Movers: Franklin Street, Ethos Open Brokerages in Texas

Some more brokerages want a piece of Texas.

A Portland, Oregon-based commercial real estate firm has picked Dallas to open ts first office outside the Pacific Northwest.

Ethos Commercial Advisors leased an office at One McKinney, 3232 McKinney Avenue, in Uptown. Devin Kopas will lead the office as senior managing director, joining the brokerage from JLL’s Portland office. He’s worked with Ethos on transactions in the past, according to a news release.

“We have been looking for a strategic way to enter a growth market for some time,” Ethos Executive Managing Director Josh Bean said in the release. “When Devin called me to talk about joining forces, we recognized the potential immediately.”

The office offers services including tenant representation, agency leasing, investment sales, and debt and equity placement. The firm also has a location in Tacoma, Washington.

Camden Muller will also join the Dallas office. He relocated from Portland, where he was a broker for Norris & Stevens.

That’s not the only commercial brokerage making its way to Texas.

Tampa-based Franklin Street put boots on the ground in Austin, where it has opened a “regional headquarters.” It is the firm’s eighth location. It has offices in five states, and it recently added Nashville and Charlotte. The Austin office has 11 employees and is led by Marshall Durrett, who came to the firm from Cushman & Wakefield, where he led the Central Texas land advisory practice.

The team includes Alex Taghi, who jumped from Partners; Newmark alum Ryan Bohls; Austin Wills, who previously worked for Silicon Valley Bank; Laura Fretwell, who joins from Cushman & Wakefield; Clint Yoder, who previously worked for Rastegar Property Company; and Dahlia Hanly, who previously worked at Marcus & Millichap and Commercial Real Estate Solutions.

The firm plans to make strides in Austin, Dallas and Houston, and it plans to open offices and appoint more leaders in Texas metros, according to a news release.

“Austin is a vitally important growth market, positioning us for expansion across Texas and establishing a foothold in the Southwest,” Kurt Keaton, Franklin Street’s president of real estate, said in the release.

In other real estate career moves, San Antonio-based developer Embrey named Helena Finley as its managing director and executive vice president of construction. Finley will manage projects throughout Texas, Colorado, Tennessee, Florida, North Carolina and Arizona, the San Antonio Business Journal reported.