ATLANTA, GA (April 9 2025) – Today, Franklin Street, a national and fully-integrated commercial real estate services firm headquartered in Tampa, Fla., announced it hired Ralph Smalley as Managing Director of Office Investment Sales in Atlanta. Smalley brings nearly three decades of high performance and experience working with institutional and midmarket clients along with a sterling reputation within the Atlanta commercial real estate community—and across the industry—to Franklin Street.
“I joined Franklin Street because it offers a connected and collaborative culture and the firm provides brokers with the tools we need to better serve our clients,” Ralph Smalley, Managing Director of Office Investment Sales, Franklin Street, said. “I’ve worked with prominent investors across the spectrum throughout my career and having the ability to deliver tailored solutions, full-service capabilities across the lifecycle of an investment—including in-house insurance services— is a significant advantage and exactly what clients are looking for in today’s opportunity filled market.”
Atlanta is Franklin Street’s largest operating market, and the company already employs 39 people across its Investment Sales, Leasing, Capital, Project and Property Management. Population growth, a highly educated and diverse workforce, and infrastructure bolster the region’s economy, making it an attractive destination for job creation across a broad spectrum of industries—particularly with technology-based innovators. These factors contribute to Franklin Street’s positive outlook on the potential of substantial transactional demand across the office sector in the coming months and years.
“This is a cornerstone hire for Franklin Street as we grow in Atlanta and across the country,” Kurt Keaton, President of Real Estate Services, Franklin Street, said. “Ralph’s track record of success and reputation provides us the opportunity to build a team around him that will help us better serve clients in the Atlanta MSA and across the southeast region. Atlanta’s market footprint is comprised of clients that are leveraging our platform across Florida and the broader sunbelt markets, and the office product type here is a huge opportunity for Franklin Street. We’re confident that our strategic investments over the past two years in our people and platform will lead to success across our markets, and with Ralph on board, we’re off and running in an important asset class that bolsters our existing presence in Atlanta.”
Smalley offered optimism that the office market is headed into a new phase following difficult market conditions of the past several years.
“There is continued improvement in tenant demand and increasing transaction volumes which present opportunities across the spectrum and particularly to private equity looking for cash flow growth,” Smalley said. “As this cycle for the office market transitions into a more active one, Franklin Street is poised to help our clients achieve their goals.”
Smalley most recently served as Senior Managing Director for Transwestern and has also previously worked for JLL. Franklin Street has offices in 10 markets. As the firm executes its growth strategy to meet rising demand nationwide, it has set its sights on Dallas for its next expansion market while also focusing on increasing its presence and service offerings across its business lines in several existing markets including Austin, Charlotte, Nashville, and South Florida.
About Franklin Street:
Founded in 2006 during one of the toughest real estate climates, Franklin Street focused on delivering value-added solutions to meet the evolving needs of clients. Through a collaborative philosophy of leveraging the resources, expertise, and experience of each of its lines of business, Franklin Street has grown to include seven business divisions – Investment Sales, Tenant and Landlord Representation, Capital Advisory, Insurance, Property Management and Project Management. Franklin Street offers unmatched value and optimal solutions for clients nationwide. Headquartered in Tampa, Fla., the firm has teams located in top markets throughout the country and works with owners and occupiers of commercial real estate nationwide. Learn more about Franklin Street at FranklinSt.com.
