Leading broker team moves to JLL Phoenix
The Phoenix office of JLL has announced the addition of Bryan Taute, Spencer Nast and William Mask to the JLL team, bringing a combined 40 years of metro Phoenix office market expertise.
Taute joins as Executive Managing Director, Nast as Senior Vice President and Mask as Vice President.
The brokers are award-winning industry experts representing approximately 8 million square feet of trophy Class A office properties located throughout the Valley.
“Bryan, Spencer and William are among our market’s best, representing many of the most desirable buildings and investors in metro Phoenix,” said JLL Executive Managing Director and Phoenix market lead Pat Williams. “Their expertise and collaborative approach will enhance our already strong agency leasing platform and – most importantly – our clients.”
The broker team joins a larger JLL Phoenix workforce employing more than 600 of the region’s most recognized industry experts. This includes specialists in office, industrial, retail, healthcare and data center brokerage, tenant representation, facility and investment management, capital markets, multifamily investments and development services, and related services within the real estate leasing, investment and management process.
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Sam Sufi returns to CBRE’s Tucson office
CBRE announced that Sam Sufi has returned to its Tucson office as a Vice President. He will focus on capital markets investment sales, leading the investment sales platform for commercial investment properties in Tucson.
“Sam’s extensive experience and strategic approach will make him an invaluable asset in leading our commercial investment sales practice,” said Jeff Casper, CBRE’s first vice president and Tucson market leader. “I am excited to see the innovative solutions and growth he will bring to our capital markets practice in Tucson.”
Sufi spent the last four years at Diamond Ventures as the real estate development manager, responsible for acquisitions, asset management, and dispositions of commercial real estate investments. He was accountable for the entire life cycle of investments, including acquisition and diligence, structuring and underwriting deals, and implementing the investment strategy. Sufi had previously been at CBRE in the Tucson office from 2019 until 2020.
“I am excited to rejoin CBRE and focus on growing our investment sales practice in Tucson. It’s a tremendous opportunity to reconnect to the CBRE platform to provide the best insights to our clients,” said Sufi.
Sufi holds a bachelor’s degree and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Arizona. He is a member of NAIOP Arizona’s Developing Leader program and a candidate for his Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) designation. Sufi is an active member of the International Council of Shopping Centers organization.
P.B. Bell announces new VP, portfolio directors
P.B. Bell, a leading multifamily real estate company, continued its recent growth with three new senior team members. Jim Deakyne has joined the development group as the new VP of land acquisition and entitlements, and Liz Shumar and Angela Marotta have joined the property management division as portfolio directors.
Jim Deakyne’s career has focused on urban infill land brokerage and development. He has successfully sourced sites for developers throughout both Florida and Arizona. Over the years, he has sourced, brokered or developed land for more than 7,000 multifamily units with a land value of over $170 million.
Before joining the P.B. Bell team, Deakyne established Urban Advisors, a boutique land brokerage and development company. He also headed up site acquisitions and was a development manager for Lennar Multifamily Communities. He managed and implemented all facets of the pre-development process including due diligence, planning, design, development programming and entitlements.
Angela Marotta has over 26 years of experience in property management. Marotta began her career as a leasing agent and quickly moved up the ranks to senior property manager. Throughout her career working across five different states, she has held roles such as regional property supervisor, assets director, direct hire recruiter, lease-up community manager and regional property manager. Additionally, she helped establish two management companies and was President at Celtic Property Management and a Partner with Stratus Arizona LLC. Angela holds her Arizona Real Estate License and is a member of the Arizona Multihousing Association.
Liz Shumar has more than 11 years of multifamily management experience throughout the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. She started in the multifamily real estate industry in 2013 as a leasing manager and later moved up to property management. Before P.B. Bell, she worked at Greystar as a regional property manager and at RPM as a regional manager. Shumar has extensive experience in lease-up and new development, rebranding assets, conventional assets and repositioning assets for sale. Shumar is a member of the 2025 Arizona Multihousing Association Lyceum Leadership Class, a year-long volunteer leadership development program that focuses on the essential elements of successful leaders.
In their roles as portfolio directors, Marotta and Shumar oversee diverse multifamily portfolios throughout the Phoenix Metropolitan Area and are responsible for managing operations, financials, marketing and staff at each of their respective communities.
“We are lucky to have these three incredibly talented experts join our team,” said Justin Steltenpohl, CEO of P.B. Bell. “At P.B. Bell, we set a high standard for multifamily development and service, and we’ve hired these individuals based on their skills, attention to detail and passion for the industry. We are looking forward to seeing them all thrive and further P.B. Bell’s ability to positively impact multifamily in Arizona.”
For more information on P.B. Bell, please visit www.pbbell.com.
Arizona REALTORS members appointed to national leadership roles
The Arizona Association of REALTORS®, the largest trade association in Arizona, currently representing more than 54,000 Arizona REALTORS®, is pleased to recognize three local members who have been appointed to leadership positions within the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).
Craig W. Sanford of Realty ONE Group in Phoenix serves as the 2025 NAR Treasurer; D. Patrick Lewis of Realty Executives in Phoenix and Yuma, Ariz., is the 2025 NAR Regional Vice President for Region 11; and Eric Gibbs Sr. of BIG Realty Solutions in Tucson, Ariz., is the 2025 NAR Member Services Liaison.
With more than 46 years of real estate experience, Sanford has held prominent leadership roles throughout his career. Nationally, Sanford has spent eight years on the NAR Finance Committee and five years on the Reserves Investment Advisory Board. Sanford has also served as the 2011 NAR Regional Vice President for Region 11, the 2006 president of Arizona REALTORS®, and the 1999 president of Phoenix REALTORS®. Additionally, Sanford has contributed to the REALTOR® Party Member Involvement, Public Policy Coordinating, Land Use, Property Rights & Environment, and Equal Opportunity-Cultural Diversity committees. Sanford is also an NAR RPAC Hall of Fame member.
Lewis brings more than 20 years of real estate experience and has held a variety of leadership roles within the Association, previously serving as the 2014 president of the Scottsdale Area Association of REALTORS® and the 2019 president of Arizona REALTORS®. In his role as NAR Regional Vice President, Region 11, Lewis serves REALTOR® members in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.
Gibbs has 18 years of experience as a real estate professional and has served at various levels across the organization, including on several committees and groups, such as the National Association of REALTORS® Governance Game Changer Presidential Advisory Group and the Executive and Fair Housing Policy Committee. Gibbs also served as the 2023 president of Arizona REALTORS® and the 2016 president of the Tucson Association of REALTORS®. As the NAR Member Services Liaison, Gibbs fosters effective communication between leadership to ensure the success of member focused committees, including the Young Professionals Network Advisory Board, Consumer Communications Committee, Professional Development Committee, and REALTOR® Safety Advisory Committee.
“We are honored to recognize these distinguished Arizona REALTORS® for their unwavering commitment to both our state and national associations,” said Scott Drucker, CEO of the Arizona REALTORS®. “Craig, Patrick, and Eric embody the excellence that defines Arizona, and their leadership plays a vital role in empowering real estate professionals to thrive in an ever-changing market.”
For more information, visit www.aaronline.com.
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