U.S. Bank selected Adrian Montero as its West region manager of commercial real estate.

Leading the bank’s efforts in financing developments across California, Arizona and Nevada, Montero will split his time between downtown L.A. and Orange County.

“Being on the ground in L.A. is essential,” Montero said. “… Los Angeles continues to be a priority market for multifamily development, where we’re seeing stabilization and strong fundamentals.”

With Los Angeles’ prevalence in global trade, Montero said one focus for the bank’s investments will be in industrial and logistics properties. Additionally, the bank is eyeing mixed-use developments with residential and commercial aspects.

“Compared to Arizona and Nevada, where there’s more room for scalable industrial and residential expansion, SoCal’s land constraints and population density demand a sharper focus on multifamily and mixed-use development,” Montero said.

Familiar territory

Prior to stepping up to this role, Montero oversaw commercial real estate for U.S. Bank’s L.A. and Orange County markets – so, the territory is familiar.

Finding the best positioned projects considering the region’s development challenges – which Montero said include “a combination of escalating construction and insurance costs, high interest rates and a land-constrained environment” – will be key.

“These factors restrict supply and intensify affordability pressures, which is why we’re seeing developers shift toward higher-density strategies,” he said. “While many paused projects earlier this year, momentum is building again, especially in multifamily and retail, which continue to show resilience.”

Looking up to Northern California, Montero notes the most optimism in the retail and industrial sectors – particularly “in areas like the East Bay and the Peninsula” – as opposed to tech-heavy office markets which he said, “remain cautious due to hybrid work.”