Rob Rubano (left), Gideon Gil (top right), and John Alascio.
Rob Rubano, Gideon Gil and John Alascio
Executive vice chair; vice chairs at Cushman & Wakefield
Last year's rank: 20
Cushman & Wakefield’s advisory role in the CRE market took on a different dimension over the last year as both lenders and borrowers confronted high interest rates.
Still, the brokerage arranged $8.5 billion of loan volume from March 1, 2023, to March 1, 2024. While originations were off annually 58 percent, C&W played a large role in navigating clients through an uncertain period.
“We don’t think of ourselves as brokers, we think of ourselves as advisers,” Rob Rubano said. “In these types of dislocated environments, the advisory business plays a significant role, and we cherish that role.”
The financings that C&W did close in 2023 involved a number of sizable deals, including a $165 million construction loan in June from a fund managed by an affiliate of Apollo Global Management for Turnbridge and its co-development partner Manekin. The financing, which also included $110 million of equity from the Qatar Investment Authority and PCCP, was for completing the first phase of the sponsorship’s National Capital Business Park project — five industrial warehouse buildings in Prince George’s County, Md.
Another notable transaction included an $84 million mezzanine loan C&W facilitated in May 2023 from PIMCO for Innovo Property Group and Affinius Capital to recapitalize a 1.07 million- square-foot industrial property at 2505 Bruckner Boulevard in the Bronx.
Multifamily and industrial made up a large chunk of C&W’s origination volume in 2023, comprising 29 of the 38 total deals closed for the year, heavily slanted toward refinancings. Rubano said the current pipeline of his team, which includes Gideon Gil and John Alascio, is around $2.5 billion, and is more evenly split among asset classes. He’s hopeful that transaction volume will pick up later this year as the bid-ask spread narrows.
Rubano, who was promoted last December to C&W’s head of equity, debt and structured finance, said much of the last year-plus has been spent strategizing with clients about looming loan maturity schedules along with raising capital to address certain assets.
“It’s a lot of blocking and tackling, and it’s a lot of on-the-ground work for our clients on important stuff that’s very important to them,” Rubano said. “The market will continue to evolve and it will find its footing.”
