Reaping the Benefits of a Culture Shift & Platform Upgrade

UPDATE: Note since the original article ran in June, three additional agents have been hired, including Office Associate Dominic Borrecco in Roseville, Office Associate Matt Dumanovsky in San Francisco, and Industrial Associate Keith Serne in Walnut Creek.

If as they say, “the proof is in the pudding,” then 2019 is proving that TRI Commercial is on the right track. It’s been a banner year so far, with the addition of 20 new agents, including several notable industry veterans. Edward F. Del Beccaro and Ed Benoit, TRI regional managers in the East Bay and Sacramento/Roseville respectively, say the company is focusing on key hires and empowering existing talent companywide — an effort that’s yielding quantifiable results.

“We offer competitive splits, exceptional support services and a sophisticated platform. Brokers are quickly noticing that TRI is a great place to pursue their business goals,” said Benoit.  Over the last couple of years, TRI leadership has invested in a C-level effort to create a more sophisticated brokerage platform. The company developed a strategic plan in early 2018 to enhance its deep local roots by leaning into our strengths and capitalizing on the company’s unique capabilities.

The concept is deceptively simple – put agents in the driver’s seat and equip them to succeed. We empower brokers to be agile, independent and collaborative. It’s a uniquely entrepreneurial approach we’ve refined over more than four decades as one of Northern California’s top independent commercial real estate companies.

In Walnut Creek, the robust growth quickly exceeded the capacity of their existing office space. To accommodate the influx of new brokers, they recently moved into a beautifully appointed new suite of offices and collaborative workspaces there.  “When we host our grand opening this summer, we’ll celebrate not only our new space, but also the tremendous vision and diligence of our team as they elevate TRI to new levels of success,” said Edward F. Del Beccaro, TRI executive vice president and East Bay regional director.

Del Beccaro, who’s leading the charge in the East Bay, recruited some well-known faces in the brokerage community.  Most recently, Senior Directors Robin Newton and Patric Davis joined the firm from Colliers International in Pleasanton. Newton and Davis each have more than 30 years of retail experience representing landlords, tenants, and investors. Managing Directors Sonny O’Drobinak and John Sechser joined late last year, and Senior Director Marilyn Hansen moved to the firm last month.  

In Roseville/Sacramento, Benoit and recently promoted Brokerage Manager Cole Sweatt welcomed veteran brokers Bryan Wirt as senior director of retail, and Rodney Ballinger as vice president of multifamily investments, among the year’s bumper crop of new agents.

Rounding out the team of new recruits in Roseville/Sacramento are retail associate’s John Hynes and Kannon Kuhn, land and investments associate Abdul Ejaz, investment advisor Steve Lefler, senior industrial associate Ross Relles, land and investments associate Ben Goldman and in Walnut Creek, Senior Director Matt Hatfield, senior associates Kate Wright and Paul O’Drobinak and associates Jaimi Trunick, Ron Willet, Clayton Temple, and Ted Bard. 

Over 100 agents, property managers, and admin personnel turned out last week for our companywide meeting at the Falls Event Center in Roseville.

Exciting developments were highlighted during President Thomas Martindale’s opening remarks, including the addition of the new East Bay Regional Team, headed by Edward Del Beccaro, and the introduction of new Brand Standards for use going forward.  Mr. Martindale also applauded managerial recruitment efforts as headcounts are up 20% from last year.  Samples of our spiffy marketing pieces were displayed for all to admire and Dina Gouveia gave an impressive presentation on TRI’s recently-acquired data-analytic capabilities, which will significantly enhance agents’ ability to attract and retain business relationships.

Additionally, keynote speaker Jeremiah Miller shared a touching, motivational story about the importance of reaching out to “allies” who can help achieve seemingly insurmountable goals in life – as opposed to the much-hyped “lone wolf” mentality that runs rampant in our individualistic, ambitious society. 

Finally, brokerage specialty workshops were held to foster better collaboration and relationship building across TRI’s three regions in a concentrated effort to identify in-house cross-referral opportunities.

We have received tremendous feedback thus far on hosting a fun, collaborative TRI.be event, and here’s to hoping our companywide meeting served to foster not only additional revenue but lasting relationships as well.

