SEATTLE, Wash.—December 20, 2016—Lee & Associates, the largest broker-owned commercial real estate firm in North America, has announced the opening of its first office in the state of Washington.

Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services, doing business as Northwest Lee & Associates, has opened an office in downtown Seattle. The company is headed by industry veteran Jim Bowles in partnership with long time brokerage leader Richard Peterson and Chris Peterson. All are very experienced commercial real estate experts with history of operating successful real estate brokerage operations in the Puget Sound region.

“Lee & Associates has had its eyes on this region for a long time. We were waiting for the perfect team to open this office and we have found that team in Jim, Richard, and Chris,” said Jeffery Rinkov, CEO of Lee & Associates. “Collectively, they represent more than 75 years of commercial real estate experience. We are extremely happy to have a team of uniquely qualified professionals of this stature open our first office in the Pacific Northwest.”

In the last two years, Lee & Associates has opened offices in Walnut Creek, CA; Minneapolis, MN; Pasadena, CA; Vancouver, B.C.; Eastern Pennsylvania; Cleveland and Columbus, OH and Houston, Texas.

“We are delighted to partner with Lee & Associates as we build our business and our presence in the Puget Sound region,” Bowles said. “We spent a year researching various opportunities and concluded that Lee & Associates provides the best, most entrepreneurial structure in the industry. We believe that the Seattle area brokerage community has been waiting for a company designed to best service brokers and clients alike. We plan to become a regional commercial brokerage player with professionals in all service sectors including office, industrial, retail, leasing and sales as well as multifamily and investment sales. While Lee and Associates is a long established national operation, our ownership and management structure will be predominantly local and independent.”

Joe Vargas, who is the executive vice president and national advisor of Lee & Associates office expansion and recruitment efforts, was the primary force behind the firm’s move into this market.

“I have had a long-standing relationship with the leadership of this team and as a result, we saw an opportunity to expand into one of the most significant markets in the country,” said Vargas. “Bowles and the Petersons saw in Lee & Associates a proven structure and a unique commercial brokerage model designed by brokers for brokers. They understand that Lee & Associates will allow them to build on our entrepreneurial platform and tap in to our national coverage and resources. It is the perfect union between their team and our firm”

Bowles, who will serve as President of Northwest Lee & Associates, has more than 35 years of commercial real estate success in the Puget Sound region where he successfully built and/or managed three of the four largest commercial real estate companies in the region, including Seattle’s biggest and most broadly based operation, CBRE. In each case he built successful, profitable, market leading CRE services operations.

Richard Peterson brings 38 years of CRE leadership experience and a successful track record of founding, leading, and growing commercial real estate firms in the Seattle area. In 1995, Richard founded Puget Sound Properties and successfully built the firm to over 40 agents with offices in Bellevue, Seattle, and Tacoma. Prior to that, Richard began his commercial real estate career in 1979 at Kidder Mathews. He has completed more than 1,000 transactions with gross consideration of over one billion dollars in sales and lease value.

Chris Peterson, who brings over eight years of CRE experience, has completed investment sales transactions totaling over 1.25 million square feet and land sales totaling 3 million square feet, with gross considerations of over $200 million.

“We are creating a platform that we believe reflect the changing face of our industry. A platform that includes millennials and seasoned brokers. As local entrepreneurs, we can react more swiftly and effectively than the big nationals or cumbersome regionals,” said Chris Peterson.

About Lee & Associates
Celebrating more than 37 years of leadership excellence in commercial real estate, Lee & Associates is the largest broker-owned firm in North America with locations across the U.S. and Canada including Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Vancouver BC, Washington and Wisconsin. With almost 900 brokers nationwide, Lee & Associates provides a wide range of specialized commercial real estate services on a local, regional and national level.