Up Close with Derrell Curry

Savills Studley EVP/co-branch manager Derrell Curry just wrapped up a 60k SF HQ lease for one of the world’s largest chemical companies, now among his favorite deals ever. It's ironic, given his career started in the special metals industry, and he hated it.

Derrell's frat brothers offered him a way out of special metals—one was in office leasing and the other in insurance—and each offered him a job and mentorship. It was a real jump ball, he tells us, but Derrell entered real estate in 1983. His mom had been in the industry, so it felt natural to take that route. (If he had known a 10-year depression was forming, he says, he might’ve chosen differently!)

One of Derrell’s all-time favorite deals was repping Bechtel in its 566k SF lease in 2013. It was an extraordinarily complex assignment with difficult negotiations with multiple parties, but proved very successful for his client. His team locked in below-market rents, a big TI package, numerous upgrades to the common areas and a new garage. The size in and of itself puts this high on Derrell’s list—he loves larger transactions because there’s more at stake. The results really impact his clients’ bottom lines and he enjoys managing around the risks associated with long-term leases.

Here’s Derrell on a Savills Studley Houston outing with Drew Morris, Mark O’Donnell and Mark Russell. Derrell’s 60k SF HQ deal, bringing a new company to Houston, is already another of his favorites. He tells us he negotiated very aggressive economics—a long-term lease, concession package, flexibility options (including the right to purchase the building and adjacent parcel), and local and municipal incentives. This client will keep Derrell busy for a while—it's got major expansion plans. Derrell also recently worked with a client on multiple buy/sell transactions of the same 130k SF building complex in the same year, netting the firm a tidy profit.

On Derrell’s bucket list: African safari, inland Alaska and the Holy Land. He has a weekend creek house in Sargent where he hunts, fishes, eats and generally piddles. He also used to sail a lot, and hopes to get back into it soon, but right now he has a 14-month-old granddaughter (Cora, above) who’s stealing both his heart and his attention. In his career, Derrell’s most proud of reaching his goals of status and success without sacrificing his reputation, and of never losing a client in his 30 years in the industry. He’s also proud of helping build the Savills Studley Houston office, which has quadrupled since opening 10 years ago.