The Sacramento market continues to see Bay Area investors looking for quality properties with sensible returns, and TRI Commercial/CORFAC looks to capitalize on that activity with a recent management restructure.

By Lisa Brown | May 20, 2019 at 04:00 AM

SACRAMENTO—Industry veteran Ed Benoit has been in the trenches for many years as a broker and manager of the Sacramento office of TRI Commercial/CORFAC International. He’s now stepping away from day-to-day brokerage management to focus on the firm’s strategic priorities as Roseville/Sacramento regional manager. This represents a strategic repositioning effort for TRI in the Sacramento region, he says.

“The company is committed to fully developing the potential of brokers, while providing a sophisticated platform to support maximum performance,” says Benoit. “We are taking steps to be more agile as the industry evolves and prepare ourselves to make the most of any economic change on the horizon.”

In response, Cole Sweatt, vice president of TRI Commercial/CORFAC International, has been promoted to brokerage manager of the company’s Roseville and Sacramento offices. Sweatt and co-manager Rick Phillips will partner with Benoit.

Sweatt has spent nearly two decades in commercial real estate. In this new position, he plans to increase TRI participation in the CORFAC International network, encourage and incentivize cross-discipline deals, work with individual agents to set performance goals and increase revenue, mentor new brokers, and develop a companywide “boot camp” for all new recruits.

In this exclusive, Sweatt and Benoit discuss the new management team, strategic priorities, broker training, what’s on the horizon for the Sacramento market and the latest research trends.

GlobeSt.com: How does your joint leadership benefit the company?

Sweatt: Our leadership team has a deep bench. We each have 20 years or more in the industry with Ed Benoit and Rick Phillips having been with TRI since the beginning in Roseville. Going forward, Benoit will focus on long-term strategic goals, and Rick and I assume responsibility for day-to-day operations. With our range of experience, we’re well positioned to understand and balance the concerns of brokers in various disciplines. This multi-focal perspective also prepares us to maximize the company’s market position regardless of any economic fluctuations.

GlobeSt.com: How do you balance the competing concerns of day-to-day management with strategic priorities?

Benoit: We focus on intentionally incorporating the strategic priorities of the company in our daily management. Sharing management responsibilities as a team, we recognize collaboration and attention to detail as critical functions. Serving the needs of our brokers is our number one priority.

GlobeSt.com: Moving forward, what are the goals for the office? 

Benoit: Our unwavering goal is to equip our clients for success by delivering critical market information. We focus on representing the people and businesses in our local communities, while other brokerage platforms prioritize corporate users in the market. We balance our local roots with global reach, leveraging our connections in the CORFAC network to provide national/international coverage for our clients.

GlobeSt.com: How do you incorporate new talent? What type of training does TRI provide for rookies?

Sweatt: As a company, we are always in recruitment discussions with seasoned brokers, but we’re also building an emphasis on growing brokers organically, i.e., hiring and training young agents to fit our entrepreneurial model. Drawing from our experience and the experience of our CORFAC affiliates, we developed our own brokerage “boot camp” and training guidelines. The goal was to create a more detail-oriented collaborative training program than many of the larger brokerage houses provide.

GlobeSt.com: What’s on the horizon for the Sacramento region? Do you foresee any impending downturn?

Sweatt: The Sacramento market has long been a hub for companies seeking affordable, quality commercial real estate and an attractive housing market at all price points. Currently, inventory is down across all disciplines. Medical office space has dominated most of the recent construction. On the investment side, we’ve seen an increase in Bay Area investors looking for quality properties with sensible returns. This influx has driven our cap rates down and building prices up. Beyond that, being in the capital of California with an ever-growing population has led to the increased presence of state government in our region, which will continue into the foreseeable future.

GlobeSt.com: What types of trends are you seeing in the market as of first quarter?

Sweatt: Both the rising costs of housing and doing business in the Bay Area are causing a net migration to the East Bay and Sacramento/Roseville area. There are over 6,000 workers who commute each year into the San Francisco and Oakland markets from the Sacramento area. And, more than 7,000 commute to the Peninsula and Silicon Valley.

