Eastdil Secured - About

A Passion for Excellence

Eastdil Secured is the premier real estate investment banking company. We have led the pack for more than half a century, building our expertise into a knowledge franchise that is recognized as the dominant force in commercial real estate and investment banking by private investors and institutions alike. Our unrivaled combination of capital markets know-how and in-depth understanding of real estate fundamentals allows us to deliver on our promises in order to meet the precise needs of our clients.

A low-profile powerhouse, Eastdil Secured has long been recognized by industry insiders as the most highly sophisticated real estate investment banking company in the country. We create custom-crafted strategies for our roster of distinguished clients, and augment our mastery of conventional real estate brokerage with the corporate finance and capital markets expertise of an investment bank.

Our culture is one of our best assets, and allows us to set the industry standard for knowledge, value creation and truly outstanding client service. Our legendary passion for excellence is based on our core tenets of leadership, teamwork and innovation. We have used the salary-and-bonus structure of Wall Street and financial firms ever since our founding in 1967, fostering an environment of teamwork instead of the competitiveness of a commission-based system. Our clients benefit from our coordinated and responsive culture, which emphasizes the collective formation and deployment of the knowledge, experience and relationships that we need to maximize opportunities.

Our Mission

To create value for our clients through creative, actionable ideas and flawless execution, and to be the most relevant and trusted advisor in the commercial real estate capital markets.

We are - or aspire to be:
  • A discreet and trusted advisor that prioritizes long-term relationships over single transactions – it’s decades, not deals.
  • An organization that invests in our people and fosters their growth & empowerment at all levels.
  • A collaborative and intelligence-driven team that operates with a high degree of internal connectivity and trust.
  • A firm that uniquely combines capital markets and real estate expertise – providing clients with outstanding advice and execution in all the major markets, property types, and transaction forms.
  • A company that encourages its people to develop deep personal, lasting relationships with the individuals at all levels at our client organizations.

Executive Committee

Benjamin V. Lambert
Founder and Chairman of Eastdil Secured, Ben Lambert has over 50 years of experience in all forms of real estate. He is a member of the Board of Directors of The Irvine Company, founding trustee of the Wells Fargo Mortgage and Equity REIT (liquidated in 1989), Trustee Emeritus and former Chairman of the Endowment Fund of Brown University, his alma mater, as well as a member and past Chairman, Brown University Subcommittee on Strategic Growth.

Benjamin V. Lambert

Chairman
Roy Hilton March
Roy March has been with Eastdil Secured since 1994 and is currently the firm's CEO. With over 37 years of capital markets experience, Roy also serves on the Board of Directors of the Real Estate Roundtable, as well as Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Real Estate Center at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Roy Hilton March    

Chief Executive Officer
Michael Van Konynenburg
Current President of Eastdil Secured, D. Michael Van Konynenburg was Chief Executive Officer of Secured Capital Corp, a real estate investment banking firm that he co-founded in 1990. He is a founding board member of the Ziman Center for Real Estate at UCLA Anderson School of Management and graduate of UC Davis.

D. Michael Van Konynenburg

President

Our History

Eastdil Realty was formed in 1967 by Benjamin V. Lambert and the Investment Banking Firm of Eastman Dillon Union Securities as the first Real Estate Investment Banking Company in the United States, and became a subsidiary of EDUS.

The belief at the time was that the real estate business would benefit from the investment banking skill set, capital markets knowledge, and technology of the corporate finance world. The concept was to form a real estate company that would operate similarly to an investment banking firm, but with a real estate emphasis. Eastdil broke the conventional operating mold that had always separated financial and real estate people. For the first time, their diverse skills and disciplines were brought together in one company with one goal in mind: “provide our clients with an unparalleled degree of professionalism in real estate investment banking.”

Eastdil is founded by Benjamin Lambert. Firm’s first offices are located at 72 Wall Street in New York City.

