Berkshire Group Invests in Leggat McCall Properties

By Gail Kalinoski

Mahmood Malihi, co-president, Leggat McCall Properties

Boston—Leggat McCall Properties, already a longtime commercial real estate investor, developer and project manager in the Boston area, is growing thanks to an investment from a fund operated by The Berkshire Group.

Noting that Leggat McCall has been “an integral part of the Boston commercial real estate landscape” for the past 50 years, Berkshire announced it had made an investment and committed funds from its BRV Partners Fund I LP, to the firm. Leggat McCall will use the funds to source and execute more than $1 billion of real estate investments in joint ventures with third-party institutional partners. Leggat McCall is focused on sourcing, financing and executing complex, mixed-use development and value-add investment opportunities in the Greater Boston area. It also provides advisory and project management services to large owners, users and investors.

“Having Berkshire become our partner is a great step for our company,” Mahmood Malihi, co-president of Leggat McCall Properties, said in a prepared statement. “We have built a great relationship with Berkshire principals through past dealings.”

Leggat McCall and Berkshire officials were not available to provide more details on the firms’ previous relationships. However, Jason Grossman, managing director of venture investments for The Berkshire Group, noted in prepared remarks that the firm intended to help Leggat McCall “grow its principal investment activities and third-party advisory business” and also tap into expanding CRE opportunities in the Boston area.

“We believe that Greater Boston will continue to be an attractive market for real estate investment given its position as a world leader in higher education, healthcare, life sciences and high tech,” Grossman said in a prepared statement. “By partnering with a Boston-centric firm with deep relationships in these industries and particular expertise in the local mixed-use development business, we anticipate being able to capitalize on attractive investment opportunities.”

Berkshire, which also has its headquarters in Boston, is a real estate investment management company primarily known for its multifamily investment and operational experience. The firm invests in opportunistic ventures in other real estate sectors through its Venture Investments group. It also has offices in Atlanta, New York, Baltimore, Dallas, Houston and San Francisco. As of June 30, Berkshire Group had approximately $7.2 billion in real estate assets under management.

Last month, Berkshire announced a joint venture to develop and strategically acquire senior housing communities in the western United States with Clearwater Senior Living. The JV’s initial equity investment is expected to generate more than $500 million in gross asset value.

Since 2001, Leggat McCall has been involved in projects totaling nearly $11 billion in development costs with over 30 of these projects costing more than $100 million each. The firm has a dominant presence in the rapidly growing higher education, healthcare and life sciences industries and regularly services many of the area’s top universities, healthcare systems and biotech companies, including Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham & Women’s Hospital and Biomed Realty Trust.