The Sac office market continues to move forward in 2019 and we anticipate the strong activity to continue, as Bay Area firms continue to look to the region as a viable option that offers a strong talent pool for hiring.

Investors also will continue to focus on the region as they seek quality real estate options with better returns on investment. Overall, Northern California continues to be a dynamic job generator and unemployment for the greater Sacramento region stood at a healthy 4.1% at the end of February.

At the start of first quarter 2019, the Sacramento industrial market sat at a record low vacancy rate of 4.13% due to high demand for logistical centers. There is approximately 900,000 square feet less than a year prior, and over 4.3 million square feet less than 24 months ago. This is due to leasing activity remaining high, as net absorption remains positive for the 15th consecutive quarter.

View original GlobeSt. Article here.

CRE Veteran Cole Sweatt Will Oversee Daily Operations 

ROSEVILLE (May 7, 2019) – Cole Sweatt, Vice President of TRI Commercial/CORFAC International, has been promoted to Brokerage Manager of the commercial real estate company’s Roseville and Sacramento offices. Sweatt and co-manager Rick Phillips, CCIM, will partner with Ed Benoit, CCIM, who’s stepping away from day-to-day brokerage management to focus on TRI’s strategic priorities as Roseville/Sacramento Regional Manager. 

Sweatt has spent nearly two decades in commercial real estate working with multiple national and regional platforms, representing Fortune 500 companies, tech-oriented/ VC-backed start-up companies in Silicon Valley and is versed in ground-up development. Through his experience with various management styles he’s developed a keen perspective on the tools and tactics that empower success in today’s fast-changing environment. 

“This shift in leadership represents a strategic repositioning for TRI in the Sacramento region.  The company is committed to fully developing the potential of brokers, while providing a sophisticated platform to support maximum performance. We are taking steps to be more agile as the industry evolves and prepare ourselves to make the most of any economic change on the horizon,” said Benoit. 

In his new position, Sweatt will focus on mentoring new brokers and filling areas of need. He plans to increase TRI participation in the CORFAC International network, encourage and incentivize cross-discipline deals, work with individual agents to set performance goals and increase revenue, and develop a companywide “Boot Camp” for all new recruits. 

“We’ll continue to capitalize on our expertise in the downturn and stay ahead of the curve by knowing our local markets better than the competition, finding good investments and providing sound advice to our clients,” said Sweatt.

Beyond the office, Sweatt chaired the CORFAC International Next Generation Committee in 2017 and 2018, is currently on the Business Development Committee, and is active in community and professional organizations, serving on multiple boards. About TRI Commercial/CORFAC International

Founded in 1977, TRI Commercial/CORFAC International is a leading Northern California commercial real estate brokerage and property management firm (with over 4 million square feet of commercial property under management)  specializing in San Francisco, East Bay and the Sacramento Metro property markets. The company has expertise in tenant and landlord representation services and helps clients buy and sell commercial and investment-grade property. The company serves office, retail, and land, multifamily and industrial property sectors, with offices in San Francisco, Walnut Creek, Oakland, Roseville, Sacramento, and Rocklin. For more information, visit www.tricommercial.com 

CORFAC International is comprised of privately held entrepreneurial firms with expertise in office, industrial and retail properties, tenant and landlord representation, investment sales, multifamily, self-storage, acquisitions and dispositions, property management and corporate services. For more information on CORFAC’s International presence visit www.corfac.com.

See original article on The Registry here.

By Ben van der Meer  – Staff Writer, Sacramento Business Journal

Twenty years in commercial real estate have led Cole Sweatt to a new role as brokerage manager at TRI Commercial/CORFAC International’s Roseville and Sacramento offices. He discussed the new job and what he hopes to accomplish.

What attracted you to take this role?

I’ve been in this industry for about 20 years, and I like helping people. I like the attraction of working day to day with brokers, and I’m pretty well-versed in working with them.

What’s the landscape of the market as you come in?

We deal with more day-to-day users of brick and mortar. The big firms deal with the big corporate accounts. My concern is working with the local tenants and landlords. The outlook for the next few years is strong, as evidenced by how housing has picked up. We’re starting to see, finally, relocation from the Bay Area.

