About Willow Oak Consulting
Willow Oak Consulting was founded by industry leader Bob Voyles, following the merger of his firm Seven Oaks Company into Partners Real Estate, a Houston Texas based full-service commercial real estate firm. While an equity member of Partners, Bob enjoys the freedom of independently consulting and advising clients with commercial, institutional and generational real estate needs.
Over the course of Bob’s 45 years in the business, he has worked on every side of commercial real estate, as an owner, a joint venture principal, a third-party service provider, as outside legal counsel, and as a consultant and expert witness. Bob has represented major institutional investors, developers, as well as third-party opportunistic investors, family offices, churches, and other nonprofit institutions.
Bob brings all of this experience to bear on behalf of each of his clients.
Experience in Law
Following graduation from law school Bob spent three years as an Air Force officer and legal counsel in the office of the Secretary of the Air Force, with a focus on environmental and land use law, also earning an L.L.M. degree in Land Development Planning from George Washington University. Bob then spent eight years working as a transactional commercial real estate attorney, becoming an equity partner at Alston & Bird, one of Atlanta’s and the Southeast’s preeminent corporate law firms.
Commercial Real Estate
Bob then spent 17 years with the international real estate firm HINES, the last 10 of which he served as the senior development officer in the Atlanta office. Bob left Hines and started Seven Oaks Company in 2004, and with his partner Randy Holmes grew it to a robust boutique commercial development platform with over 20 employees and both property management and brokerage operations.
Quasi-Governmental Non-Profits
Bob was a founder and board chair of one of the largest community improvement districts in the state of Georgia (The Perimeter CID) and currently chairs the oldest and most active CID in Georgia (Cumberland) . Since 2004, Bob has served on the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority, and since 2005, has served on the Cobb Convention Center Board, as vice chair and chairman of the real estate committee. Bob is currently overseeing a $195 million renovation and expansion of the Convention Center.
Churches and Christian Organizations
Bob’s experience with nonprofits and churches is similarly deep, having served in numerous leadership positions, and as both Chairman of the Board of Deacons in a large Atlanta Baptist Church, and more recently as Rector’s Warden at Church of the Apostles, an independent Anglican congregation with an international footprint in NW Atlanta. His intimate knowledge of how churches function is coupled with a special calling to assist religious institutions maximize the value of their real estate assets.
Bob has served on the Boards of several regional and national Christian Men’s Ministry organizations, including Leadership Ministries and Radical Mentoring. Since 2006, Bob and his wife have served on Young Life Africa’s Steering Committee (effectively its board), which division of Young Life now is the largest in all of the world. He also chairs the executive committee for Young Africa-South.
Why the Willow Oak?
The Willow Oak is one of the most storied and magnificent of all the many varieties of oaks which populate the forests across six of seven continents. Straightest and fastest growing of the major oak varieties, it is universally recognized as a symbol of strength, integrity, and durability. Throughout recorded history, oaks have been revered by cultures across the world, particularly in ancient Judeo-Christian writings.
A favorite of Bob ‘s landscape design mentor and close friend, the renown late Roy Ashley, the Willow Oak symbolizes and personifies Bob’s commitment to those values, and the approach he takes with regard to each of his clients.
Why the Willow Oak?
The Willow Oak is one of the most storied and magnificent of all the many varieties of oaks which populate the forests across six of seven continents. Straightest and fastest growing of the major oak varieties, it is universally recognized as a symbol of strength, integrity, and durability. Throughout recorded history, oaks have been revered by cultures across the world, particularly in ancient Judeo-Christian writings.
A favorite of Bob ‘s landscape design mentor and close friend, the renown late Roy Ashley, the Willow Oak symbolizes and personifies Bob’s commitment to those values, and the approach he takes with regard to each of his clients.