Sperry Van Ness has offices in DC close-in suburbs, includingBethesda, MD and Northern Virginia, Sims tells GlobeSt.com. Thefirm decided to open an office in the city itself to service aspecific constituency: foreign investors interested in Districtproperty. The office is already representing one such investor in a$200 million deal and another in a $100 million transaction, bothof which involve office properties, Sims says.

DC has always been a premier destination for foreign investors.However the turmoil in the capital and real estate markets for thelast year have intensified foreign investors' desire to remain onlyin top tier markets. The DC office is called Sperry VanNess/Advisory Real Estate Services LLC.

The new office is also illustrative of Sperry Van Ness' overallgrowth strategy. It has grown from nine markets to more than 150markets in approximately five years. Kristine Gibson, director oforganizational development for Sperry Van Ness, is responsible forthe company's growth in DC, while Matthew Fitch, regional directorfor Sperry Van Ness, oversees the region's team of advisors.