What is the issue that’s holding this market back, if any?

People don’t realize what Sacramento has to offer. There’s very affordable housing compared to the Bay Area, and even very affordable executive housing. We’re close to the Bay Area. We don’t quite have the concentration of universities as you see there, but beyond that, there’s lots of talent here to fill positions of need for firms.

What is on your to-do list?

Obviously, help my brokers on the day-to-day stuff. Also, we want to grow our footprint in the market and expand our presence with CORFAC. I also want to emphasize cross-discipline between offices and sectors, set performance goals for each broker and establish a boot camp for new brokers coming aboard.

In the different commercial real estate sectors, what do you see as hot right now?

For us, it’s medical, housing and government driven. Housing especially is driven by the medical industry, such as the new headquarters for Adventist Health in Roseville and new construction of surgery centers.

What would you want people in your industry to know about you?

I’m very fair, I get along with people and I have a good sense of how different managers run offices. I think we can offer more comprehensive training and grow organically.

***

Cole Sweatt

Title: Vice president and brokerage manager for TRI Commercial/CORFAC International in Sacramento/Roseville

Age: 45

Education: Bachelor’s degree in planning and development from the University of Southern California

Career: Broker, Colliers International, 1998-2004; broker, CBRE Sacramento; 2004-2011; broker, Voit Real Estate Services, 2011-2014; vice president, TRI Commercial/CORFAC International  

Personal: Married to wife Terri for 17 years; three children, Vance 15, Gianna, 13, and Jack, 11

Something about you people would be surprised to know: My namesake settled in Massachusetts shortly after the Pilgrims arrived in the mid-1600s as original colonial settlers from England. He was a ship captain in the militias during King Philip’s War and was killed in a battle with Native Americans, refusing to leave his men.

To view original article click here.

By Mark Anderson  – Staff Writer, Sacramento Business JournalApr 4, 2019, 2:59pm PDT Updated Apr 4, 2019, 9:28pm EDT

Brooklyn, New York-based indoor farming company Gotham Greens Holdings LLC has bought 33.6 acres of ag land just west of the University of California Davis.

Gotham was founded 10 years ago, and pioneered urban farming technologies, growing herbs and salads in rooftop hydroponic greenhouses in downtowns and selling the produce to neighbors and restaurants year-round.

With this purchase, Gotham gets land next to one of the highest-rated agriculture research universities in the world, said Jim Wirth, farmland broker with TRI Commercial/CORFAC International.

Wirth represented the seller, which was UC Davis. The school deemed the land at 9113 Olmo Road to be surplus, and the university put it on the market earlier this year in a sealed bid process. Gotham was the wining bidder at $954,000.

“One of the drivers was the proximity to UC Davis and having access to the university’s research programs and students,” Wirth said.

He said UC Davis was happy with the buyer being an ag technology company, but the university didn’t have any control over who ultimately purchased the land. “At the end of the day it had to go to the highest bidder.”

Most of Gotham Greens’ grows are on urban rooftops, where the company uses technology and sustainable practices to grow pesticide-free produce hydroponically.

The company couldn’t immediately be reached for comment about what it will do with the former UC Davis farmland.

Pam Marrone, CEO of Davis-based Marrone Bio Innovations Inc., said she was at the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in San Francisco two weeks ago, and there was talk of Gotham bringing one of its high-tech operations to the region.

Gotham is known for its hydroponic grows, Wirth said, which “is ironic because this is Class 1 soil,” which is considered the highest-quality soil.  

One of the benefits of hydroponic growing is that the greenhouse and lack of soil allow for control of pests, food safety and a year-round operation.

The land, which is next to Interstate 80, has a boarded-up 100-year-old farmhouse on it, along with a farm outbuilding and an office. It was donated to the university decades ago, Wirth said.

See the original article here.

Written by Melissa Steinberg

Winners Announced!

