Jonathan S. Marcus
Partner
Overview
Jonathan S. Marcus is a partner in Holland & Knight's Fort Lauderdale office. He has been practicing real estate law for over three decades and is chair of the firm's Residential and Master Planned Communities Team. His practice includes residential community and commercial acquisitions, sales and development. On behalf of buyers and sellers of real estate, he has been involved in billions of dollars worth of transactions.
Currently, Mr. Marcus represents many residential real estate developers – including several of the largest in the United States and South Florida – as well as large local, regional and national commercial developers in the negotiation and drafting of complex purchase and sale agreements, financing documents, assorted easements, license and use agreements, and the closings of such transactions. Mr. Marcus also represents a major national owner of distressed real estate owned (REO) properties in hundreds of transactions across the country in multiple jurisdictions. His experience also includes drafting and negotiating major lease agreements for retail and office use, on behalf of both landlords and tenants.
In addition, Mr. Marcus has significant experience in real estate lending representation that includes drafting and negotiating loan documents; closing hundreds of commercial real estate loans; and representing large institutional lenders in a wide variety of transactions ranging from acquisition, development, and construction loans including projects such as religious institutions, retail and commercial centers and residential developments.
Following his graduation from law school, Mr. Marcus served a judicial clerkship under United States Magistrate Charlene H. Sorrentino for the Southern District of Florida.
Representative Experience
- Represented a national homebuilding leader in all aspects of hundreds of acquisitions and dispositions of land throughout South Florida, ultimately leading to the construction of thousands of homes of all product types in the tri-county area
- Represented a nationally prominent high-end residential community developer in establishing and administering multiple "builder programs" in luxury communities in South Florida and handling sales of multimillion dollar build-to-suit custom home lot conveyances in such communities
- Represented a regional homebuilder in dozens of acquisitions of "in-town" parcels of land resulting in the redevelopment of several pockets of the urban core within South Florida
- Represented a nationally prominent owner with a multibillion dollar portfolio of thousands of parcels of distressed real estate owned (REO) properties located throughout the United States in the sale, leasing and management of such properties
- Represented a nationally prominent owner with a multibillion dollar portfolio of thousands of parcels of distressed REO properties in providing equity financing to developers of such properties through the creation of joint ventures and other financing mechanisms
- Represented a national homebuilder public company in connection with securing infrastructure development financing in multiple projects through the issuance of community development district bonds
- Represented a major regional electronics and appliance retailer in the acquisition and financing of multiple new store locations in the South Florida tri-county area
- Represented a national bank in a loan for the construction of the then-largest religious facility in Broward County
- Represented multiple state and national banks in hundreds of commercial, retail, office building and residential community construction loans
- Represented a regional alternative lender in multiple complex secured and unsecured transactions
- Represented one of the leading national consumer electronics and appliance retailers in leasing a 126,000 square foot facility to serve as the main warehouse and distribution center
- Represented a national financial services retailer in the establishment of a South Florida presence by drafting and negotiating dozens of retail leases in the tri-county area
- Represented a nationally prominent retail pharmacy in the ground leasing of dozens of South Florida store locations in order to create a foothold in the market
- Represented a regional developer in multiple leases pursuant to a public/private redevelopment project including a hotel, events facility, restaurant, and retail spaces
Credentials
- University of Florida Levin College of Law, J.D.
- Fairleigh Dickinson University, B.A., magna cum laude
- Florida
- Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce, Board of Directors; Real Estate Committee, Chairman
- American Bar Association
- Broward County Bar Association
- City of Hollywood, former Community Development Advisory Board Member
- City of Hollywood, former Planning and Zoning Advisory Board Member
- Broward Housing Partnership, Board of Directors
- Top Lawyers in Broward County, Real Estate Law, Ft. Lauderdale Illustrated, 2022
- The Best Lawyers in America guide, Real Estate Law, 2013-2025
- Top Lawyer: Real Estate Law, Fort Lauderdale Illustrated, 2020
- Florida Legal Elite, Florida Trend magazine, Real Estate, 2014-2016, 2018, 2019, 2021
- Holland & Knight Community Service All-Star, 2019
- Top Lawyer, South Florida Legal Guide, 2014, 2015
- Florida Super Lawyers magazine, 2012, 2013
- Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent Peer Review Rated