Cresa Atlanta is seeking a new market leader following the departure of Chris Scott to a rival as the city's office market shows signs of a rebound.
Cresa principal Tom Tindall said Scott, who had served as market leader since the fall of 2023, departed for a job at Newmark. In the Atlanta market, Cresa is known for representing tenants in office and industrial transactions and handling major building sales. It does not represent landlords.
Scott's last day at Cresa was Tuesday, Tindall said.
While Cresa is happy for and will miss Scott, the shakeup will provide an opportunity for the brokerage, said Brooks Morris, a managing principal at Cresa Atlanta.
The move "opens new avenues for innovation and leadership," Morris said in an interview. "This transition is an opportunity for the team to evolve" and grow further in the Atlanta market.
Atlanta office leasing increases
Cresa is searching for a new Atlanta leader as the office market tries to bounce back from a year that saw its overall availability rate soar to a new record of approximately 33%. The local office market started 2025 "on a stronger footing" than last year, according to a CoStar Market Analytics report.
"Leasing activity is up, and availability is slightly down," CoStar analyst Madelyn Bearn said in the report. "By the time the final figures for the fourth quarter of 2024 are tallied, annual leasing activity for last year will be on par with the 2015 to 2019 annual average. Atlanta's total available office space has decreased for the past four quarters."
Newmark decline comment about Scott. His role there would be more expansive than his at Cresa because the Newmark's regional office covers several states and its business includes additional service lines such as property management, investment sales and agency leasing.
Before Scott took over as Cresa Atlanta market leader, he worked for several years as a partner at Atlanta-based office development firm Greenstone Properties. There, he worked closely with founder De Little and oversaw day-to-day operations. Scott directed development, construction and the origination of new projects and acquisition opportunities. When he left Greenstone for the Cresa leadership job, it marked a homecoming for him. Scott worked as a tenant representative at Cresa from 2003 to 2006.
"Chris played a pivotal role in guiding our team, fostering growth, and strengthening our commitment" to our clients, Tindall said in an interview.
Upon his departure from Cresa, Scott told colleagues there that his time at the brokerage set him up for a larger assignment in the industry.
“My time at Cresa has been special and I feel like I am leaving my family," Scott said in a message to Cresa employees that was shared with CoStar News. "The experience of being Cresa’s Atlanta Market Leader gave me the qualifications and exposure to be considered for my new opportunity, and I am grateful to the Cresa Atlanta team.”
Scott did not immediately respond to a text message seeking comment.