Gordon Messinger joins CBRE from Cushman & Wakefield

His recent deals include 156K sf lease for Lennar’s new HQ

CBRE CEO Bob Sulentic and Gordon Messinger (CBRE/Illustration by Kevin Rebong for The Real Deal)
CBRE CEO Bob Sulentic and Gordon Messinger (CBRE/Illustration by Kevin Rebong for The Real Deal)

Longtime Cushman & Wakefield broker Gordon Messinger joined CBRE as executive vice president in Miami, where he will focus on office leasing on behalf of landlords.

Messinger had been with Cushman & Wakefield for seven years, most recently as executive managing director in Miami. He’s bringing with him about 3 million square feet of office inventory and will continue to represent landlords.

Messinger’s portfolio in Miami-Dade County includes the Four Seasons Tower on Brickell Avenue, 220 Alhambra in Coral Gables, 5505 Waterford in the Waterford Business Park across from Miami International Airport and Flagler Corporate Center at 9250 West Flagler Street.

Messinger has worked on deals totaling roughly 4 million square feet over his two-decade career, including the recent 156,000-square-foot lease at 5505 Waterford for Lennar Corp.’s new headquarters. Lennar is expected to move later this year.

In 2016, Messinger facilitated a 107,000-square-foot lease for Simply Healthcare at Flagler Corporate Center and, the following year, an 81,000-square-foot lease for Florida Blue at Doral Court. He also closed WeWork’s lease at 2222 Ponce de Leon in Coral Gables.

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Messinger has closed $1 billion worth of leases throughout his career, although they are a smaller chunk of his work.

Messinger’s move comes at a time when the office market has been thrown into question amid the coronavirus pandemic. The short-term outlook is uncertain but the market will be healthy in the long term, Messinger said.

“Most companies are still trying to figure out what they are going to be post-Covid, so no one has really made any long-term decisions on their leases,” Messinger said. “Companies are not working in their space yet fully, so a lot of companies are trying to figure out their hybrid model.”

South Florida has garnered new-to-market interest especially from financial and technology firms attracted to the climate and lack of state income tax. Messinger said he is doing tours on a weekly basis, and that the interest is concentrated on Brickell Avenue.