Report on the 2008 CABI Conference

The Colorado Association of Business Intermediaries (CABI) held its 2008 Annual Conference in Denver this week. The association is composed of members who are Business Brokers, Intermediaries and Commercial Real Estate Brokers who broker transactions for the sale of businesses and related real estate sales or leasing.

The keynote speaker was Steve Mulhauser from the Small Business Administration (SBA) Colorado District office. He presented a number of significant changes in SBA Lending regarding appraisals for commercial real estate and business valuations. Other topics presented at the conference included: "Deal Structuring Techniques" by Christian Blees, CPA; "Use Retirement Funds to Purchase a Business" by Larry Carnell of BeneTrends; "Strategic Partnerships" by Earl Kemper, a wealth advisor; and "Specializing in Your Success" by Shawn Sanborn, CEO of Sanborn and Company.

The Colorado Association of Business Intermediaries is a non-profit trade association whose primary purpose is promoting education, professional standards and cooperative communication among Business Brokers and Intermediaries. All of the Business Broker and Intermediary members are licensed Real Estate Brokers in the State of Colorado, to ensure a high standard of professionalism. More information on CABI.

Website

Press Release: KW Commercial Names Steve Hewson as Director

Denver, CO - KW Commercial is pleased to announce that Steve Hewson has been named as a Director in the recently launched KW Commercial division of Keller Williams Realty.

Hewson is also a member of a newly formed KW Commercial Group in the Denver-Boulder Metro area along with experienced commercial realtors, Dennis Quinn and Steve Bimm. The Commercial Group’s market specialties include office, industrial, retail, land, investment, and multi-family. Their commercial services provide for brokerage, leasing, residential and commercial development, consulting, property management, and M&A business brokerage.

The requirements for a KW Commercial Director include a recognized level of experience and volume of closed transactions, client and customer references, and a commitment to a high level of commercial real estate education.

As a Director at KW Commercial, Hewson will bring a new focus to developing and marketing the commercial division’s capabilities in the Colorado marketplace. In addition, he will be involved in training and educating other real estate agents. “I look forward as a Director to working with this newly formed commercial division within Keller Williams Realty”, commented Hewson. “It provides an opportunity to bring a vast set of resources, training and an extensive agent network to assist our clients.”

For more information go to our website.

Press Release: Keller Williams Realty Announces Plans for Commercial Division

AUSTIN, TEXAS (July 16, 2008) - "Our goal is to expand our platform and make Keller Williams Realty the real estate company of choice in both the residential and commercial worlds by providing our associates the technology, marketing tools, and resources to succeed in the commercial business,” said Mark Willis, CEO of Keller Williams Realty. “We want to create synergy and referrals between the residential and commercial sides of our Keller Williams offices, increasing the income and production potential of all our agents.”
Buddy Norman, a veteran of commercial real estate has joined Keller Williams as president of the new division. Norman has more than 18 years of experience in the commercial real estate industry, including leadership within international firms, such as The Staubach Company and Burnham Real Estate, which was acquired by Cushman & Wakefield. He has led the development of new business divisions and trained commercial agents all over the U.S. including Dallas, Atlanta, Washington D.C. and San Diego. A consistent top producer, Norman has averaged approximately 400,000 square feet per year of commercial leasing and sales transactions over the last 10 years.
“There’s such a wide spectrum of commercial real estate experience within Keller Williams Realty,” said Norman. “We intend to build a strong commercial division paralleling the success and growth of the Keller Williams residential division." See our website.

Press Release: Steve Hewson, Dennis Quinn, & Steve Bimm Form a KW Commercial Group

DENVER, CO—June 1, 2008—The Denver Northwest Market Center of Keller Williams Realty today announced the formation of a KW Commercial Group, comprised of Realtors Steve Hewson, Dennis Quinn, and Steve Bimm.“For some time, our market center has been providing our clients with both commercial and residential services,” commented Team Leader Heidi Greer Mosher. “The formation of the Commercial Group provides a new focus. These three agents bring many years of experience in providing commercial and investment real estate services to clients.”
The Commercial Group’s market specialties include office, industrial, retail, land, investment, and apartments. Their commercial services provide for brokerage, leasing, residential and commercial development, consulting, and business brokerage.
“This commercial capability combines with the well-known Keller Williams residential strength to bring an even wider array of services to our clients,” remarked Steve Hewson. “Many clients have a need for both services, and now, they can find it all under one roof.” See our website.

Announcement: KW Commercial Launch

AUSTIN, TEXAS-March 20, 2008-We are pleased to announce that 2008 will mark the launch of the Keller Williams Realty Commercial Division [KW Commmercial].
Our goal is to make Keller Williams the commercial real estate platform of choice by providing our commercial associates the technology, marketing tools, and resources to succeed in their commercial businesses…
We are also honored to announce that Buddy Norman, a true leader in commercial real estate, has joined the Keller Williams family to spearhead this new venture.
Buddy has more than 15 years of experience in the commercial real estate industry — including leadership within international commercial firms, such as Cushman & Wakefield and The Staubach Company. He has built new divisions and trained commercial brokers all over the U.S. — including Dallas, Atlanta, Washington D.C. and San Diego. A consistent top producer, Buddy has averaged more than 400,000 square feet per year of commercial leasing and sales transactions over the last 10 years.
Buddy will serve as the President of Keller Williams’ Commercial Division, and will be working closely with a Commercial Advisory Council (CAC) of top commercial brokers within our company that will guide the launch and implementation of this new division.
We know that with the leadership of Buddy, our Commercial Advisory Council, and your input, we can truly build a Commercial Division that will create the commercial real estate platform of choice…
Mark Willis, CEO, Keller Williams Realty, Inc.Mary Tennant, President and COO, Keller Williams Realty, Inc. See our website.

Press Release: Bimm Joins Keller Williams and KW Commercial

DENVER, CO-January 7, 2008-The KW Commercial Group and the Denver Northwest Market Center of Keller Williams Realty announced today that Steve Bimm has joined its team.

"We are thrilled to have Steve join our team with his extensive background in land development and construction," said Heidi Greer Mosher, the Market Center Team Leader. "His experience will help carve a niche for himself in the Denver Northwest Market Center."

Bimm has 30 years experience in the land development, heavy construction management, and civil engineering industries. In addition to real estate, he is the principal of his own land development consulting firm, Advanced Development Services Group, LLC.

In real estate, Bimm specializes in vacant land sales and acquisition, marketing of development parcels, and bulk lot disposition and sales to builders.

Heidi Greer Mosher, Team Leader/CEO, Keller Williams Realty Professionals

See our website.

Investor News: Colorado Apartment Vacancy Rates

We have previously reported declining multi-unit vacancy rates (6.7%) and increasing rents (up by 2.6% in the third quarter) in the Denver Metro Area (denverpost.com). Seeing an opportunity, larger buyers have moved into the Denver market from other states to invest in the undervalued multi-unit apartments.

The Colorado Division of Housing recently released their most recent Vacancy and Rent Survey for the larger Colorado areas outside of the Denver-Boulder area. Areas in the under 3% vacancy range are: Aspen, Eagle County, Grand Junction, Glenwood Springs, Gunnison, Salida, Buena Vista and Alamosa. All of these are in the mountain areas. In the 3-5% range are Durango, Southeastern Colorado and Canon City. Some of the areas in the over 5% vacancy category are: Greeley (7.3%), Loveland (8.0%), Fort Collins (8.1%), Steamboat Springs (8.6%) and Colorado Springs (11.3%). See our website.