In an expansion of its platform, Coldwell Banker Commercial Advisors DFW has added a veteran commercial real estate broker with 12 years of experience in the data center sector.

CBCA DFW's new vice president, Ryan Crabtree, will focus on identifying niche data center properties nationwide for investors and users and office leasing in the Greater Dallas metroplex.

"With Ryan on board, we will be able to offer a whole new set of expertise and perspective for our clients. We've been discussing this expansion for awhile," says Gary Walker, managing principal of locally based CBCA DFW and president of SkyWalker Property Partners. "He's just what we wanted and needed – a seasoned data center professional with an entrepreneurial spirit, good transactional track record and an eye for investments."

Prior to joining CBCA, Crabtree was part of Digital Realty Inc.'s Central Portfolio Management team. As asset manager, he was responsible for management, marketing, operations, development, redevelopment and property enhancement of more than three million square feet of data center and office space, valued at nearly $1.2 billion in the Central U.S. He previously served on DLR's Asia-Pacific Portfolio Management team, working in Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia. He began his DLR career as a portfolio analyst after working in real estate analysis for Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP.

"This is an opportunity for me to be more flexible, more creative and do what I want to do," Crabtree says. "We will be tapping into a secondary market as we search nationwide for existing commercial properties that can be converted into data center space for businesses needing far fewer kilowatts than what they can lease on the mega-server campuses."

Crabtree has represented tenants and landlords alike in the office sector as well as the data center field. He received a BBA in Finance, with an emphasis on real estate, from Texas Tech University in Lubbock. He is a member of the North Texas Commercial Association of Realtors.

Founded in 1992 as SCM Real Estate Services Inc., Coldwell Banker Commercial Advisors DFW is a full-service commercial real estate firm providing clients with expert advice and strategies customized to their particular needs. Our services include investment sales, project leasing, property management, tenant representation.