As is, Guardian Management's SVN franchise includes seven offices in SoCal and one in Phoenix that are operating with approximately 200 brokers. Brenneke says Osbrink will play a key role in the company's effort "to build on the existing Sperry Van Ness market share in Southern California and Arizona while expanding [its] presence in Oregon and other key US markets."

"It's different [from what I was doing at G&E] from the standpoint that I'm a principal here; the fact that I could get involved in a number of different ways was intriguing," Osbrink tells GlobeSt.com. "My primary focus will be to look internally at what we have right now, stabilize the core business and then look at growth opportunities."In July, when GlobeSt.com first reported on the acquisition, Guardian Management was exclusively an owner and manager of 130 apartment properties in seven states that heretofore only provided brokerage services to its apartment clients, and only on a limited basis. The acquisition was about diversification, Brenneke told GlobeSt.com.

"Our play is essentially to take the time here with the market slow, while the velocity is slow, to improve systems and procedures and get some recruiting done; we are going to do a lot of recruiting," Brenneke told GlobeSt.com. "We are going to hire the best talent we can at all levels for all property types and breathe new life into this thing and really energize it."