Diversified Realty is now exploring the possibility of opening several branch offices. "We're doing work for banks in Pennsylvania and Connecticut, so we might open an office in Philadelphia and another around Hartford, CT," Minoia tells GlobeSt.com.

As for distressed sales--or lack thereof--Minoia says that the bid-ask spread has been too great. "We handle note sales for banks and initially the gap was so great that we'd go out to the market with 15 or 20 groups and get a ton of offers but none of the notes would be sold," he relates. "The banks would say, for instance, 'we have a $3-million note and the offers were only as high as $1.5 million, but we're not taking 50 cents on the dollar so let's just try to do a workout with the borrower or a forbearance agreement.'"

But Minoia believes the bid-ask spread is starting to close now that banks have figured out how to rework their own balance sheets. "They are becoming more profitable simply by scaling back their operations and trimming overhead," he says. "They're now able to take this profitability and use it to set aside specific reserves and write-downs against loans. So we're seeing more deals get done."

As for the state of the market, Minoia says the consensus in the banking community is that "only if we see some major problems, like a giant retailer filing for bankruptcy, will the market experience a double dip."

For the most part, though, Minoia is optimistic about the long-term health of the market. "There will be some significant stress in particular markets where people were overleveraged, had bad designs or were unlucky with a tenant or two, and there will be individual stress in pockets, but overall in New Jersey the market is starting to strengthen," he says. "And the absorption on the foreclosure side continues to deplete the overhang of inventory."

Another company that has grown over the past year is Planned Cos., which specializes in concierge, front desk and doorman services under its Planned Lifestyle Services division. The company also undertakes security in the form of mobile and foot patrols for corporate residents and retail under the Planned Security Services moniker, while janitorial and maintenance fall under the Planned Building Services division.

The family-owned, fourth-generation-led firm was founded in 1898 as a window-washing company in Newark and is one of several under the Wentworth Group Inc., which also owns a number of residential management companies and a five-star, white globe concierge company, Abigail Michaels, in New York City.

"These are tough economic times, but we are looking inward to see what we can do better," says Planned's president Robert Francis, who tells GlobeSt.com that the business has grown 30% over the past 24 months and created a director of education position as well as a director of recruiting post.

Despite almost no advertising, the company has grown organically, largely through word of mouth. "We are also shoring up our internal structure," Francis says, which includes talking to potential hires about the company's culture, history and core value. "It's been a difference maker in our retention numbers."