Why CAC Picked CBRE

After a near 20-year courtship, CBRE scooped up CAC, uniting global with hyperlocal, bringing on 25 more brokers, and becoming the top leasing agent in San Francisco. (Lesson: Keep workin' on those crushes, kindergarteners. There's hope that you'll win them over by senior prom.) We found out what finally got CAC to the altar.

CAC's Bill Cumbelich (snapped last week at 555 Cal, one of their listings), founded the company in 1990 with John Cecconi and Gary Arabian. Four years later they were joined by Mary Wiese, who launched the firm's property management business. Today CAC employs 130 and is the agent for 18M SF, managing 11M SF of office properties in downtown San Francisco, the Bay Area, and Seattle, including Bellevue. The local CAC team will relocate to CBRE's 101 Cal office in four to six months. CBRE hopes to reposition and grow its S.F. presence, particularly in tech. CAC recently closed a big expansion deal with LinkedIn.

One of CAC's listings, 140 New Montgomery (above), scored Yelp's new HQ this year, and 555 Cal just landed Supercell on the top 52nd floor; expect another big tech name to sign there soon. (We're scanning our iPad apps to see who it might be.) CBRE first called up CAC back in the late '90s. Bill tells us just about every big brokerage in town has come knocking on his door since, but the longstanding offer from CBRE seemed the most sincere. CBRE's roots are also in S.F., dating back to 1906. Aside from sharing the same birthplace, CAC liked the idea of joining forces with the biggest CRE player in the industry that can do the "most things in the most places," says Bill.