-line coverage throughout the Tri-State market."

Carrega brings more than 30 years of commercial real estate industry experience to his role at Avison Young. Most recently an Executive Vice-President for Grubb & Ellis' investment services group, Carrega was frequently recognized as one of the firm's top-producing brokers, having completed numerous high-profile transactions throughout his career on behalf of a wide variety of investor, corporate, institutional, public, private and individual owners.

Notes Carrega: "I am impressed by Avison Young's principal-led culture, which I believe will provide our team with a strong foundation to achieve high-level results on behalf of our clients. I am excited by the opportunity to use my experience to grow the firm's investment sales business in the regional marketplace, and I look forward to contributing to the company's expansion in the Tri-State area."

Helman was formerly an Executive Vice-President at Grubb & Ellis, where he worked since 1997 and was recognized as a company-wide top-performer. During his 27-year career in commercial real estate, he has been involved in the marketing and disposition of numerous high-profile development sites and property sales.

"The real estate investment services industry in New York City is among the most competitive and active in the world, and I believe Avison Young's calculated entrance into this market provides our team with a tremendous opportunity to continue building on our track record of success," states Helman.

Epstein joins Avison Young after serving as Executive Vice-President in the capital markets team of Grubb & Ellis. Prior to joining Grubb & Ellis, Epstein served as a Senior Director at Cushman & Wakefield. He has 25 years of experience in investment sales in New York City, completing many high-profile transactions during his career. He also has broad expertise in acquisition, development and asset management, with a background in property and construction management.

"I believe Avison Young is well-positioned to achieve tremendous growth in this market. I am thrilled to be joining a firm that places such a strong emphasis on being both client-centric and culture-driven, and am confident that our team's industry relationships and experience will support the company's growth objectives in the New York metropolitan area," says Epstein.

Also specializing in the sale and disposition of investment properties, Kingsley previously served as an Executive Vice-President in the New York capital markets team of Grubb & Ellis. Prior to that, Kingsley worked as a Senior Director at Cushman & Wakefield. With more than 30 years of experience as a broker, owner and manager of Manhattan real estate, Kingsley has been responsible for the sale of more than 3 million square feet (msf) of property.

Notes Kingsley: "The team dynamic that we bring to Avison Young is unique to the industry and, at the same time, highly complementary to Avison Young's brand of client service, which promotes collaboration. I believe our collective decades of experience and comprehensive knowledge of the investor side of the business will greatly benefit the firm as it further expands in the Tri-State market."

Effective immediately, Michael Berk, Steve Rooney, Jason Mazin and Miriam Halpert also join Avison Young in the New York office. Berk and Rooney join as financial analysts, while Mazin has been hired as a marketing coordinator. Halpert joins as an investment sales broker and will focus on business development. All four also come from the New York offices of Grubb & Ellis.

Avison Young's New York City office marks the company's 13th location outside of Canada. Over the past three years, Avison Young has grown from 11 to 30 offices and from 300 to more than 900 real estate professionals across Canada and the U.S.

Biographies

Vincent Carrega

During his more than 30-year career in real estate sales, Carrega has worked with and on behalf of a wide variety of top-tier investor, corporate, institutional, public, private and individual owner clients. Active in all aspects of real estate-related investment sales, he recently completed such transactions as the structuring/disposition of high-profile Manhattan development sites at 1517-25 Third Avenue, 200 West 72nd Street, 350 Amsterdam Avenue and a large development site at Eighth Avenue and 46th Street. Other notable transactions include the bankruptcy-related sales of both Cabrini Medical Center and 555 Sixth Avenue, as well as the sales of 423 West 55th Street, 387 Park Avenue South and 240 West 37th Street.

Prior to joining Avison Young, Carrega was with Grubb & Ellis' investment services group in New York. During his 30-year tenure at Grubb & Ellis, Carrega was frequently recognized as one of the firm's top-producing investment sales brokers and consistently earned membership in the Circle of Excellence, a mark of distinction reserved for the company's top transaction specialists nationally. Carrega also earned the distinction of membership in Grubb & Ellis' President's Council, an elite group of professionals who balance outstanding performance and dedication to the firm with exceptional client service.

Neil C. Helman

With more than 25 years of real estate experience, Helman concentrates on investment sales. Actively involved with the marketing and disposition of investment-grade property, Helman has undertaken and completed the sale of all types of real estate, including office, apartment and retail properties, commercial buildings for adaptive re-use as residential, as well as sites for ground-up residential and hotel development. During his career, Helman has been involved in the disposition of several high-profile development sites and property sales. He was recently involved with two prominent bankruptcy sales: Cabrini Medical Center to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and 555 Sixth Avenue to Stonehenge Partners. Other recent sales include 344 West 14th Street, a mixed-use property in the Meatpacking District; 423 West Street, a bank sale of a stalled condominium project; and a note sale for a residential development site at 65th Street and Lexington Avenue where Toll Brothers is now building a luxury condominium property.

