Newmark has hired a veteran broker with expertise in the tech sector to help lead its San Francisco office.
The New York-based firm, whose local office is the fourth-largest business brokerage in the Bay Area, has named Christina Clark as vice chair, According to the San Francisco Business Times. She took office last month.
Clark, who previously served as Managing Principal of Cresa, had the goal of expanding Newmark’s tenant representation services around the world.
“I’ve always admired this company, and they’ve made some leadership changes and some growth changes over the past year, and it really made me prick up my ears and ask, ‘What’s going on over there?'” Clark told “Business News” times.
Transactions at Newmark’s San Francisco office reportedly topped $5.5 billion last year.
While at Cresa, Clark focused on tech tenants like Meta, Airbnb and Headspace. She and Matt Lehman leased 66,000 square feet of land in downtown Oakland on behalf of Twitter.
Clark’s client list also includes the financial, legal and biotech sectors. Some of this diversification has happened organically because the industries have “touched each other,” she said.
Her client’s office needs were a growing challenge. In San Francisco, a third of offices are vacant in the age of remote work, with the tech industry leading the exodus. Commercial real estate brokers are struggling as the rental market freezes due to lackluster transaction volumes.
— Dana Bartholomew
