Developer and investor Tishman Speyer has tapped former Nuveen executive Nikita Rao to serve as managing director and head of U.S. residential. In her new role, Rao will lead New York-based Tishman Speyer's expanding U.S. residential portfolio and pipeline of market-rate, workforce and affordable housing properties. The firm said she also will direct strategy and efforts for acquiring and operating assets and development sites and work closely with Erik Rose, its head of U.S. residential development, on ongoing and future projects, the company said. An industry veteran with more than two decades of experience, she is based in Washington, D.C., and reports to Paul Galiano, senior managing director and head of U.S. acquisitions. Tishman Speyer made its first investment in residential in 1989 and has added more than 33,000 rental units and for-sale condos in the United States, Brazil, China and across Europe.

Commercial real estate finance firm Greystone has added Bill Iacobucci, who spent nearly the past 12 years at mortgage giant Fannie Mae, as a senior director of real estate lending. In his new role, Iacobucci will leverage his experience as former co-head of Fannie Mae’s student housing finance and structured finance teams to lead Greystone’s lending efforts, the firm said. He is based in Atlanta and reports to senior managing directors Charlie Mentzer and Brad Waite. In his most recent role at Fannie Mae, Iacobucci served as vice president of multifamily structured finance, and his primary responsibility was over credit facilities and large portfolio-bulk deliveries in the agency's delegated underwriting and servicing, or DUS, business. Before that, he served as vice president of community development at SunTrust Bank, now Truist Bank, and founder and CEO of Regency Advisors International, a real estate consulting firm.

Brokerage Newmark's valuation and advisory group has hired Jay Booth, who spent the past three decades at Cushman & Wakefield, to serve in the roles of senior managing director and co-leaders of its retail and regional malls practice and co-leaders of its West Coast-Pacific Northwest market. As co-leader of the retail and regional malls group, Booth will work alongside senior managing director and fellow practice leader John Mackris to oversee a team often responsible for handling the valuation of complex retail properties, Newmark said. That team works with a broad range of retail properties, from super-regional malls to community shopping centers. In his role as co-leader of the West Coast-Pacific Northwest, Booth is responsible for leading business development efforts, recruiting valuation professionals and delivering service in Alaska, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii, working with Chris Mealy, the leader in those states, the firm said. He also will work with Robby Perrino, the market leader in Northern California. Booth, who's based in Portland, Oregon, has appraised or consulted on appraisals of over 450 malls across the U.S. In a statement, John Busi, president of Newmark valuation and advisory, said Booth is "one of the most in-demand mall appraisers in the industry."

Divaris Real Estate has hired Steve Blum, who has more than 30 years of experience in commercial real estate and retail operations, as its chief leasing officer. In his new role based in the Washington, D.C., area, Blum will augment Divaris' leasing operations in each of its business lines and serve as a resource to companies within the Divaris Group, of which Divaris Real Estate is part. Blum most recently served as vice president of operations and strategy at The Surnow Co. in Birmingham, Michigan, where he led daily operations of its regional portfolio that included community retail, office, flex and mixed-use properties. Before that, he worked for more than 13 years at Taubman Co. While there, he oversaw and streamlined leasing processes and tools used by leasing agents. Divaris CEO Gerald Divaris said Blum's experience in retail and commercial real estate will support the company's growth.

Commercial property services firm Avison Young has promoted Patrick Schmidt and Bob Filbert to managing directors in its U.S. studio and project and construction management group. As managing directors, Schmidt will focus on leading initiatives in states in the East and South, while Filbert will concentrate on business growth across the Central U.S. The personnel moves are part of the expansion strategy under Stephen Silverstein, principal and managing director of U.S. studio and project and construction management, Avison Young said. Schmidt, based in Boston, joined Avison Young in 2015. Filbert, based in Dallas, joined Avison Young in 2022 as a director. Promoting Schmidt and Filbert and expanding their influence in their respective regions "will fortify our presence in the commercial real estate landscape," said Sheila Botting, principal and president of the firm's Americas professional services group, in a statement.