Cash Infusion Elevates GVA Williams

[IMGCAP(1)]NEW YORK CITY-GVA Williams and FirstService Corp.–whose service platform also includes Colliers International among others–have entered into a definitive agreement for FirstService to acquire a 65% interest in New York City-based GVA Williams, as GlobeSt.com earlier reported. Word started swirling earlier this summer about a potential union for GVA Williams, following the $630-million Jones Lang LaSalle and Staubach Co. union , however, it was more focused on how the brokerage part of the company could potentially feed the Colliers network.

An anonymous local industry source, who is not involved in the deal, tells GlobeSt.com that smaller firms in the New York City market may now want to be concerned–and perhaps even larger firms. “This could be the first of a series of out-of-town firms buying opportunistically in New York,” the source says. “Since leasing volume is down in terms of the number of deals and the size of those deals, and that decline will only accelerate in the short term, at least, the firms that either want to be here, or who want to be more significant here, may make a push into this market.”

[IMGCAP(2)]Toronto-based FirstService’s capital investment in GVA Williams is expected to enormously elevate the firm and will “allow the firm to further expand its service to its current client roster and more effectively compete with other multinational real estate companies,” according to a prepared statement. The cash infusion is a first step in the eventual repositioning of the firm, which also “will enable it to open additional offices, invest in top industry talent and utilize the world-class training and other human resource capabilities of a global company.” GVA Williams tells GlobeSt.com that they cannot disclose further financial terms at this time. The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of September, 2008 at which time GVA Williams will be rebranded as Williams Real Estate, a FirstService Co.