CT Realty Named Top Real Estate Development and Investment Management Company 2026 by Real Estate Business Review

Delivering Industrial Space Ahead of Demand

When large organizations reconfigure their supply chains, strategic planning decisions rapidly translate into tangible needs for warehouse capacity, optimal locations, and industrial facilities that support modern operations.

In Tier One logistics markets, those requirements are shaped less on stated demand than on land control, entitlement certainty, and the availability of buildings designed to current specifications. Because land acquisition and permitting often occur years before leasing decisions, options are frequently constrained by the time demand is defined. As a result, industrial real estate becomes as much a timing consideration as a capacity one, with late-moving companies often limited to locations or facilities that restrict efficiency and scalability.

CT Realty operates ahead of this curve as a real estate-first developer of large-scale industrial warehouse and distribution facilities in Tier One U.S. logistics markets. The firm develops industrial facilities by securing land, entitlements, and building specifications in advance of tenant commitments.

"Our approach helps us to deliver high-quality warehouse space built to the standards large-scale users consistently require, without the delays that occur when development follows demand," says Rob Huthnance, President of CT Realty.

The firm focuses on the top 15 U.S. logistics markets by total warehouse square footage, where supply constraints and entitlement complexity make timing critical. These markets include Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, New Jersey, Atlanta, and other major U.S. distribution hubs. Within these markets, CT Realty properties are typically leased to large-scale industrial occupiers, often among the top 1,000 warehouse users nationwide.

Market Discipline Driving Industrial Development

CT Realty's development cycle, at a project level, begins with a detailed market analysis that determines where the firm can control land, entitlements, and infrastructure ahead of demand. That market intelligence informs land selection, allowing the firm to secure well-located sites with supporting infrastructure in jurisdictions where large-scale industrial development can be entitled and delivered ahead of future demand.

With land and entitlements in place, the firm designs and constructs warehouse spaces with key decisions made before leasing begins to allow delivery without redesign or retrofitting. These include parking ratios, truck circulation, clear heights, slab thickness, and fire protection systems.

Once land is controlled and entitlements are secured, CT Realty retains flexibility over development timing and scale. The firm closely tracks market conditions, allowing it to sequence development in line with infrastructure readiness and long-term demand patterns rather than short-term market signals.

Operationally, CT Realty follows a consistent lifecycle. Investment strategy is aligned with capital partners, land is sourced and entitled, buildings are designed and constructed, and facilities are leased upon completion. At that point, the firm and its partners determine whether to hold assets long term or sell them, depending on broader portfolio objectives.

Executing at Scale

The effectiveness of the firm's approach is most clearly demonstrated in the firm's long-term development strategy in Columbus, Ohio. CT Realty entered the market eight years ago with the acquisition of 382 acres and the development of two buildings totaling 1.1 million square feet. After leasing and selling those assets, it advanced to Phase Two, delivering three additional buildings totaling approximately two million square feet. Over time, several hundred additional acres were acquired adjacent to the original site to support continued expansion.

That long-term land strategy positioned the campus to meet the needs of Anduril Industries, a Department of Defense contractor seeking a large existing facility, expansion capacity exceeding five million square feet, and proximity to an airport. Located near Rickenbacker Airport in southeast Columbus, the site met those requirements. The project is expected to create more than 4,000 jobs, making it the largest job-creation event in Ohio's history.

Today, CT Realty continues to apply this operating model across its portfolio, with active development and leasing underway in markets including Kansas City, Phoenix, Dallas, New Jersey, Southern California, Indianapolis, and Jacksonville. Across these markets, the firm remains focused on disciplined real estate execution, with outcomes driven by location, design, and readiness.

About CT Realty

CT Realty is a national real estate and investment company headquartered in Dallas, Texas and Newport Beach, California. Since its establishment 30 years ago, CT Realty has completed over 300 transactions valued at more than $8 billion. CT is primarily focused on the investment of Class A industrial logistics developments throughout the U.S., having acquired 3,000 acres of industrial land since 2010. CT has active developments in Northern and Southern California, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Atlanta, Illinois, Indianapolis, Ohio and New Jersey, and continues to expand into new markets nationwide. To learn more, visit https://www.ctrinvestors.com