New hires bolster Colliers’ operational capital markets capabilities

L- R: Lee Layton, Paddy Allen, John Freker

Colliers has welcomed two new recruits, both of whom will be focusing on operational capital markets, as the firm continues to build its presence in the sector.

Lee Layton joins the Colliers Research & Economics team from Cushman & Wakefield as a director. Lee will focus on collaborating with clients on bespoke research pieces, supporting the operational capital markets team on strategy and insights across the customer and platform investment landscape. Additionally, John Freker joins the National Capital Markets team as an associate director from Savills and will focus on transactions and capital advisory mandates.

Paddy Allen, Head of Operational Capital Markets at Colliers, comments: “There is no escaping the fact that the sector previously termed ‘alternatives’ has now become anything but. The past 12 months have seen a real weight of capital hunting for opportunities across the operational real estate investment spectrum including student accommodation, build to rent and co-living.

“The relative nascence and complexity of these sectors provides many opportunities and challenges for which we are building a team with the appropriate skill sets to match our clients’ needs and to continually add value.

“The addition of Lee and John will ensure we are providing market leading insights and data, alongside first-class service for our clients who are active in the sector.”

The operational capital markets team at Colliers is focused on working with investors, developers and operators across the ‘beds’ sectors of student accommodation, build to rent and senior living, as well as the developing co-living sector. These sectors have seen significantly increased capital allocation in the last five years, which has accelerated since the start of the pandemic as investors seek increased exposure to the resilience of ‘beds’ backed real estate investments.