Washington, D.C. structured real estate advisors
BW Realty Advisors LLC
We help credit-worthy governments, nonprofits, and corporations monetize owned real estate, finance new facilities, and keep operating-lease treatment at rates below the private market.
Mission
BW Realty Advisors LLC (BWRA) is a Washington, D.C. financial advisory firm. Our models let institutions convert buildings into cash for operations while remaining in occupancy—and while addressing accounting, tax, regulatory, and legal constraints that generic capital cannot.
The BWRA objective
We advise on the economic, credit, and asset-evaluation issues inherent in large real estate finance transactions, with disciplined attention to operating-lease treatment and counterparty interests.
The BWRA model
An accruing ground lease or zero-coupon debt layer, combined with amortizing debt and meaningful equity, maximizes immediate cash proceeds while minimizing the long-term cost of occupancy.
Advisory services
From federal campuses to university housing and historic civic buildings, BWRA designs financing that is financeable, explainable to boards, and workable for lenders and equity.
Custom capital stacks for owned, acquired, or newly constructed facilities that need to be monetized without disrupting operations.
Sell or finance a building and lease it back so cash can support core missions while occupancy and operational control are preserved.
Structures tailored to public-sector and tax-exempt owners that cannot, or should not, carry conventional mortgage debt on the balance sheet.
Federal Historic Preservation Tax Credits paired with private capital to restore civic landmarks that governments could not fund alone.
Office towers, distribution centers, multi-property retail, sports arenas, senior living, and other credit-tenant or cash-flow transactions.
Low-risk, income-oriented real estate opportunities for pension funds, endowments, and foundations seeking portfolio diversification.
Landmark work
BWRA and its principals have financed some of the most visible public and institutional assets in the United States. These four projects remain the firm’s signature record.
Federal headquarters
$872 million recapitalization of the largest leased federal facility in the United States—nearly 2.5 million square feet—delivering more than twice the owner’s originally sought yield.
Civic restoration
A $71 million historic-credit renovation that restored the District’s six-story marble City Hall and later allowed the government to buy the building back once finances recovered.
Higher education
Investor-built residence halls on land leased from the university, converting a commuter campus into a residential university without straining endowment or debt capacity.
Transportation landmark
An innovative ground-lease and operating-lease structure that restored a decaying Amtrak and New Jersey Transit station while keeping public control of operations.
How the model works
Owners who occupy buildings often sit on trapped capital. The BWRA structure is designed so that governments, universities, and corporations can raise that capital without surrendering the operational control they need.
Owned buildings, acquisitions, or new construction that a credit-worthy occupant will lease for the long term.
Accruing ground lease or zero-coupon debt plus amortizing debt and significant equity investment.
Occupants keep use of the facility at lease rates typically 75 to 200 basis points below otherwise available private-market pricing.
Who we serve
Federal, District, and local agencies that need facilities without conventional borrowing capacity.
Schools, civic institutions, and tax-exempt owners with non-core real estate and constrained endowments.
Credit tenants occupying office, distribution, retail, arena, and senior-living assets.
Pension funds, endowments, and foundations seeking conservative real estate exposure.
Leadership
The firm was founded by Richard A. Gross, Esq., and is led by principals with Harvard Law, MIT, Kellogg, Naval Academy, and senior federal experience.
Manager and Founder
Former partner at Rosenman & Colin; Executive Director of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission; Harvard Law School.
Manager
Public-sector strategy specialist; MIT and Kellogg; former Capitol Hill legislative director.
Manager and General Counsel
Harvard Law School; summa cum laude Dickinson College; former counsel at leading New York and Washington firms.
Vice President, Finance
Former CEO of Guaranty Capital Corporation; U.S. Naval Academy and Boston College MBA.
Questions
BWRA is a financial advisory firm specializing in structured real estate financing. We help credit-worthy institutions monetize buildings, finance new facilities, and lease them back on operating-lease terms.
The BWRA model combines an accruing ground lease or zero-coupon debt with amortizing debt and equity. That capital stack, plus the credit of the occupying institution, supports lease rates typically 75 to 200 basis points below otherwise available private-market pricing.
Governmental units, nonprofit entities, corporations with credit-tenant occupancy, and institutional investors such as pension funds, endowments, and foundations.
Client reading list
The firm keeps a short reading list for client conversations—from public data to the collectibles question our investor clients raise most often.
Public data
GSA real property data is the public record behind most of the campus work we structure, and the first place we point a client who wants the numbers.
Industry research
ULI research frames the institutional conversation on land use and capital markets—the reading we circulate before a development discussion.
Collectibles
Collector clients want a current read on the high-grade reproduction tier before they meet a dealer. It is the off-desk question our investor list raises most often after real estate.
Speak with BW Realty Advisors about sale-leaseback, historic-credit, and structured operating-lease financing from our Washington, D.C. office.
Contact the firm