Local Perspective with… George Macoubray
This month’s featured broker is George Macoubray, Vice President of Retail Brokerage at NAI Elliott in Portland. George has been at NAI Elliott just seven months, but brings with him over 35 years of experience as a retail broker and commercial real estate (CRE) professional. NAI Elliott is based in the City of Roses, Portland, Oregon.
George’s personal business philosophy is a perfect match with the principles core to NAI Elliott’s mission: building up business relationships on a foundation of trust, and fostering those relationships for years to come. Relationship, he says, comes before real estate. With his extensive experience driving commercial retail enterprises, George aims to make NAI Elliott the largest commercial retail brokerage in Oregon.
George is licensed in Washington and Oregon. He is a two-time recipient of the Retail Broker of the Year, Portland award, and former president of the Commercial Real Estate Brokers of Metropolitan Portland. He also brings to his new position a proven track record of mentoring and inspiring aspirant brokers, a role he intends to continue in at NAI Elliott.
Questions & answers
Q. What does a typical workday look like for you?
I like to wake up early to get in some exercise, so it’s a 05:30 start for me and I do some pilates plus swimming or cycling. After that, I usually grab breakfast at the office and then spend my day working with clients, either from my desk or out showing spaces. At the moment, I’m also training one of our up-and-coming new brokers, Gael Zongazo, so we work together closely throughout the day.
Q. Tell me something you love about your job or your location.
I love working with my clients; providing advice, solving problems, and matching up tenants with great locations. That’s the best part of my job. In terms of the office, our location is central to pretty much everything and near downtown so it’s really convenient.
Q. What CRE trend or change are you keeping an eye on at the moment?
It’s hard to keep track of all the unanticipated consequences of Covid-19; businesses can’t hire people, the cost of materials has skyrocketed, and construction costs are up significantly. There’s really a lot going on in CRE at the moment. Despite the uncertainty, many of my tenant clients are expanding aggressively, and my developer clients are figuring out a way to navigate these conditions and keep projects moving forward. So things are quite dynamic right now.
Q. Where will I find you on a typical Saturday morning?
Well, I don’t sleep in, even on the weekend! On Saturday mornings I tend to wake up early to play golf or go for a bike ride. I like to be out, enjoying the fresh air, first thing.
Q. Please tell us a little something about your specialty or a project you’re proud of.
I specialize in representing Class A shopping centers and tenants that are located in and around shopping centers. My landlord clients include Gramor Development, G Group, DWS, Kimco, and other local and national landlords and developers. My tenant clients are really wide-ranging. I work with healthcare providers, food and beverage retail, apparel, and gyms, to name a few. I focus on approaching deals with an eye to ensuring they’re going to work for both parties and foster a relationship that will hopefully last for decades.
To contact George Macoubray, email him at gmacoubray@naielliott.com, or visit his NAI Elliott profile page here.
