Close Up With Jim Foreman
HD Supply has delivered its 600k SF BTS in Pinto Business Park. It’s Hines’ first large industrial project since returning to the industry in Houston, and it’s one of Cushman & Wakefield executive director Jim Foreman’s all-time favorite deals. (Just don't tell his other deals, buildings can be very petty about those things.)
One of Jim’s strongest attributes is his entrepreneurial outlook. His first job (at the ripe old age of 11) was selling roses on a street corner, and his next was shining shoes in a barber shop. (Jim tells us he has never been too proud for any work, which has helped him through his career.) His father was in newspapers, and Jim graduated from college with a degree in journalism and a minor in advertising. But the only jobs he could find were in secondary markets, so instead he followed his interest in real estate (the idea of buying, selling, and creating value was appealing, and he liked being responsible for his own destiny).
Here’s Jim with his team, Allison Hall and Beau Kaleel. Jim says the current cap rate climate influenced HD Supply’s decision to go BTS—with record low caps, development is an affordable option and is attracting tenants to Houston. Another favorite deal was helping a client acquire 36 acres in East Downtown 15 years ago. It was a former foundry Superfund Site, and he negotiated the first time in the history of Superfund legislation that the federal government allowed a private entity/developer to clean up a site to safe, usable levels. It took a couple of years and was a huge accomplishment, and Jim says he learned a lot about how environmental risk affects value and how to make a brownfield site green again.
Jim says he started his real estate career with no expectations and without realizing how far you can go in the industry, so he’s done more professionally than he ever thought he would. Outside of work, Jim likes working on the ranch he owns in the Hill Country, and he’s a big baseball fan. He’s got season tickets to the Astros, but hasn’t been using them much because he’s been following around his favorite baseball player—his son, a collegiate player. On his bucket list: Riding a 20-foot wave, although he admits he’d probably be too scared.
