Chesapeake Real Estate Group

What Chesapeake Real Estate Group does

Chesapeake Real Estate Group (CREG) is a privately held commercial real estate investment and development firm founded in 2004 by James Lighthizer, a former CBRE Senior Vice President, and headquartered in Hanover, Maryland. The firm operates across three integrated service lines — Brokerage & Leasing, Development & Construction, and Property Management & Accounting — and targets industrial, office, and retail assets primarily in the Mid-Atlantic region along the I-95 and I-81 corridors covering Washington DC, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Delaware. Since inception, CREG has acquired, developed, leased, and managed over 45 properties totaling more than 8,000,000 square feet, with disclosed lifetime project value of $300M-$400M and a current active management portfolio of 5,000,000+ SF.

Revenue is generated through four intertwined streams: property management fees and tenant services on the owned/managed portfolio (5,000,000+ SF), ground-up development and construction management fees (brownfield, greenfield, build-to-suit, and tenant improvements), brokerage commissions on acquisitions, dispositions, and leases, and ownership economics on assets held or co-invested with capital partners. CREG's capital partners include The Carlyle Group, USAA Real Estate, EverWest, Prudential Real Estate Investors, Atapco Properties, TA Realty, BentallGreenOak, PGIM Real Estate, and Macquarie, structured around a core-plus and opportunistic investment strategy. Notable tenants include XPO Logistics, Feld Entertainment, Thompson Creek Window Company, Johns Hopkins Health System, General Motors, American Tire Distributors, Reliable Churchill, and Stanley Black & Decker.

The go-to-market is enterprise field sales executed through a dedicated leasing team embedded in the brokerage and SIOR community, with strategic alliances to institutional capital partners and large corporate end-users. The firm has no proprietary technology platform and no disclosed AI/ML capabilities; competitive advantage derives from regional density, repeat capital relationships, brokerage and professional designation networks (SIOR, CCIM, NAIOP), and integrated execution across the CRE value chain.

Name

Chesapeake Real Estate Group

Legal name

Chesapeake Real Estate Group LLC

Website

https://cregllc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Chesapeake Real Estate Group is a private Mid-Atlantic commercial real estate firm that acquires, develops, leases, and manages industrial, office, and retail properties across the Baltimore-Washington Metro Area, serving institutional capital partners and enterprise tenants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Real Estate Services

NAICS

Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (53121), Lessors of Other Real Estate Property (53119)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Commercial Real Estate Asset Management (BPAJAMAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Special Purpose & Alternative Asset Brokerage (BPAJABAH)

Keywords

• Commercial real estate
• Industrial development
• Property management
• Brokerage leasing
• Real estate investment

Headquarters

HQ city

Hanover

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Property Management & Accounting: Chesapeake Real Estate Management operates each property in its 5,000,000 square foot management portfolio as an owner and investor. Revenue generated through property management fees, tenant services, and asset management.
2. Development & Construction: Ground-up construction, brownfields redevelopment, greenfield projects, and tenant improvements. Revenue generated through development fees, construction management, and value enhancement on owned assets.
3. Brokerage & Leasing: Leasing team with extensive network in brokerage and SIOR community. Revenue through brokerage commissions on acquisitions, dispositions, and lease transactions for industrial, office, and retail properties.
4. Asset Ownership & Investment: CREG acquires, owns, and manages commercial real estate properties. Revenue generated through property appreciation, rental income, and eventual disposition of assets.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Chesapeake Real Estate Group (CREG) is a commercial real estate firm that acquires, develops, leases, and manages industrial, office, and retail properties in the Mid-Atlantic region. The firm operates three integrated service lines—Brokerage & Leasing, Development & Construction, and Property Management & Accounting—and invests alongside institutional capital partners across a portfolio exceeding 8,000,000 square feet.

