Greysteel Names Jakob Nicholls Managing Director to Lead Northwest Capital Markets Platform
SEATTLE — July 27, 2026 — Greysteel, a national commercial real estate advisory firm, has appointed Jakob Nicholls as Managing Director, Northwest Capital Markets, the firm announced. Based in Seattle, Nicholls will lead the build-out of a dedicated platform for office and industrial investment sales and capital markets execution across the Northwest, including the Seattle and Portland metropolitan areas and surrounding regions.
Nicholls Joins from Newmark
Nicholls comes to Greysteel from Newmark, where he most recently served as Managing Director and Partner on the firm's Pacific Northwest Capital Markets team. In that role, he executed institutional investment sales and supported debt placement and structured finance transactions across office, industrial, land, and other asset classes throughout the Northwest, with a focus on distressed and value-add opportunities.
With nearly a decade of focused experience in the region, Nicholls sits on the Board of Directors of the NAIOP Oregon Chapter and serves as President of the Developing Leaders Board.
"I'm thrilled to join Greysteel and build a dedicated Northwest Capital Markets platform in the Seattle and Portland markets where I've built my career," Nicholls said. "Greysteel's model gives advisors the autonomy, resources, and national reach to accelerate growth, and I'm looking forward to assembling a strong team and delivering differentiated value for clients seeking sophisticated execution in office and industrial assets."
Notable Transactions in the Northwest
Nicholls' transaction history in the region spans a range of asset types and deal profiles. Among the assignments highlighted by Greysteel is the sale of Block 13 in the Spring District, a new construction office asset in Bellevue leased to Meta, Inc. on a long-term lease. The Spring District is a mixed-use, transit-oriented master-planned development on the Eastside that has attracted institutional-grade tech tenancy, positioning it as one of the few office clusters in the region continuing to draw core and core-plus capital.
Nicholls was also involved in the sale of Columbia Business Center, a 113-acre land transaction in the Portland metropolitan area that closed at $96 million — the largest land sale in the Portland metro area at the time. The site, located along the Columbia River, had historically served manufacturing, logistics, and dock-served industrial uses, and the transaction reflected sustained institutional interest in large-scale, infill industrial land in the region.
Greysteel's Platform Expansion Strategy
Greysteel described the appointment as part of its continued focus on expanding capabilities in key markets through senior talent aligned with its entrepreneurial culture. The new Northwest Capital Markets platform will emphasize institutional-quality marketing and execution, supported by Greysteel's national investor relationships and dedicated operational and marketing resources.
"Jakob is precisely the type of entrepreneurial, market-savvy leader Greysteel seeks to drive expansion in high-potential markets," said Lacey Willard, Executive Vice President and Market Executive at Greysteel. "His deep roots and proven track record in Northwest office and industrial investment sales, combined with his desire to build and lead a dedicated platform, align perfectly with our advisor-centric model. We are excited to support Jakob as he assembles his team and delivers exceptional results for clients across Seattle, Portland, and the broader region."
Nicholls will begin building his team immediately, with an emphasis on go-to-market strategies tailored to office and industrial opportunities across the region.
Market Context: Office and Industrial in the Northwest
The hire comes as capital markets activity in both office and industrial is shifting. U.S. office investment volume rose 20% in the first quarter of 2026, and office tenants signed 120 million square feet of new leases in that same period — the highest quarterly total since 2018 and 25% higher than the first quarter of 2025. Despite that leasing momentum, net absorption nationally remained negative, reflecting ongoing consolidation and flight-to-quality dynamics that are reshaping valuations and debt structures across office markets, including Seattle and Portland.
On the industrial side, U.S. industrial leasing rose 14% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2026, with big-box demand tripling and national asking industrial rents rebounding to $11.08 per square foot. The Pacific Northwest, with its exposure to logistics, last-mile distribution, and large-format industrial land, has remained a target for institutional capital in that sector.
Nicholls' background in distressed and value-add office, institutional industrial, and large-scale land transactions positions Greysteel's new Northwest platform to address both the ongoing reset in office valuations and the continued capital flow into industrial assets across the Seattle–Portland corridor.
About Greysteel
Greysteel is a commercial real estate investment sales and debt and structured finance advisory firm serving private and institutional investors across geographies and asset types. The firm's services include investment sales, debt placement, equity placement, and distressed asset solutions.
Sources: Greysteel – Greysteel Appoints Jakob Nicholls as Managing Director, Northwest Capital Markets