BENJAMIN BRENNER, 30
Director
Cushman & Wakefield Inc.
Morristown
As Cushman & Wakefield's youngest director in New Jersey and a top producer in his peer group, Brenner is well known for his tenacity. In 2013, the firm named him its New Jersey Associate Director of the year, and this year he was promoted to director. He differentiates himself by developing strong bonds with his clients and utilizing a thorough and consultative approach to negotiating transactions. With 10 years of experience in the industry, nine at his current position, Brenner specializes in both office tenant and landlord representation. He partners with clients in virtually every business sector, including technology, pharmaceutical, media, law, apparel, financial services, insurance and not-for-profit. Notable property agency assignments include the Silverman Group's Offices at Liberty Corner in Basking Ridge and the Fisher Organization's Headquarters Plaza in Morristown. He believes that rising to the top requires deep integrity and a commitment to “always do the right thing, to nurture and build quality relationships and to never ever quit.”

CHAD BUCHANAN, 33
Chief Investment Officer
Tryko Partners LLC
Brick
Having held positions at real estate owner/operator, investment banking, hedge fund and advisory firms, Buchanan has worked on every type of deal, spanning property types, capital structures and phases of development. In the 12 years he has been in this business, three at his current position, he has focused on multifamily and skilled nursing and has “seen it all” on both the buy and sell sides of the business. This experience has enabled him to develop a wide network of capital relationships and, in turn, get deals done in a difficult credit environment. Just three years into his tenure with Tryko Partners, he is on the front lines representing this emerging multifamily player. He manages the firm's capital relationships with both lenders and investors, oversees the underwriting and financial structuring of all the firm's investments and holds direct responsibility for its financial portfolio management. His efforts have helped Tryko significantly grow both its multifamily and skilled nursing holdings.

BRAD DOMENICO, 30
Vice President
Progress Capital Advisors LLC
Shrewsbury
Domenico has various responsibilities at Progress Capital Advisors, which include originating commercial loans, servicing his existing relationships, managing /growing various bank relationships, strategically working with founder Kathy Anderson on growing the firm and presenting new ideas with a fresh perspective. He has a variety of special focuses including office, industrial, retail, multifamily, hotels, medical-office buildings, student housing, net lease, self storage and mixed use. Domenico chooses to work with clients who are loyal and growing their business, becoming part of their team effort in ultimate success. He also fosters strong relationships with lenders based on honesty and trust, which allows lenders to make quick credit decisions. Within the first 11 months of joining the firm, Domenico closed in excess of $75 million in commercial loans, including a $19-million refinance of a Hoboken multifamily portfolio.

SALVADOR GARCIA, 32
Principal
MAS Development Group
Elizabeth
Garcia started his first construction company at age 17 and dove head first into an industry dominated by savvy veterans. Against insurmountable odds, he refused to take “no” for an answer and earned the respect of his peers through hard work and determination. Today that small construction company, which focused mainly on minor residential projects, has grown into a full service real estate development firm that is considered one of the go-to entities for the development of inner-cities in northern New Jersey. When others see a debilitating structure that needs to be demolished, Garcia sees a blank canvas waiting to be filled with color. Garcia currently heads all divisions of MAS Development, including construction, property management, development, foreclosures, purchasing of non-performing assets and leasing. Through his company, he has constructed more than 100,000 square feet of real estate and over 100 multifamily units.

SARAH JONES-MATURO, 32
Vice President
CBRE
Saddle Brook
Jones-Maturo interned for CBRE the summer before her senior year of college and fell in love with the industry, with CBRE and the entrepreneurial spirit of brokerage. Jones-Maturo has the unique ability to understand the intricate needs of her clients and address those needs in a very organized and detailed manner, resulting in the completion of very large and complex transactions. Her current responsibilities include tenant and landlord representation in office brokerage. Jones-Maturo's notable career achievements include: Opentext, 90,000 square feet in 2014; Virgin Mobile, 90,000 square feet in 2014; Blue Hill Plaza, 1.1 million square feet in 2014; Aeropostale, 67,000 square feet in 2011; and ConvaTec global portfolio, 1 million square feet. She has been awarded: CBRE Rookie of the Year; CBRE Associate of the Year; CoreNet NJ's Tomorrow's Leaders; Real Estate New Jersey 's Top 30 Under 30 (two-time honoree); 2013 Appointment to CBRE National Brokerage Advisory Board; Eva's Village Volunteer; and is a former CASA junior board member.

