Top Houston broker leaves Transwestern for Newmark

One of Houston’s top office landlord representatives is changing firms.

David Baker has left Houston-based Transwestern to join the local office of New York-based Newmark, the Houston Business Journal reported. The hire will allow Newmark to expand its client offerings to include agency leasing.

Baker has worked in commercial real estate for three decades. During that time, he has represented more than 50 million square feet of leasing across more than 200 buildings, including more than 65 headquarters leases. His gross dollar volume in 2021 was over $133 million and 486,000 square feet.

He chose to join Newmark because he was attracted to the company’s platform.

“I had two former colleagues in Dallas who joined Newmark about a year ago,” Baker told the outlet. “They spoke to the commitment of the national and international platform, which I believe will allow us to reach any potential buyer looking at the Houston market.”

Baker has consistently been ranked among the top performing real estate agents in the Houston area.

“This is a dynamic market, which is experiencing significant changes,” he said. “There are a lot of opportunities that come with the ability to access new owners at a time when you’re likely to see a lot of ownership changes. As assets change hands, there is a lot of opportunity for the new owners to get creative with their approach to office space.”

— Victoria Pruitt