By Robert Dietz

Broker expert will focus on landlord representation within premier Valley office sector

PHOENIX, Arizona – The Phoenix office of JLL  announced the addition of Brett Thompson as Senior Vice President. Thompson brings nearly a decade of experience to the full-service real estate firm. He will focus primarily on landlord representation, expanding JLL’s local market presence in this sector.

Thompson was previously a Director for a leading global commercial real estate brokerage firm, where he served local and multi-market accounts in corporate leasing, expansions, relocations, acquisitions and dispositions.

In his new position, Thompson will work primarily with office leasing broker Ryan Timpani, who joined JLL in 2020, focusing on Class A office buildings.

“Brett puts the client experience as priority one and understands that tracking the fundamentals of a market – including the needs of its employees and employers – is the best way to create leasing success,” said JLL Senior Managing Director Pat Williams. “This is a great time to put those skills to work in Phoenix, as part of our JLL team. We’re very pleased to welcome him.”

According JLL research, Phoenix ranks second in the nation for pre- versus post-COVID office leasing activity. The fact that 74% of employees consider their ability to go into the office as fundamental has also supported lease volume.

“As much as the pandemic has shifted how we work, it has also underscored the importance of the physical office as a place to connect and collaborate,” said Thompson. “Phoenix has embraced this with new, high-amenity office environments that are specifically designed to attract and retain employees. JLL takes a highly collaborative approach to matching tenants with these spaces. I’m thrilled to join them.”

Thompson holds a Bachelor’s degree in Management from Arizona State University and is involved with the Urban Land Institute, Young Leaders, Valley Partnership, Phoenix Community Alliance and the Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC).

He will be based out of the JLL Phoenix office, which this fall will expand and relocate into 31,000 square feet at The Grove, a $400 million, Class AA mixed-use destination being developed by RED Development on the northwest corner of 44^th Street and Camelback Road, in the heart of the Camelback Corridor. The new space will bring together more than 120 JLL professionals with office, industrial, retail, multifamily, healthcare, data center, capital markets, property management and project development services (PDS) expertise. It is the next stage of the company’s more than 22 years in the Valley, offering the broad resources of the JLL network, one of the nation’s leading real estate services firms.

Stoa Announces Additional $100 Million Raised to Help Real Estate Investors Flip Homes Faster

PHOENIX, ARIZONA – Stoa USA Inc., the Arizona-based company that launched the FlipOS by Stoa platform for professional single-family home investors, has closed another $100 million securitization. The funding is underwritten by Cantor Fitzgerald, a leading financial services firm that specializes in real-estate investments.

This marks the second time that Cantor Fitzgerald has worked with Stoa on this type of fundraising. Stoa’s $100 million securitization in November 2021 was also underwritten by Cantor Fitzgerald.

“The Stoa team looks forward to what’s possible for our real estate partners with this round of funding, and we’re proud to have the continued support of the experienced team at Cantor Fitzgerald,” says Tom Sella, co-founder of Stoa. “It’s been less than a year since our initial $100M securitization, and we’ve seen exponential growth in product adoption since then.”

According to Bankrate.com, housing supply is far below demand levels due to multiple factors, including younger buyers looking for first-time homeownership and under-building after the 2007 recession. FlipOS by Stoa focuses on the fix-and-flip market, where existing properties need upgrades or repairs before they become viable options for people looking for housing.

With the additional securitization, FlipOS by Stoa will be able to work with more professional real estate investors to grow and scale their businesses, helping to close the housing gap in America by providing quality residential inventory to the market faster than homebuilders can.

With the housing market in a state of change, FlipOS by Stoa has gained even more traction, because its unique model allows investors to purchase, renovate, and sell single-family homes faster and with less risk than traditional models.

“It’s a big deal that we were able to close this round of funding amid a fluctuating housing market,” says Or Agassi, co-founder of Stoa. “It speaks volumes about the underlying strength of our business model. We continue to scale rapidly but responsibly, maintaining strong unit economics. We’ve created a business that people want to invest in regardless of macroeconomic conditions.”

Overall, the company has raised around $300 million in equity and debt.

Or Agassi, Co-founder
Or Agassi is the co-founder of Stoa USA, Inc., the parent company of FlipOS, a fast-growing property technology company that has raised more than $300 million to address the increasing housing gap in America. Educated in Israel as a lawyer, Agassi has a winning track record as an entrepreneur. He co-founded and led consumer goods company Agam Innovations to a successful acquisition in 2016, and later co-founded Bam Medical, where he is currently a board director. For 10 years, Agassi was a partner at eNitiatives IP, where he guided dozens of U.S. and Israeli companies in building IP portfolios that drove billions in sales. He is now the executive director of the board. Agassi is also an active investor in more than 30 Israeli and U.S. technology companies and the inventor of over 40 registered patents.

Tom Sella, Co-founder  
Tom Sella is the co-founder of Stoa USA, Inc., the parent company of FlipOS, a fast-growing property technology company that has raised more than $300M to address the housing gap in America. Born and raised in Israel, Sella spent nearly a decade as a senior executive at a Tel Aviv real estate firm specializing in high-end commercial properties. An entrepreneur at heart, he moved to Arizona in 2012 to focus on residential real estate investment. In the following years, his operations rapidly expanded across the United States, completing hundreds of transactions and renovations. In 2018, he teamed up with his childhood friend and co-founder, Or Agassi, to build a technology company that would enable residential investors to work faster and smarter and create more