New York-based commercial real estate firm Newmark Group Inc. has recruited local real estate veteran Allison DiGiovanni to head its D.C.-area operations.
DiGiovanni has joined Newmark (NASDAQ: NMRK) as executive vice president and market leader overseeing business development efforts in Greater Washington. She has been working in local real estate for 18 years, most recently at D.C.-based developer MRP Realty, where she was senior managing director and co-head of its office group.
“I’ve crossed paths with a lot of Newmark’s employees over the past 18 years, so I knew the caliber of people working there and got pretty familiar with the platform,” DiGiovanni said. “It’s a good platform and they have talent across multiple service lines and so I knew it was a good opportunity.”
DiGiovanni replaces Ryan Miller, who last fall was recruited to head Cushman & Wakefield’s D.C.-area brokerage after five years with Newmark. Newmark last appeared on the Washington Business Journal’s list of largest real estate brokerages in 2019 when it ranked No. 7. The brokerage’s website lists 47 local employees.
DiGiovanni spent eight years with MRP and played a significant role in helping the company double its portfolio to 8 million square feet. Before that, she was portfolio director for Republic Properties following stints at CarrAmerica, CarrProperties and Brookfield Properties. Her development experience, she said, gives her some insight into how brokerages can serve landlords, especially amid an office market racked with a lot of uncertainty.
Indeed, the flight-to-quality trend in Greater Washington continues to weigh on landlords, hitting property values and encouraging more older office buildings to go residential. In its latest quarterly earnings report, Newmark reported revenues in the first half surging over the same time in 2021 to $1.43 billion, with revenue from investment sales, commercial mortgage origination and leasing particularly strong. The company has been growing its multifamily business, something DiGiovanni said would be important in the D.C. market.
“D.C. is often insulated from the ups and downs in the market, but we haven’t finished seeing the effects of the changes of the past two to three years,” DiGiovanni said. “I don’t think we know exactly how we are going to end up, but being diligent and listening to what’s going on is important first.”
MRP Managing Principal Bob Murphy said Newmark has gained a “valuable asset” in DiGiovanni.
“Allison has been a cornerstone in MRP’s office operations, not to mention a great partner, coworker, and friend,” Murphy said in a statement. “She has transformed MRP’s office services into the robust business unit it is today, delivering the highest level of service to our capital partners, vendors, tenants, and her MRP team.”
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