CIP Real Estate

What CIP Real Estate does

CIP Real Estate is a privately held, vertically integrated commercial real estate investment and management company founded in 1995 and headquartered in Irvine, California. The firm specializes in the acquisition, repositioning, development, and management of multi-tenant industrial and business parks, with a particular emphasis on small and mid-bay product (5,000–90,000+ SF) in supply-constrained infill submarkets. As of 2024, the company owned and managed 42 industrial properties totaling over 6.1 million square feet across six states (California, Texas, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Florida), with a broader scale figure citing over 10 million square feet and a portfolio value exceeding $1.15 billion serving more than 2,000 tenants at approximately 91% occupancy.

The business model combines recurring rental income with value-add appreciation through targeted acquisitions, capital improvements, lease-up, and eventual disposition. CIP executes acquisitions ranging from $5 million to $100 million per asset and portfolios up to $300 million, often through joint ventures with institutional capital partners — most notably Almanac Realty Investors (a Neuberger Berman business unit), which has committed a cumulative $680 million across 2019 and 2024, and Alex. Brown Realty, with 25+ partnerships since 1998 totaling over $330 million. Asset management, leasing, property management, construction management, and reporting are performed in-house through wholly-owned subsidiary CIP Real Estate Property Services. The company maintains eight regional offices across the West Coast, Southeast, and Texas, with customers spanning manufacturing, logistics, distribution, R&D, and light industrial tenants including Fortune 500 names such as Tesla, Siemens, Netflix, Walgreens, BASF, and Hyundai.

In November 2025, CIP completed an $820 million syndicated refinancing of its industrial portfolio with Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, and Goldman Sachs — the largest capital event in the company's history — and in February 2026 entered Jacksonville, Florida via the $51.6 million acquisition of JAX Airport Logistics Center. The firm has additionally expanded into ground-up development through a 2023 joint venture with Selwyn Property Group. CIP is led by CEO Eric Smyth, Chairman Robert Y. Strom, and COO Scott Flemer, with a leadership team whose tenure exceeds 25 years in multi-tenant industrial real estate.

Name

CIP Real Estate

Legal name

CIP Real Estate LLC

Website

https://ciprealestate.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

CIP Real Estate is a privately held, vertically integrated industrial real estate investor founded in 1995 in Irvine, California. It acquires, repositions, and manages multi-tenant industrial and business parks across six U.S. states, serving more than 2,000 small and mid-bay tenants from its eight regional offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Real Estate Investment and Management

NAICS

Lessors of Real Estate (5311), Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (53121)

SIC

Real Estate Dealers (For Their Own Account) (6532), Real Estate (6500), Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531)

akta.pro primary industry

Commercial Real Estate Asset Management (BPAJAMAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Commercial Real Estate Brokerage (Leasing & Sales) (FSAEAJAB), Investment Sales Brokerage (BPAJABAI)

Keywords

• Industrial real estate
• Property acquisition
• Asset management
• Commercial leasing
• Business park operations

Headquarters

HQ city

Irvine

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Rental Income: CIP Real Estate generates revenue through rental income from its portfolio of multi-tenant industrial and business parks. Properties are leased to various tenants including industrial, flex, and distribution users.
2. Property Appreciation and Asset Management: The company creates value through acquiring underperforming properties, implementing capital improvements, increasing occupancy and rental rates, and ultimately selling properties at appreciated values.
3. Portfolio Refinancing: CIP has completed major refinancing activities including an $820 million loan for its industrial portfolio, generating financing income and maintaining liquidity for continued growth.

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

CIP Real Estate is a vertically integrated real estate investment and management company that acquires, repositions, develops, and manages multi-tenant industrial and business park properties. Its portfolio spans over 10 million square feet across West Coast, Southeast, and Texas markets, targeting acquisitions ranging from $5 million to $100 million per project and portfolios up to $300 million. The company generates revenue through rental income from leased industrial space to small, mid-bay, and larger-bay industrial, flex, distribution, and R&D tenants, supplemented by property appreciation and institutional capital partnerships.

