Essex Realty Group, LLC is celebrating 35 years as a mid-market multifamily sector firm. As client needs have expanded, so have Essex’s service capabilities. In 2023, the company launched Essex Capital Markets and Essex Three-Twelve. Essex has completed more than $4 billion in multifamily sales, representing nearly 50,000 units across the Chicagoland area. The firm’s partners include Doug Imber, Brian Kochendorfer, Jim Darrow, Steve Livaditis, Jordan Gottlieb, Kate Varde, Brian Karmowski, and Matt Feo.

Baird & Warner announced that the Gerber Diaz Group has joined its Highland Park office from Compass. Led by Louis Diaz and Joe Tyler Gerber, the six-person team focuses on the next generation of North Shore real estate. In addition to Gerber and Diaz, the team includes Tova Goldberg, Lana Shapiro, Michael Sidor and Isaiah Raynal.

29th Street Living has been awarded the 2025 Property Management Company of the Year by Multi-Housing News. The company was recognized for its modern, tech-forward operating model, including tools such as UDP, Rentana, HelloData, EliseAI, and Tour24, as well as its strong service culture and commitment to transparency and accountability.

Brailsford & Dunlavey, a Bernhard Capital Partners portfolio company, and Chicago-based Project Management Advisors (PMA) announced they have merged. The deal brings together two program management and real estate advisory services to form an integrated, scalable platform with broader capabilities across project lifecycles.

The Illinois Economic Development Corporation has made new appointments to its board of directors: Henry Bienen, interim president of Northwestern University; Joshua Davis, president and CEO of The Will Group, Sandeep Nain, president and founder of SNtial Technologies, Inc., Dia Nichols, president of Advocate Health Care; and Karen Sauder, president of Global Client and Agency Solutions at Google.

Draper and Kramer, Incorporated, announced that Edward Polich, executive vice president of real estate and a respected 43-year industry veteran, will retire at the end of 2025. Polich spent nearly two decades of his career with Draper and Kramer, including the last 11 years during which he served as chief development officer from 2014 to 2019 before being promoted to his current role. He was also a vice president with Draper and Kramer for almost nine years during the 1980s.