Two CRE Consulting Firms Merge

NEW YORK CITY-Real estate consulting firms K. Backus & Associates and U3 Ventures are merging to create U3 Advisors. Effective Jan. 1, 2014, the new company will provide real estate and economic development solutions to universities, medical centers, nonprofits, civic stakeholders and other institutions, of all sizes.

K. Backus & Associates' client roster includes Cornell NYC Tech, Columbia University, Princeton University, the Brooklyn Public Library, and more. U3 Ventures is a partner and advisor of the Kresge Foundation, Midtown Detroit Inc., the University of Maryland, University of Chicago, and Lehigh University among others.

“K. Backus & Associates has built strong client relationships and often works as an extension of an institution's staff by handling the full range of its real estate needs,” says Karen Backus, founder.  “I am thrilled to bring our experience to U3 Advisors, where we can work together to tackle institutional demands as well as larger community visions. 

Adds Omar Blaik, founder and CEO of  “Anchor institutions hold the key to sustainable community and economic development in many cities across the country. We learned this in U3 Ventures' revitalization plan for Midtown Detroit and know we can replicate our success in other cities. Joining forces with K. Backus & Associates allows our new firm to have a greater reach in helping mission-driven institutions leverage their assets and needs to support both institutional and community goals.”

U3 Advisors' core services include institutional real estate strategy; leveraging institutional demand for local impact or, put another way, live, buy and hire local strategies, economic impact assessments and  neighborhood improvement strategies; development project assistance and real estate advising functions, including financial modeling, occupancy cost analysis and asset monetization.

Backus and Blalik will serve as principals of the new firm, along with Tom Lussenhop, a long-time collaborator with Blaik.