Eric Janssen

President/Founder

Eric Janssen was born and raised in the Netherlands and has a world of experience–literally. After college, Eric moved to Jakarta, Indonesia, before charting a course for Chicago to live out a new adventure. After a stint in the restaurant management industry, he ventured into the world of real estate, obtaining his broker’s license in 1988. Eric quickly achieved a string of successes in management at three major real estate firms: Equity Office Management LLC, Berger Financial Services and Holsten Management Corp. During his tenure at Holsten, he started working with national financial institutions, assisting them with the management of foreclosed commercial properties. During this time, he also gained experience as an investment real estate broker.

New challenges soon followed. In 1995, Eric joined a Chicago based real estate firm as vice president, eventually becoming senior vice president. Here, he assisted lenders with receivership services, management and the disposition of real estate-owned property. As a commercial broker, he continued to help Chicago buyers, sellers and investors. Cementing his position in the area real estate industry were three top commercial sales awards he earned in 1999, 2001 and 2002 from the Chicago Association of Realtors. To date, he has sold more than $500 million in real estate assets.

While busy with a variety of projects, Eric founded Dutch Development Inc. in 1997. In addition to condo conversions, Dutch Development specializes in purchasing and rehabilitating apartment buildings and mixed-use properties. Thus far, they have renovated over 500 units in the Rogers Park, Lincoln Park and Lakeview Chicago neighborhoods. The company has been honored by the Chicago Association of Realtors with three “Good Neighbor Awards” for outstanding rehab and neighborhood development.

In April of 2004, Eric founded Chicago Real Estate Resources Inc. (CRER), a full service commercial real estate firm. Collectively, the CRER team has been involved in commercial sales & leasing transactions in excess of $3 billion. Eric has been appointed receiver in Illinois and Indiana in more than 1,800 foreclosure cases involving assets valued over $2 billion.

In 2015, Eric founded 235 Insurance Ltd. with Keith Murphy, CLCS. The agency specializes in all matters of real estate insurance, representing more than 20 direct carriers. 235 Acts as a preferred vendor for numerous real estate lenders and real estate professionals writing over 1,200 new policies each year, not including thousands of renewals. As Managing Partner of 235 Insurance, Eric provides executive leadership to the agency and communicates our niche capabilities in special assets insurance throughout his banking and real estate industry network.

Eric joined his brother in April of 2019 as a partner in the development company Balance d’eau, founded in 2014 by Olaf Janssen in Delft, The Netherlands. Balance d’eau has developed a unique building system that makes it possible to build floating homes onsite at any location. The company has proven itself with its unique knowledge and network, as the specialist in developing and construction on water. The company is developing several projects throughout The Netherlands. The homes have a small carbon footprint due to the use of solar panels for electricity and heat exchangers for heating and cooling. Also, with all the issues of climate change, these homes provide opportunities to build in areas that may not be suitable for traditional housing.