Merger of major real estate firms described as a positive for region

Executives of CB Richard Ellis and Trammell Crow Co. last week were sorting out the impact that merger of the two national real estate firms might have on northern Nevada.

But Michael Schnabel, senior managing director of the Reno office of CB Richard Ellis, said the combination is likely to be good news for the northern Nevada economy.

Increasingly, he explained, major companies look to outsource their facilities needs.

The $2.2 billion acquisition of Trammell Crow by CB Richard Ellis, he said, creates a company that is better positioned to meet all the real estate needs of companies looking to locate in northern Nevada.

A Trammell Crow executive agreed that the larger company will be able to better meet the needs of major national clients.

"Those companies are looking for national relationships," said John Stirek, president of development and investment in the western states for Trammell Crow.

CB Richard Ellis Group, headquartered in Los Angeles, operates worldwide. Its emphasis is brokerage transactions.

Dallas-based Trammell Crow, which operates both as a development company and as a broker, will continue its development work under the Trammell Crow name.

Executives of the two companies said it's too soon to tell what effects the merger might have on their brokerage operations in northern Nevada.