Real Estate Firm Offers Investment Planning, Services

illi Commercial Real Estate, an Encino-based real estate brokerage and property management firm, recently launched a new investment advisory services division. Company officials say the division will provide its clients – mostly shopping centers – with expertise in acquisitions, investment sales, valuation, repositioning and long-term strategic planning for their real estate assets. illi represents more than 160 shopping centers in L.A. County, including Northridge Promenade, Encino Place, Glendale Square and Creekside Village. While the Valley region’s commercial real estate market has mirrored the sluggish economy, illi officials say the new division positions the company for the market’s rebound. “Even investors that are happy with their assets want to trade up to something larger,” said Gwen Mackenzie, who will head the new division. President Todd Nathanson says illi has been growing since the company got off the ground three years ago. In March, the real estate firm opened a new location in Long Beach. More than a year ago, it opened an office in Valencia. “We will be in West L.A. shortly,” Nathanson said. To accommodate the growth at its Encino office, illi hired three new agents, Nathanson said. The company has 15 employees in Encino, two in Valencia and one in Long Beach. Mackenzie was a key hire, who offers expertise that will push illi forward, Nathanson said. She previously founded the investment advisory firm Shopping Center Investments, Inc., directed the west coast acquisition program for Federal Realty Investment Trust, a national real estate investment trust, and ING Clarion’s Lion Property Fund. Mackenzie also was an investment broker for Sperry Van Ness. “She’s going to bring in many new accounts that we’ve never had before,” Nathanson said.