text: DENVER-Steve O'Dell, a top broker specializing in land for multifamily developments, has joined the recently formed apartment brokerage firm Apartment Realty Advisors.
  DENVER-Steve O’Dell, considered one of Colorado’s top brokers in his specialty – land for multifamily development – has left Grubb & Ellis for the relatively new Apartment Realty Advisors, which was founded earlier this year by former Grubb brokers Jeff Hawks and Doug Andrews, the area’s top apartment brokers. O’Dell will also be a principal of the new firm. Also joining the team is Ken Greene, who specializes in multi-family properties in the Colorado Springs area.
  “The move to rejoin Andrews and Hawks was a no-brainer for me,” says O’Dell. “We have a symbiotic relationship. My focus is selling multifamily sites to developers and assisting with entitlements, while Doug and Jeff market properties for sale upon completion. Together our strength is helping developers identify opportunities and assist in underwriting for equity partners and institutional lenders.”
  O’Dell, with his partners Hawks and Andrews, sold more than 5,000 units of multi-family land in the last four years, while they all were at Grubb & Ellis.
  “Besides being a long-time friend and associate, Steve is an integral part of our business,” says Andrews. Adds Hawks: “Steve is a real veteran of the business with 23 years experience, and is the only broker in Colorado who specializes exclusively on multifamily land.”
  The ARA team has sold more than $1 billion in apartment properties during the past four years, far more than any other Colorado brokers. ARA is aligned with the Apartment Network and Denver-based Frederick Ross Co., the largest locally owned commercial real estate firm in Denver.