JON LEIFER, 31
Director, Acquisitions
Case Real Estate Capital LLC
Rochelle Park
Leifer is a creative and entrepreneurial real estate professional with a record of deal-based and organizational value creation in the execution of property acquisitions and redevelopment strategies. Known for his sourcing, relationship building and negotiation skills, he is responsible for sourcing, evaluating, negotiating and closing investments in non-performing notes and distressed real estate. He has completed over $1 billion of property and debt transactions for private and institutional real estate owners and developers and valuations for more than $4 billion of real estate. In 2012, he was involved with Transportation Infrastructure Properties' financing of $425 million, which included the purchase of $92 million of distressed debt secured by airport real estate. Previously, Leifer was involved in several residential, mixed-use, and industrial developments. In addition, he has delivered more than 30 downtown redevelopment plans and market/feasibility studies for such clients as the Port Authority of NY/NJ, NJ Transit, New York City EDC and municipalities.

KEVIN McCRANN, 32
Vice President
Marcus & Millichap
Elmwood Park
Focusing on the private-client sector of the multifamily business for the past nine years, Kevin McCrann has built and led a team of brokers at Marcus & Millichap specializing in the disposition, purchase or refinancing of apartment communities in New Jersey. As co-leader of the McConnell & McCrann multifamily team, he oversees the daily operations of the team as well as generates new business. At the forefront of the multifamily team, McCrann is responsible for identifying opportunities for his existing clients as well as generate new clientele in the ever-changing multifamily arena. The most notable company in New Jersey that retained McConnell & McCrann, is K. Hovnanian Enterprises. McCrann's brokerage team was retained by K. Hovnanian to market and sell their last two multifamily communities in New Jersey in 2013. On the other side of the table, the most notable company in New Jersey that McCrann sold a property to is Hartz Mountain Industries, as part of a team that sold the 277-unit Town & Country portfolio to Hartz Mountain.

KELSEY NAKAMURA, 23
Associate
Cassidy Turley
Chatham
As part of the top leasing team in New Jersey, Nakamura is working with some of the biggest companies and institutional investors in the country. Her research-driven approach and negotiation skills have consistently enabled her to deliver superior results time and time again to clients. On any transaction, her appreciation of crucial tenant objectives combined with her keen insight of the landlord's process or potential obstacles and terms are strengths that normally take years to masterfully hone. She has developed this capacity in only two years under the mentorship of Ray Trevisan and Bill O'Keefe, who was named a Forum : NJ Tomorrow's Leader in 2012. Nakamura proactively develops new business opportunities cultivating tenant and landlord relationships, creates marketing and client proposal materials as well as handling lease negotiations. Since joining Cassidy Turley, Nakamura has consistently been a top producer for her peer group, completing over 250,000 square feet of transactions with an aggregate value of $50 million within her first year.

NICHOLAS NICOLAOU, 33
Vice President
Gebroe-Hammer Associates
Livingston
Specializing in multifamily, Nicolaou joined Gebroe-Hammer Associates in 2009 and has since risen rapidly through the investment brokerage field ranks to the forefront of the sector. A consistent top producer of his firm's brokerage team, he embodies the industry's next generation of commercial real estate investment leaders. He is noted for his in-depth understanding of market cycles and latest economic conditions, as well as deal-structuring acumen and knowledge of financing trends that surpasses his years of experience. In the business for nine years, two in his current position, Nicolaou specializes in investment sales of diverse multifamily properties, ranging from urban and suburban high-rise, to mid-rise and garden apartment complexes, as well as mixed-use and freestanding retail and office properties. His focus is on the Northeast, with a concentration on New Jersey's urban markets along the Hudson River Waterfront. During his tenure at Gebroe-Hammer, Nicolaou has completed more than $152 million in sales involving a total of 1,854 residential units. In just the past 18 months, he has completed more than $54 million in sales totaling 574 units.

