The Chicago area’s commercial real estate industry is starting the new year with several new hires and promotions, setting the stage for 2026.
Student housing investment firm Muinzer promoted Steve Teegarden to CFO, the firm announced last week. He was formerly director of finance.
Since its founding in 2002, the Lafayette, Indiana-based company has expanded to Chicago; Los Angeles; Knoxville, Tennessee; and Auburn, Alabama. Teegarden will oversee all financial operations, including accounting, financial reporting, capital markets coordination, treasury management and strategic planning, according to Muinzer’s news release.
Before joining Muinzer last year, Teegarden worked at Core Spaces, a Chicago-based student housing firm.
The company also hired Kelly Janisch as director of asset management in September. She is based in Chicago and previously worked for Barings and Waterton.
Chicago-based office leasing specialist Telos Group promoted Jeff Dowdell from senior vice president to executive vice president, Dowdell announced via LinkedIn. Dowdell represents several high-profile clients, including the owners of The Aon Center, 601W.
One of Chicago’s biggest general contractors, W.E. O’Neil, promoted Mike Kalinowski to serve in a newly created role as the company’s national director of safety.
Kalinowski will be in charge of coordinating the company’s safety standards, policies and performance metrics nationwide, according to a press release. He has 17 years of experience in the industry, including 10 years at W.E. O’Neil. He previously served as a regional director of safety and is the chairman of the safety committee for the Chicagoland Associated General Contractors. He holds a master’s degree in business administration, with a concentration in risk management and insurance from Concordia University, his LinkedIn shows.
Chicago-based commercial leasing brokerage Madison Rose, which hired a new COO last month, promoted Andrew Marty to vice president. Marty has worked for Madison Rose since 2022 and represented important clients, including The Chicago Board of Trade building. His work there has resulted in 187 deals totaling 680,000 square feet of office space, according to a LinkedIn post from the brokerage.
Multifamily investment firm, Breneman Capital, led by Drew Breneman promoted Sam Markin to vice president. Since beginning with Breneman in 2021, Markin has led over $50 million in acquisitions for the company, according to a press release. The Chicago-based company invests in several cities and has a particular focus on Chicago’s near west side.