D Magazine Feature: How Cliff Booth’s Canadian Upbringing Shaped his Real Estate Career

Influenced by the walkability and central location of downtown Montreal, the founder and chairman of Westmount Realty Capital saw opportunities in Dallas’ city center early on.

Cliff Booth grew up in Montreal, Canada, speaking French and English and skiing and playing hockey during long winter months. The real estate investor and chairman and CEO of Westmount Realty Capital moved to Dallas in 1979 with his family. He went on to buy 28 properties downtown and build his business, which he named for two peaks surrounded by “The Highland Park of Montreal” in 1984. “It was sort of a tip of the hat to Montreal,” Booth says. Today, the company’s portfolio includes 11 million square feet of industrial properties and 4,000 multifamily units nationwide.