Washington, D.C. —CoStar Group, Inc., the data/analytics leader of the commercial real estate industry, just announced this year’s Power Broker Award recipients, recognizing professionals and firms who closed the highest transaction volume in commercial real estate deals and leads in their respective markets.  TRI Commercial Real Estate Services has been recognized as the most active local dealmakers in the Sacramento Market with this prestigious industry award. The CoStar Power Broker Awards also recognize professionals ranging from office leasing, retail leasing, industrial leasing and sales.

For a full list of winners, visit http://costarpowerbrokers.com/power-broker-award-winners/

About CoStar Group, Inc.

CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSGP) is the leading provider of commercial real estate information, analytics and online marketplaces. Founded in 1987, CoStar conducts expansive, ongoing research to produce and maintain the largest and most comprehensive database of commercial real estate information. Our suite of online services enables clients to analyze, interpret and gain unmatched insight on commercial property values, market conditions and current availabilities. CoStar Group’s websites attracted an average of approximately 45 million unique monthly visitors in aggregate in the third quarter of 2018. Headquartered in Washington, DC, CoStar Group maintains offices throughout the U.S. and in Europe and Canada with a staff of over 3,600 worldwide, including the industry’s largest professional research organization. For more information, visit www.costargroup.com.          

By Mark Anderson  – Staff Writer, Sacramento Business JournalFeb 21, 2019, 9:01am EST

A Boston-based investment manager has paid $7.1 million for 638 acres of agricultural land near Lincoln in Placer County, according to property records.

The land was purchased in two parcels of 478 acres and 160 acres.

The buyer, Hancock Agricultural Investment Group, is a subsidiary of Boston-based Manulife Asset Management, whose affiliate companies also include John Hancock Asset Management.

The recent sale, along with several other recent investments in agricultural land for wine grapes, almonds and olives, shows an increasing interest by East Coast institutional investors such as pension funds and insurance companies in buying ag land, especially for high-value crops.

“Institutional investment goes in waves,” said Jim Wirth, Senior Vice President with TRI Commercial/CORFAC International. “Especially when traditional investments are taking a beating, agriculture is seen as a good way to diversify a portfolio.” Wirth was not involved with this transaction.

“Ag has always had pretty consistent returns,” Wirth added. “You are buying a good investment over time, plus you have the underlying asset.”

Representatives of Hancock Agricultural didn’t respond to calls or emails seeking comment.

Hancock Agricultural has $3 billion in farmland assets under management. One of its larger concentrations of investment is in California, where it manages more than 65,000 acres. Its primary crops are almonds, pistachios, walnuts and wine grapes, and it has some smaller investments in alfalfa, olives and vegetables, according to its website. Its parent company, Manulife, had $93.4 billion in assets under management at the end of 2018, according to its website.

The land north of Lincoln appears to have been used to grow rice in the past and olives in recent years, based on Google satellite and ground images.

Hancock Agricultural touts production crops as good assets on its website because they offer “attractive returns, excellent capital preservation, portfolio diversification, low to moderate risk and a low correlation to traditional assets such as equities and bonds.”

To view the original article click here.

By Mark Anderson  – Staff Writer, Sacramento Business Journal,
Mar 8, 2019, 9:40am EST

JJB Farms LP of Escondido has bought another tract of Yolo County farmland, which it will likely convert from row crops to nuts.

The company paid $4.5 million for 322 acres that had been called the Herger Ranch. The property is flat farmland at 17017 County Road 89, just northwest of Madison.

“It’s really good dirt,” said Jeff Dyer, a broker with Farm & Ranch Realty in Woodland. He represented the seller, a family.

Representatives of the buyer, JJB Farms, declined to comment about the purchase.

JJB was founded by Jacob Brouwer, who also owns and operates Superior Ready Mix Concrete LP in Escondido.

In recent years, Brouwer has expanded his investing into agriculture.

The north end of the Herger property is cut across by Cache Creek, which flows west to east. On either side of the farm parcel, Houston-based Cemex USA operates an aggregate and ready mix concrete plant on Cache Creek.

Arnold Veldkamp, corporate counsel for Superior, said the newly purchased property’s proximity to the Cemex plant is a coincidence. He said the JJB Farms purchase is an agricultural investment.

Properties on either side of the Herger property have been converted to almonds and walnuts in recent years, Dyer said, and he expects that is what will happen to this property.

