Ian McRoberts

Ian McRoberts is a commercial real estate professional with more than three decades of
experience in tenant representation, site selection, lease negotiation, and real estate
advisory. He currently serves as Director of Real Estate Advisory at Element
Commercial Real Estate in Minneapolis, where he helps organizations navigate site
selection, lease negotiations, and strategic portfolio planning. Over the course of his
career, Ian has completed more than $50 million in transaction volume across office,
medical, industrial, retail, and life-science property types.
Prior to joining Element, Ian was the founder and principal of McRoberts Real Estate, a
commercial brokerage and development consulting firm. Earlier in his career, he
worked in real estate consulting and venture capital analysis, experiences that
sharpened his focus on financial modeling, market research, and crafting creative
solutions for complex transactions.
Ian’s interest in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) began at Macalester, where he
was introduced to the emerging field through Professor Carol Gersmehl’s cartography
courses in the Geography Department. He carried that foundation throughout his
career, using GIS and spatial analysis to bring a data-driven perspective to real estate
projects of all sizes.
Returning to assist Macalester with the High Winds Fund’s ongoing investment in its
portfolio of properties along Grand Avenue connects directly back Ian’s academic
pursuits with Professor David Lanegran’s neighborhood-based student projects.
Ian graduated from Macalester College in 1996 with a B.A. in Economics and
Geography, and earned his MBA from the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of
Management in 2004 with concentrations in Finance and Entrepreneurship. He lives in
St. Paul with his wife and two daughters.