Eastdil is retained to advise Wells Fargo on the formation of its Mortgage and Equity Trust.

Eastdil forms joint venture with the Ford Foundation to invest in commercial real estate in the US.

Eastdil arranges a $377 million acquisition financing for the investor group, which buys the Irvine Ranch in Orange County, CA. It is the single largest land deal in the country’s history.

The Investment Banking firm of Paine Webber acquires Eastdil’s parent, Insurance Company of North America. Eastdil’s senior management purchases the firm from Paine Webber and becomes a wholly independent company.

Separately, Eastdil is selected as Pension Fund Advisor by AT&T, California State Teachers' Retirement System, and the Public Employees' Retirement Pension Funds of Missouri and Virginia.

On behalf of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Eastdil arranges for the sale of a 6,200-unit residential portfolio for a record-breaking $480 million.

Eastdil sells a 50% stake to Nomura Securities and forms a property asset management company. Eastdil relocates personnel to offices in London, Tokyo and Frankfurt.

Secured Capital Corp is founded in Los Angeles by executives of Drexel Burnham Lambert, including Michael Van Konynenburg, current President of Eastdil Secured.

Eastdil/Nomura forms joint venture with Cargill Industries to acquire real estate portfolios from the US Government’s Resolution Trust Corporation, Banks and Insurance Companies.

Eastdil repurchases Nomura’s 50% interest, and sells its property asset management business with assets in excess of $5 billion to O’Connor Realty Advisors.

Eastdil forms joint venture with Wells Fargo to acquire troubled real estate portfolios from both domestic and foreign banks and insurance companies.

Roy Hilton March becomes CEO of Eastdil.

Eastdil is selected to dispose of a $5 billion portfolio of residential, commercial, retail and hotel properties of the estate of the late Harry Helmsley, a national property owner and developer in the US.

Wells Fargo negotiates the acquisition of Eastdil, which becomes a wholly owned subsidiary of the bank, but retains its name and independent structure.

Eastdil arranges the sale of the iconic GM Building in Manhattan for a record-setting $1.4 billion.

Wells Fargo acquires Secured Capital Corp and merges it with Eastdil Realty to form Eastdil Secured, creating a real estate investment banking firm with the largest transaction volume in the world.

After years of servicing the UK and the rest of Europe from the US, Eastdil Secured opens a permanent office in London. It also opens an office in Hong Kong to service Asian markets.

Wells Fargo acquires Wachovia Bank, and Wachovia’s Investment Banking team joins Eastdil Secured.

Eastdil Secured acts as the agent and advisor in the record-setting $1.8 billion purchase by Google of 111 8th Avenue in Manhattan, to serve as Google’s Eastern US Headquarters.

Eastdil Secured is selected as the loan advisor to the Irish national government, and arranges for the disposition of a portfolio of $10 billion in mortgage loans.

Recent News

08/02/2017
Eastdil Secured leads in mid-year Retail Sales Rankings with $3.1 billion of closed deals during the first half of 2017.
08/02/2017
Eastdil Secured Heads Broker Race of Large Hotel Sales with $2.8 billion in closed transactions by June 30, with a 39.3% share of brokered trades.
07/26/2017
Eastdil Secured retains lead in Office Broker Contest 1H-2017, having closed $11.8 billion in sales of large office properties for a market share of 27.9%.
03/01/2017
Eastdil Secured is named European debt advisor of the year: Real Estate Capital Awards 2016
02/15/2017
Eastdil Secured stays on top as Lead Overall Commercial Property brokerage in 2016, closing $55.1 billion of sales for a 24% market share.
02/01/2017
Eastdil Secured retains its title of Most Active Broker of Large Hotel Properties in 2016.
02/01/2017
Eastdil Secured leads sales of large Retail Properties once again, with $8 billion of retail property sales.
01/25/2017
Eastdil Secured is the leading broker of large Office Properties in 2016, increasing its sales to $36.6 billion with 40.1% of the market share.