Sage Real Estate adds Fifth Principal

SEATTLE-Sage Real Estate Strategies has added a fifth principal in Valarie Tomey, most recently a senior vice president with Trammell Crow Co. The move reconnects Tomey with Sage co-founder Jim Norman, with whom she worked in the 1990s at The Norman Company as general manager of the landmark Bank of America Tower.

Sage advises large corporate and institutional clients on how to align their multi-site real estate assets with business objectives. At Trammell Crow Co., Tomey was director of the Swedish Medical Center outsource account and also managed assignments for Microsoft and KeyCorp.

Tomey, who in becoming an equal partner had to match the debt incurred by the four others, says she made the move because she believes in Norman’s advisory business model, which isn’t driven by brokerage fees like most real estate services firms. “It’s an opportunity I couldn’t pass up, an opportunity to be in a situation where we can offer completely objective advice,” says Tomey.