Product overview

Chesapeake Real Estate Group (CREG) operates as a commercial real estate investment and development firm offering integrated services across three core areas: Brokerage & Leasing, Development & Construction, and Property Management & Accounting. The company manages a portfolio of over 45 properties totaling over 8,000,000 square feet of industrial, retail, and office space in the Baltimore-Washington Metro Area. Their property portfolios include Active Projects (new developments like Stadium Logistics Center and Chesapeake Logistics Center), Completed Projects (established assets like Baltimore Crossroads @95 and Port 95 Industrial Park), and Owned Properties (office, industrial, retail, and specialty properties). Additionally, the company operates CREG Cares, a philanthropic initiative supporting community organizations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Brokerage & Leasing Real estate brokerage and leasing services with an extensive network throughout the brokerage and SIOR community, along with users and developers. The team provides current market knowledge of activity, rates, and competition to execute leasing strategy for industrial, office, and retail tenants in the Mid-Atlantic region.
• Development & Construction Real estate development and construction services including base building ground-up construction, brownfields and infill demolition/redevelopment, greenfield projects, feasibility and site assessment, entitlement and permitting, project design, budget and scheduling, value engineering, project management, and tenant improvements for industrial, office, and retail properties.
• Property Management & Accounting Property management and accounting services operating a 5,000,000 square foot management portfolio. Services include building maintenance, operating and capital budgeting, vendor management, property accounting, architectural and engineering support, lease administration, and accounts payable.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 8,000,000 square feet of industrial, retail and office managed since 2004
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Thompson Creek Window CompanyminorOthersThompson Creek Window Company is a tenant at Penn 95 Commerce Center (117,000 SF Class A manufacturing facility) and is listed on CREG's Partners page.
• Somerset ConstructionminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerSomerset Construction is listed as one of CREG's partners for commercial real estate development projects.
• Oakmont IndustrialminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOakmont Industrial partnered with CREG and The Carlyle Group on the Landover Logistics Center joint venture.
• Morgan-Keller ConstructionminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerMorgan-Keller Construction is acknowledged as a partner on the Landover Logistics Center project.
• SAA ArchitectureminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerSAA Architecture is acknowledged as a partner on the Landover Logistics Center project.
• Ben Dyer & AssociatesminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerBen Dyer & Associates - Civil Engineer is acknowledged as a partner on the Landover Logistics Center project.
• CBREminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCBRE represented ownership in the sale of Landover Logistics Center. CREG's founder James Lighthizer spent 16 years at CBRE before founding CREG.
• NAIOP MarylandcoreOthersNAIOP Maryland is CREG's primary industry association. Multiple CREG team members hold leadership positions including Matt Laraway as Executive Vice President, Partner on the Board of Directors. CREG team members participate in National Forums for Industrial Development and E-Commerce.
• SIOR (Society of Industrial and Office Realtors)coreOthersSIOR is the leading commercial real estate association. James Lighthizer and Matthew Laraway are both SIOR designees and Past Presidents. SIOR designees represent top producing brokers in industrial and office real estate.
• CCIM InstitutecoreOthersCCIM Institute is commercial real estate's most influential professional organization. James Lighthizer is a CCIM Member. CCIM designees are commercial real estate leaders with mastery of financial, market, and investment analysis.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• MRP Industrial: Industrial-focused real estate platform with East Coast/Mid-Atlantic activity. Comparable as a growing industrial operator competing for similar speculative and BTS deals.

Regional players

• Buchanan Partners: Mid-Atlantic commercial real estate investment and development firm focused on industrial and office product. Direct regional competitor in the Baltimore-Washington industrial market.

Direct peers

• St. John Properties: Maryland-based commercial real estate developer and owner with a similar Mid-Atlantic focus, developing and managing office, retail, and flex/R&D industrial product. Closest direct comparable to CREG in geography, product mix, and scale.
• Terreno Realty Corporation: Industrial REIT focused on coastal infill markets, including the Mid-Atlantic. Directly comparable in targeting last-mile/distribution industrial in supply-constrained East Coast submarkets.
• Hillwood: Perot-family industrial and commercial real estate developer active in Mid-Atlantic and East Coast markets. Comparable business model combining speculative development, BTS, and capital partner JVs.

Broad incumbents

• First Industrial Realty Trust: National industrial REIT with a meaningful Mid-Atlantic portfolio. Listed as a CREG financial partner and directly comparable in industrial ownership, development, and leasing.
• Prologis: Global industrial REIT and developer (including legacy Duke Realty) operating one of the largest US industrial portfolios. Competes with CREG for large credit-tenant BTS and speculative industrial deals in the I-95 corridor.
• CBRE Group: Global commercial real estate services firm representing ownership in CREG transactions; also CREG founder James Lighthizer's prior employer. Competes with CREG's brokerage and leasing team for institutional landlord mandates.
• Liberty Property Trust (now part of Prologis): Pre-Prologis-acquisition, Liberty was a major Mid-Atlantic-focused industrial REIT. Represents the institutional incumbent CREG competes against for the same tenant base and infill land in Baltimore/Washington.

Others

• Somerset Construction: General contractor and implementation partner acknowledged on CREG's Landover Logistics Center project. Comparable as a construction/development ecosystem partner rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ChesapeakeRealEstateGroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/chesapeake-real-estate-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Chesapeake Real Estate Group