In December, JJB bought a 338-acre Yolo County almond orchard for $7.5 million. That property, on County Road 87 between Esparto and Woodland, had been used up until 2014 by the Hatanaka family to grow tomatoes, sunflower seed plants, alfalfa and wheat, according to county agricultural records.

In the past three years, however, the land has been converted to almonds, said Jim Wirth, farm land broker with TRI Commercial/CORFAC International. Wirth was not the broker for the land’s recent sale, but said he is aware of the deal. Wirth said JJB owns thousands of acres of walnuts, almonds and pistachios in the Central Valley and also to the north.

Almonds have been an increasingly popular crop for California farmers the last two decades because they are a high-value crop which has seen stable prices despite increasing yield. Last year, almond production in the state totaled 2.3 billion pounds, up almost 80 percent from a decade earlier and almost five times the volume produced in 1998, according to figures from the Almond Board of California.

Sacramento-based almond growers’ cooperative Blue Diamond Growers has been driving demand for the crop with new products such as almond milk and different flavors of almonds. The climate in the Central Valley is one of the few on earth that works for commercial cultivation of almonds, and more than 80 percent of the world crop comes from California.

This most recent purchase shows continuing interest from investors from other regions in local farmland as investment properties. In February, Boston-based Hancock Agricultural Investment Group paid $7.1 million for 638 acres of agricultural land in Placer County. In July, Boston-based private equity firm AgIS Capital LLC paid $35 million for part of the former R.H. Phillips Winery property near Esparto, and in October, AgIS paid $24.2 million for some almond orchards near Winters.

View original article here.

TRI Commercial Releases Findings in Q4 2018 Office Research Report

Article Published: January 29, 2019, The Registry

SACRAMENTO (January 28, 2019) – Sacramento witnessed a steady decline in vacant space during this most recent economic cycle and reported 10.16% at the end of 2018. The current vacancy rate is now in line with national vacancy for the first time since 2012. “The office sector will continue to perform well, as it has over the last few years – slow and steady increases as it relates to rent growth and demand,” said Vice President, Brandon Sessions. “However, we could see a plateau as mortgage companies, and housing-related sectors consolidate due to the slowing of the housing market.”

Highlights from the report include:

• Rent growth in Sacramento is not only strong compared to the historical average, but also merits attention. After years of negative or minimal gains, rent growth accelerated beginning in 2015 and by the end of 2018 rents outpaced the U.S. average by 200 basis points. Annual rent growth is currently at 3.6%.
• With steady demand and constrained inventory landlords were encouraged to push rents to levels that have typically been unobtainable. These recent gains have especially been strong in Highway 50 Corridor and select suburban submarkets, many of which are witnessing vacancy rates that are below the metro average.
•  Sacramento’s office vacancy decreased due to job growth which continues to outpace the national average with steady demand.
• The government sector propels demand for office space, but the metro will soon receive a boost from the private sector, St. Louis-based health insurer, Centene, a Fortune 100 company, chose Sacramento as its home for a new regional headquarters. This enterprise is expected to build more than one million SF of office space and add approximately 5,000 jobs.

About TRI Commercial/CORFAC International

Founded in 1977, TRI Commercial/CORFAC International is a leading Northern California commercial real estate brokerage and property management (with over 4 million square feet of commercial property under management) firm specializing in San Francisco, East Bay and the Sacramento Metro property markets. The company has expertise in tenant and landlord representation services and helps clients buy and sell commercial and investment-grade property. The company serves office, retail, and land, multifamily and industrial property sectors, with offices in San Francisco, Walnut Creek, Oakland, Roseville, Sacramento, and Rocklin. For more information, visit www.tricommercial.com or call Dina Gouveia in Corporate Marketing at 925.269.3305 CORFAC International is comprised of privately held entrepreneurial firms with expertise in office, industrial and retail properties, tenant and landlord representation, investment sales, multifamily, self-storage, acquisitions and dispositions, property management and corporate services. For more information on the CORFAC call the Chicago headquarters at 224.257.4400 or visit www.corfac.com.

View full article here.

Download Sacramento Q4 2018 Office Market Report here.