Prior to joining Avison Young, Helman was an Executive Vice-President at Grubb & Ellis New York and a recognized company-wide top-performer, earning the honor of membership in Grubb & Ellis' President's Council. He also repeatedly earned inclusion in Grubb & Ellis' Circle of Excellence. Before joining Grubb & Ellis, Helman was with Kaufman Management Company, where he had an active role in the leasing and management of the company's Manhattan office building portfolio. He also spent eight years as a leasing broker with Helmsley-Spear, Inc., focusing on tenant relocation as well as representation of landlords in the disposition of excess office space.

Jon Epstein

Epstein specializes in the sale and disposition of investment properties. He is a veteran real estate professional with more than 25 years of management experience in acquisition, development and asset management, playing advisory roles in structuring acquisitions and dispositions of various real estate transactions. His background in property and construction management, as well as mortgage and project financing, enables him to provide complex financial analysis and technical support to disposition transactions. Assignments with which he has been involved cover a diverse range of property types, including those suitable for value-added opportunities such as residential conversion and redevelopment. Epstein also possesses notable experience working with non-profit organizations.

Prior to joining Avison Young, Epstein was an Executive Vice-President with Grubb & Ellis' New York capital markets team and a Senior Director at Cushman & Wakefield's New York middle markets group. His respective teams were cumulatively responsible for completing nearly $4.5 billion in sales over the past several years, with noteworthy transactions including the sales of 555 Avenue of the Americas, 725 West End Avenue, The Plaza Hotel, Lexington Avenue YWCA, 90 West Street, 225 Fifth Avenue and 350 Broadway. During his tenure at Cushman & Wakefield, Epstein was also the recipient of numerous awards including Top 100 Producers, President's Million Dollar Producers and the award for highest-producing team in company history.

Charles B. Kingsley

Kingsley specializes in the sale and disposition of investment properties. He has in excess of 30 years of experience as a broker, owner and manager of Manhattan real estate and has been responsible for the sale of more than 3 msf of property. While the majority of Kingsley's brokerage experience is in the sale of office buildings, vacant buildings and lots to be redeveloped, he has also been involved in the sale of numerous retail and residential properties throughout New York City.

Consistently a top producer, Kingsley most recently played integral roles in the sales of 335 Broadway, 555 Avenue of the Americas and 421 Hudson Street, as well as the retail condominiums at 127 Seventh Avenue in Chelsea and the Orion at 350 West 42nd Street. Additional transactions of note include 610 Lexington Avenue, 548 West 22nd Street and 318 East 15th Street (Booth House). Prior to Joining Avison Young, Kingsley was an Executive Vice-President with Grubb & Ellis' New York capital markets team, and a Senior Director in Cushman & Wakefield's New York middle markets group, where he earned numerous awards including Top 100 Producers, President's Million Dollar Producers and the prestigious award for greatest team production in Cushman & Wakefield history.

In February, Avison Young was named a winner of Canada's 50 Best Managed Companies program for 2011, sponsored by Deloitte, CIBC, National Post and Queen's School of Business.

Founded in 1978, Avison Young is Canada's largest independently-owned commercial real estate services company. Headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Avison Young is also the largest Canadian-owned, principal-managed commercial real estate brokerage firm in North America. Comprising more than 900 real estate professionals in 30 offices across Canada and the U.S., the full-service commercial real estate company provides value-added, client-centric investment sales, leasing, advisory, management, financing and mortgage placement services to owners and occupiers of office, retail, industrial and multi-residential properties.

Editors/Reporters: please click on links to view and download photos of Vincent Carrega, Neil C. Helman, Jon Epstein and Charles B. Kingsley
http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/VinCarrega.jpg
http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/NeilHelman.jpg
http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/JonEpstein.jpg
http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/CharlesKingsley.jpg

For further information/comment/photos:

New York Media Relations:

• Christa Segalini, Vice-President, Beckerman PR: (201) 465-8021
• Elliot Baum, Principal and Vice-President of Marketing, New York, Avison Young: (212) 729-7465

Avison Young Media Relations:

• Sherry Quan, National Director of Communications & Media Relations, Avison Young: (604) 647-5098; cell: (604) 726-0959
• Earl Webb, President, U.S. Operations, Avison Young: (312) 957-7610
• Mark Rose, Chair and CEO, Avison Young: (416) 673-4028

www.avisonyoung.com

Avison Young is a winner of Canada's 50 Best Managed Companies program for 2011, sponsored by Deloitte, CIBC, National Post and Queen's School of Business

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SOURCE Avison Young (Canada) Inc.