Former JLL Star Office Broker Doug Mueller Named Vice Chairman At Rival Firm

Doug Mueller, a top office leasing broker in D.C. who quietly left JLL in December, has taken up an executive role at one of the company's competitors.

Newmark has hired Mueller as vice chairman in its D.C. office, the brokerage announced Tuesday. He will “spearhead” agency leasing efforts in the city, Newmark said, with a focus on office landlord representation.

Mueller had been with JLL since 2012 and was most recently an executive managing director, partnering with Evan Behr to lease downtown D.C. office buildings. The pair won CREBA's 2023 award for the most office leasing volume in D.C.

Mueller started at Newmark Tuesday, he told Bisnow on the phone while setting up his desk at its 1899 Pennsylvania Ave. NW office. He said he left JLL on Dec. 3.

“It was a great partnership, a great team, I respect them all and wish them all well,” he said. “It just ran its course and I was itching for something new, and this opportunity presented itself, and I’m psyched about it.”

He said he spent the first month after his departure exploring “several opportunities” and honed in on Newmark over the last month.

“I was really touched by the outreach, but ultimately, Newmark’s just a bunch of badasses,” he said. Part of his connection to Newmark was personal: He and Allison DiGiovanni, the firm’s mid-Atlantic market leader, worked together 20 years ago when she was property manager on a listing he had at 25 Massachusetts Ave. NW, and they have been friends since.

“We cut our teeth in the industry together,” he said.

Another part of the draw to Newmark was its “investor suite.” He said it works with building owners to help with leasing, sales, debt and equity. He noted that the firm two years ago hired top investment sales brokers Doug Harmon and Adam Spies from Cushman & Wakefield in New York to bolster this platform.

“It feels like they’re fortifying a position in D.C. around that investors suite,” he said.

He didn’t bring anyone from JLL with him, but he said he doesn’t intend to work as a standalone broker. He plans to work with Ed Clark, Brendan Owen, Blaire McGavin and Cecil Robinson. He also said it’s still too early to say whether he will retain any of the clients from JLL. 

“Newmark is ideally positioned to offer Doug substantial opportunity to enhance our agency practice,” said DiGiovanni, who joined from MRP Realty in 2022 to lead the brokerage's mid-Atlantic region.

“With his proven ability to drive market share growth, we are eager to combine his leadership skills and dedication with our best-in-class platform, and we look forward to leveraging this strength in the competitive landscape,” she added.

Jon Banister contributed reporting for this story. 

UPDATE, FEB. 11, 2:02 P.M. ET: This story has been updated with new comments from Mueller.