NicoleUrquhart-Bradley “We see interest in US properties at an all-time high,” says Urquhart-Bradley.

NEW YORK CITY—“A natural leader,” in the words of Joe Stettinius, Americas CEO of Cushman & Wakefield, has taken the reins of the firm’s Valuation & Advisory group for the Americas. Most recently executive managing director, US lead for valuation & advisory, Nicole Urquhart-Bradley has been named president of the group, effective this past Friday. She succeed John Busi, who has left the firm.

Urquhart-Bradley began her commercial real estate career in 1988, as an associate appraiser with Appraisal Partners, Inc. of Silver Spring, MD. In 2003 she joined Cushman & Wakefield of Washington, DC Inc., serving as leader of the DC office until mid-2004, when she was promoted to manager of the Mid-Atlantic region. In September 2009, her area of responsibility expanded to include the Northeast Region. A year later, it expanded again to include the entire US. GlobeSt.com sat down with Urquhart-Bradley at Cushman & Wakefield’s Midtown Manhattan offices Tuesday for a view of the Valuation & Advisory platform’s present and near-term future.

GlobeSt.com: As you take the reins at the Valuation & Advisory group, what’s the lay of the land? 

Nicole Urquhart-Bradley: Our group is phenomenal; the breadth and depth of our experience is second to none. As far as our Americas platform is concerned, it blew me away when we began tracking these numbers: we valued more than 50,000 properties last year and the combined value was close to $1 trillion. I couldn’t ask to be at a better place.

GlobeSt.com: The investment sales landscape over the past year or so has been in something of a state of flux. Among other things, there have been geopolitical headwinds blowing in. With all of that, what have been some of the issues facing the V&A professionals and their clients?

Urquhart-Bradley: As you say, the investment sales market has been choppy. The CMBS market has been almost non-existent, and that’s a part of our business. It’s not all of our business; our business is diverse and is doing well. I’m not concerned at all about the core business or about any fallout from external economic factors. As we see Brexit and other things happening around the globe, it makes US real estate look more attractive, so we see interest in US properties at an all-time high.

GlobeSt.com: Do you anticipate that there will be more sellers coming into the market to take advantage of the increased interest? 

Urquhart-Bradley: I think we’ve seen that over the years. No matter what you read, the US is always at the top. Clearly, there’s uncertainty in Europe, so that’s bound to bolster the US.

GlobeSt.com: Looking ahead, what are some of the directions in which you plan to take the Valuation & Advisory group over the next 12 to 18 months?

 Urquhart-Bradley: As we look at growth and expansion, we’re looking at what our clients are doing. They’re becoming more sophisticated and more diverse, and we’re looking at what we need to do to service them. We have a core business, and it’s been our business for 35 years; it’s what people generally think of in terms of a valuation group or an appraiser group. Over the past five to seven years, we’ve really focused on the advisory side of our business, and I think that’s where we’re going to see the greatest amount of growth.

We’re a huge company, but we’re nimble enough that as those needs change, we’re going to change right with them. We have a due diligence group that was launched a year ago and has really taken off. Things like financial reporting, dispute analysis and litigation support. We’re going to grow with our clients, and if they need it, we’re going to figure out how to do it.