STEPHEN SIMONELLI, 34
Associate Director
HFF LP
Hackettstown
During his 10 years in the business, Simonelli has looked for opportunities to excel in his current position, allowing him to rise in the ranks. In his four years at HFF he moved from analyst to associate director and, in the past two years, he has shown his ability to handle his own position while helping the analysts grow in theirs. With a focus on office, industrial, multifamily and mixed-use properties, Simonelli currrently handles sales transactions from beginning to end. He has also taken on a mentor role and manages the analysts on his team to help them move a sales transaction along, teaching them the process from beginning to end. Simonelli has been involved in over $1.5 billion in sales transaction volume during the past four years, was part of the largest apartment transaction in Philadelphia in the past 10 years and part of the largest multi-tenant office transaction in New Jersey in 2012.

DAN SPERO, 27
Associate
JLL
Parsippany
With 3.5 years in the business—all with JLL—Spero has focused on the office market, entering the market as a leasing broker in the summer of 2010 after graduating from college. At that time, broker morale was low, and market activity was still reeling from the 2008 financial crisis. Friends, family and other brokers all questioned Spero's choice to get started in brokerage, but in retrospect Spero believes it was the perfect time to start. His willingness to learn the many nuances of commercial real estate industry, observant nature, competitive spirit and unwavering client focus sets him apart from others in his peer group. Spero's primary focus at JLL is tenant representation, generating new business opportunities and devising and implementing occupancy solutions on behalf of corporations and other office occupiers. He is able to aid corporate occupiers in evaluating, devising and implement strategies for corporate clients' global leased/owned real estate portfolios. He has also assisted JLL's agency leasing teams with property marketing and leasing efforts. He provides investor clients with information relative to local market dynamics, tenant hot-button issues/demands, and advice on how to reposition their property to increase demand and long-term value.

REUBEN TWERSKY, 34
Vice President, Development
Pinnacle Cos.
Montclair
With more than 12 years of experience in the real estate industry, Twersky handles the sourcing of new deals and develops new real estate projects for the firm. With deep experience managing office, residential, retail and mixed-use developments, Twersky currently manages a $120-million dollar mixed-use development project in Montclair called CentroVerde. Prior to joining Pinnacle, Twersky was vice president of development with CareOne and was responsible for the design and entitlement phases of all development projects. He was also responsible for CareOne's repositioning and capital improvement projects across a portfolio of six states. Twersky is currently responsible for originating and developing new real estate. He also oversees project management for The Pinnacle Companies and is vital in all components of the projects, from the acquisition of a new property through the delivery of the finished project. Twersky currently utilizes his strong management skills to partner with consultants, interact with various senior level executives and strengthen municipal partnerships to meet project objectives and maximize each project's ROI.

MATTHEW WEISS, 31
Vice President
Weiss Realty Co
Moonachie
Weiss is a natural leader with excellent communication skills who knows how to be an effective broker in the most complex transactions. He has a great understanding of the market on a macro level, with both global and local market knowledge. Weiss has a true sense for real estate trends and future developments. His current responsibilities include management, acquisitions, new development and leasing. From 2013 to 2014, Weiss was the broker in three separate lease transactions totaling 82,428 square feet, with a total aggregate rental of over $35 million at 10 Exchange Place in Jersey City on behalf of CarePoint Health and 1 Journal Square in Jersey City. In 2013 he was the broker in the successful completion of a major transaction with the sale of the 338-unit Skyline and Boulevard apartment complexes in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ to the New York-based Kushner Cos. for $57.5 million.