Product overview

CIP Real Estate is a full-service real estate investment and management company focused on the acquisition, development, repositioning, and management of industrial assets throughout West Coast, Southeast, and Texas markets. Founded in 1995 and based in Irvine, CA, the company owns and manages industrial and business park properties. The company offers integrated services including Asset Management, Property Management, Marketing & Leasing, Development and Construction Management, and Reporting & Accounting through its wholly-owned subsidiary CIP Real Estate Property Services. The portfolio spans multiple markets including California (Ontario, Riverside, Hayward), Nevada (Las Vegas), Georgia (Atlanta), North Carolina (Charlotte), South Carolina, Florida (Tampa), and Texas (Dallas). The investment strategy focuses on multi-tenant small, mid-, and larger-bay industrial and business parks with a core-plus to value-add risk profile, targeting acquisitions from $5MM to $100MM or portfolios up to $300MM.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Multi-Tenant Industrial Property Acquisition and Investment Direct acquisition of multi-tenant industrial, flex, and business park properties ranging from $5 million to $100 million per project, with portfolio acquisitions up to $300 million. Targets infill locations in West Coast, Southeast, and Texas markets for institutional investors and the company's own portfolio.
• Industrial Property Leasing Direct leasing of small bay (5,000-25,000 SF) and mid-bay (15,000-90,000+ SF) industrial, flex, distribution, and R&D space to business tenants across the company's portfolio of 42 industrial properties in six states.
• Property Management Services Turnkey property management delivered through the wholly-owned subsidiary CIP Real Estate Property Services, covering day-to-day operations, maintenance, tenant relations, and reporting across the company's industrial portfolio.
• Asset Management Services Strategic asset management for the company's own portfolio and joint venture partners, including value-add execution, capital improvement programs, leasing strategy, and disposition planning.
• Development and Construction Management Speculative and build-to-suit industrial development and construction management, including the 240,000 SF Waterford Business Park ground-up development in Rock Hill, SC, in joint venture with Selwyn Property Group (broke ground October 2023, completion scheduled Q4 2024).
• Marketing and Reporting Services Marketing, leasing support, financial reporting, and accounting services for industrial properties, delivered through CIP Real Estate Property Services to both the company's own portfolio and joint venture partners.

Quantifiable outcome

• Portfolio value exceeded $1 billion with 15 projects totaling 5.6 million+ square feet
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers21 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Pan American Co.minorOthers · 17 February 2026Seller of JAX Airport Logistics Center to CIP Real Estate. Property acquired for $51.6 million in Jacksonville, Florida.
• Cushman & WakefieldminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 17 February 2026Arranged $44.6 million acquisition financing for CIP Real Estate's purchase of JAX Airport Logistics Center.
• JLL Capital MarketsminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 20 October 2025Arranged $820 million refinancing for CIP's 6.1 million SF industrial portfolio across six states.
• Hazel Street CapitalminorOthers · 4 August 2025JLL Capital Markets represented Hazel Street Capital and arranged financing for CIP Real Estate on a 26-acre industrial development site in Tampa.
• Selwyn Property GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 October 2023Joint venture partner for Waterford Business Park development in Rock Hill, SC - a 240,000 SF speculative industrial development. CIP and Selwyn broke ground in October 2023 with completion scheduled for Q4 2024.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Terreno Realty Corporation: Terreno Realty is a public REIT that acquires, owns, and operates industrial real estate in six major coastal U.S. markets, focused on infill locations. Closely mirrors CIP's infill, multi-tenant industrial acquisition and repositioning model.
• EastGroup Properties: EastGroup is a public REIT specializing in multi-tenant industrial properties in Sun Belt markets including Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas, Tampa, and Florida — overlapping directly with CIP's Southeast and Texas geographic footprint and similar small-bay tenant focus.
• STAG Industrial: STAG Industrial is a public REIT focused on single-tenant and small multi-tenant industrial properties across the U.S. Comparable in target tenant size, geographic diversification, and value-add repositioning approach to CIP's strategy.
• Bridge Industrial: Bridge Industrial is a private industrial real estate operator focused on acquiring, developing, and operating Class-A industrial properties in core U.S. markets. Directly comparable as a private peer pursuing institutional capital and infill industrial strategies similar to CIP.
• Rexford Industrial Realty: Rexford Industrial is a publicly traded REIT focused exclusively on infill industrial properties in Southern California. Highly comparable to CIP's West Coast industrial focus, multi-tenant infill strategy, and value-add repositioning playbook.
• First Industrial Realty Trust: First Industrial is a public REIT that owns, operates, and develops industrial real estate across the U.S. with a focus on multi-tenant and bulk distribution properties in major markets. Comparable to CIP in target customer, asset type, and value-add strategy.

Broad incumbents

• Crow Holdings Industrial: Crow Holdings Industrial is the industrial arm of Crow Holdings Capital, a large private investment manager. Operates as both a developer and acquiror of industrial properties across major U.S. markets, comparable in institutional capital sourcing and infill strategy.
• Prologis: Prologis is the largest global industrial REIT with a dominant logistics-focused portfolio. While it competes with CIP for industrial deals, it operates at massive scale and primarily targets large modern distribution facilities, making CIP's small/mid-bay infill focus a more specialized niche.

Others

• JLL Industrial Capital Markets: JLL is a major commercial real estate services firm that has arranged financing for CIP's $820M refinancing and multiple acquisitions. Relevant as an ecosystem partner and capital markets intermediary rather than a direct operator competing for the same assets.

Emerging players

• McDonald Property Group: McDonald Property Group is a private industrial real estate investment firm focused on value-add acquisitions in select U.S. markets. Comparable in scale and value-add industrial strategy, though smaller portfolio than CIP.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cip-real-estate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors5 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CIP Real Estate