2014 Top Brokers

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It was another year of robust growth for commercial real estate brokerage firms. Increases in investment sales and leasing activity enabled many of the firms on our list to grow their transaction volumes by 15 percent or more, with some firms experiencing particularly robust growth rates.

The top dog on our list remains CBRE Group Inc. It is the 11th consecutive year that CBRE has lead the industry in total transaction volume. The firm reported a total volume of $233.30 billion in 2013, a 17.7 percent increase over 2012’s figure of $189.80 billion. That leaves it more than $60 billion ahead of its closest competitor, the newly re-christened JLL. However, JLL nearly tripled CBRE’s growth rate in 2013. The firm reported $162.12 billion in total transactions, up 48.9 percent over 2012’s total of $108.91 billion. Meanwhile, the number three firm on the list, Cushman & Wakefield, saw its volume grow from $88.40 billion 2012 to $115.00 billion in 2013, a growth rate of 30.1 percent.

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank and Colliers International round out our top five, but the two firms swapped positions from last year. Newmark Grubb Knight Frank was able to leapfrog Colliers thanks to a 19.5 percent increase in its transaction volume, from $69.84 billion to $83.43 billion. Colliers had more modest growth, rising 5.6 percent from $71.20 billion in 2012 to $75.15 billion in 2013.

The bottom half of the top 10 remained fairly stable as well. The only change is that Cassidy Turley eclipsed DTZ to take the 10th slot this year. Overall, to make the top 10 your firm had to have at least $32.60 billion in transactions in 2013. In 2012, the last firm in our top 10 had $25.84 billion in activity.

One firm just outside the top 10, HFF, is notable because its transaction volume surged by 71.5 percent in 2013. After posting a volume of $15.10 billion in 2012 its number jumped to $25.90 billion in 2013. (HFF has an investment sales brokerage business. It does not provide leasing services.)

This ranking is based on responses to NREI’s Top Brokerage survey, which was conducted via email in February and March 2014. Brokers were asked to provide the total dollar value of leasing transactions and investment sales in the United States and globally in 2013. Firms were also asked to provide information on the number of brokers employed, revenues, total number of transactions completed and other information. 

To be ranked, firms filled out an online form that was distributed via email and publicized on our site and through our e-newsletters. Firms are ranked based on the total dollar value of leasing transactions and investment sales transactions globally in 2013.

This ranking is based on responses to NREI’s Top Brokerage survey, which was conducted via email in February and March 2014. Brokers were asked to provide the total dollar value of leasing transactions and investment sales globally in 2013.  The totals were combined to determine the company’s ranking. 

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