Bracken most recently was the manager of L.J. Melody & Co.'s Silicon Valley office. Prior to that, Bracken was head of ORIX's real estate finance group and, prior to that, was president of USL, Ford Motor's real estate financing group. "San Francisco is a marketplace with a number of hidden values and we intend to put a tremendous amount of time and effort here in uncovering those opportunities," says Bracken, whose new title is managing director.

Broe purchases fee and leasehold commercial real estate, performing and non-performing loans, workouts, foreclosures and underperforming situations. It also buys general partnerships and limited partnerships, makes mezzanine loans and essentially finds creative ways to enter investments. Bracken, whose time with L.J. Melody gives him expertise in dealing with lenders that may have distressed properties, tells GlobeSt.com his focus initially will be in the office, R&D and multifamily sectors.

"I will hesitate a little with R&D sector, as it's been badly beaten down and it's not clear it is turning around yet," says Bracken. "Conversely, we are approaching the turning point in the office market and in certain selective areas are already in the turning point for multifamily."

Bracken says his target range for investments is $10 million to $30 million, but adds that he also is looking at deals much smaller than that and much larger than that. "Any opportunity that comes along and has the opportunity to create value is one we will approach," says Bracken. "Our typical approach is to buy, add value and sell within a three- to five-year period."

A source at Broe tells GlobeSt.com that the company also has hired veterans for its Chicago and Denver offices, each of whom are charged with investing $100 million in their cities over the next two years.

Instant Insights /

Broe Cos. Set to Invest $250M in Bay Area Real Estate

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