The Dallas real estate sector is mourning the loss of Colin Fitzgibbons, president of Hunt Realty Investments, who died on November 21 at age 46 after a battle with colon cancer. He is survived by his wife Jessica and their three sons.
Fitzgibbons was leading the development of NorthEnd, a mixed-use project at 2323 North Field Street that will include Goldman Sachs’ new Dallas campus. The 11-acre site is described as an “urban arboretum” and is expected to play a significant role in transforming Uptown into a major financial district.
Having grown up in Dallas, Fitzgibbons also spent five years in New York’s Financial District while working for the Staubach Company before joining KDC, where he contributed to projects such as Legacy West. He often spoke about the qualities that make Dallas attractive compared to other cities.
“Deep down, there’s an understanding that there’s no reason for Dallas to really exist,” he told The Real Deal in 2024 regarding new developments shaping what some call Y’all Street.
“Dallas is very business-friendly, and that’s sort of been our reason for being. But the underpinnings of all that is, look, this has to be a great place to build a career and to raise a family. I think that’s the secret sauce.”
Fitzgibbons viewed NorthEnd as an example of future office development and emphasized his team’s research into global projects for inspiration. He also commented on Texas’ reputation as pro-business: “He was also clear-eyed about what it means to be ‘pro-business’ in a conservative state and advised leaders not to rely solely on the state’s lack of income tax to maintain Texas’ pro-business identity.”
He believed strongly in community involvement and saw opportunity for individuals to shape Dallas: “One of the things I love about Dallas is you can get involved so easily,” he said during that 2024 interview.
In related real estate news from Austin, recent data show steep declines in home prices and mortgage activity over the past year. According to TRDData, Austin experienced an 8.2 percent drop in median home sale price year-over-year while purchase loan originations fell nearly 41 percent during the third quarter compared with last year—significantly sharper than national trends (https://www.attomdata.com/news/market-trends/mortgage-origination/attom-q3-2023-u-s-mortgage-origination-report/).
Meanwhile, real estate investor Ari Rastegar faces foreclosure on four Austin apartment buildings but remains unfazed by these proceedings amid current market conditions. Rastegar attributed this situation to ongoing disputes with lenders over properties financed by Greystone loans.
Elsewhere in Dallas residential news, entrepreneur Mark Haidar—who was featured as a subject in former President George W. Bush’s book “Out of Many, One: Portraits of America’s Immigrants”—was identified as the buyer of a White Rock Lake property recently listed at $10.9 million.
