Avison Young Buys NYC Firm

Scott Singer, Principal, Avison Young. Image courtesy of Avison Young

Avison Young just bolstered its foothold in New York City with a powerhouse team of five via the acquisition of the assets of The Singer & Bassuk Organization LLC, a boutique real estate finance brokerage and advisory firm. The move, which comes nearly a decade after Avison Young’s April 2012 establishment of its very first office in Manhattan, will allow the Toronto-based real estate advisor to expand its debt and equity finance services platform.

SBO founders Andrew and Scott Singer are coming aboard Avison Young as principals in New York and co-leads of the Tri-State Debt & Equity Finance Group. Additionally, Kathleen McSharry, Jeffrey Moroch and Alan Schwartz join the firm as senior directors in the New York office. The new additions bring to the table a high-performance background amounting to a combined 100 years in debt and equity finance.

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“We have seen such a huge increase in NYC investment sales activity lately and we also anticipate a very strong push for closings by year-end. So, it just made sense to have an experienced debt and equity finance team alongside us to help get these sales financed and closed,” James Nelson, head of Tri-State Investment Sales, told Commercial Property Executive. “Owners are now also looking for alternatives to traditional sales, such as recaps, so we are happy to be partnering with Scott and his team to put the best options on the table for our clients.”

Something special

Andrew Singer, Principal, Avison Young. Image courtesy of Avison Young

The new SBO members will merge seamlessly with the existing Avison Young investment sales team, focusing on capital solutions for institutional and entrepreneurial real estate owners and developers not just in New York, but also across the U.S.

“This is an important step in continuing to build the capital markets business and serve our clients by leveraging the proprietary technology we have created to provide insight to clients across all asset classes,” John Kevill, principal and president, U.S. capital markets, Avison Young, said. “SBO’s experience is exactly what we were looking for in this regard and we plan to continue that push on both the debt and investment sales side in key markets across the country.”

However, the SBO team also adds something extra that can’t be found just anywhere, and that is the expertise that comes with having represented high-profile, multi-generational real estate family offices in New York City since the 1960s. Altogether, the incoming SBO members have orchestrated transactions amounting to billions of dollars on behalf of owners and developers.

Avison Young expects to continue considering growth opportunities in the Tri-State area as they arise in the coming months and into 2022.