NEW YORK CITY-Activity is increasing as foreign investors, including South Koreans, Germans and Canadian pension funds, are drawn to the now-depreciated properties in the United States. As of October 1, 2010, total transactions totaled $4.5 billion, exceeding the $3.7 billion transacted in all of 2009, says Dennis Pollack, senior managing director of the new private placement practice of EdgeRock Realty Advisors, an independent investment banking firm dedicated exclusively to the real estate sector.
“The world changed as we know it,” Pollack tells GlobeSt.com. “But people believe the market has bottomed out and stabilized.” Edgerock, which is based in Manhattan, was formed in October 2009 by FTI Consulting and Compass Advisors as a niche investment bank focused solely on real estate. Initially, Edgerock concentrated on traditional advisory work, but the company was increasingly being asked to do mergers and acquisitions. The decision was made to set up a private placement company, with Pollack recruited to lead the team.
“What excited me was that this was an entrepreneurial company with lots of resources,” says Pollack, the former partner and senior managing director at Valens Capital Management, an investment management firm that makes private placements.
Edgerock is looking to raise between $500 million and $850 million from investors around the globe, filling a number of potential client needs, including recapitalizations and acquisitions. Given the state of transactions, some might think the timing suspect, but in fact, it couldn’t be better, he continues. “I’ve been through multiple cycles,” Pollack says. “My experience tells me the stars are starting to align themselves.”
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