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DTZ chief executive Paul Idzik (pictured) was once offhand to a senior city journalist at the Telegraph Group. This rebuff to a friendly advance at a tennis tournament has not been forgotten. That may explain why the 48-year-old American appeared in the Sunday Times instead this weekend. But even under relatively friendly fire, Idzik does not distinguish himself.

By now, most have got the Idzik story: a 48-year-old abrasive American banker comes in to rescue a floundering agent by the use of necessarily tough tactics. Those tactics do seem to be working. Well done. But Idzik might have done better to move the story on.
Instead, the tale of how he saved DTZ is told once again - and told clumsily.

At one unfortunate point Idzik appears to mock the "British" manners of his clients. In another place he appears not to care that one-third of the staff are unhappy. He concludes with an awkward joke about his job being finished "when I don't have that natural look of paranoia anymore."

Even the paranoid have enemies, especially those who relish playing the tough guy. Idzik is a natural in that role. But his success in hauling DTZ back from the brink feels slightly in danger of being overtaken by a failure of grace towards the long-suffering staff - and a failure to give a client-reassuring vision for the business.

Savills results yesterday for the first six months of 2009 make those of Cushman & Wakefield look pretty poor. The guys from Grosvenor Place recorded revenues down 11% at £248m and a tiny profit of £100 000. Today the guys from Portland Place recorded revenues down 32% to £305m and a whopping great loss of £46m.

It is fairly easy to see how listed Savills managed to just stay in the black - down to a sterling performance from the property management business. It is very difficult to see how C&W made a loss. The business is controlled by the Italian Agnelli family. Only a brief account of trading is included in the accounts of a holding company called EXOR which also controls Juventus football club (who made a profit)

EXOR gave C&W a $50m line of credit in March, of which C&W spent $20m. If the loan in not paid back by May 2012 EXOR have a right to buy shares in C&W at valuation minus 30% from the equity partners who still own 32% of the business. The partners will no doubt be hoping to at least match Savills in the second half of 2009.

US wealth fund manager AllianceBernstein has been looking around for new offices in either the City or the West End for at least three years now.  The question now is: City or West End? 

Since May the AXA-controlled business has employed the considerable talents of Bradley Baker of Knight Frank to find them 110 000 sq ft in a single building to replace about the same amount of space currently occupied in Devonshire House W1 and close by at Mayfair Place, where they are paying are around £65 sq ft.  

Prime rents in the West End are round £85 foot today, with limited incentives and limited choice. In the City headline rents are about half those in the West End - and, if you push hard, three years rent free is still available. And there are a fair number of rather fancy offices of the right size lying empty.  

It is not hard to imagine that all those wealth and hedge funds so attracted to the West End in boom times might start to return to their ancient home in the City as their leases fall in. Led perhaps by AllianceBernstein - if they can finally make up their minds.

The "undisclosed sum" paid by the Canadian Altus group for storeys; ssp this week won't be that much if the accounts for the October 2008 year end filed last week are anything to go by.  The 150-strong business founded in Newcastle by George Storey in 1891 lost £269 000 on turnover down nearly £1m at £6.8m.

The accounts reveal the business was in breach of its banking covenants last October and that at the 28^th July this year when the directors signed the accounts that situation "remained unresolved." Presumably the Canadians who took over Edwin Hill a year or so back have now resolved the situation with a small cheque. 

Today's second quarter figures from CBRE are not good. Global revenues in the three months to June of $955m are 27% lower than Q2 2008, with a small profit turned into a small loss.  

The European operations fared worse. Here revenues are 42% lower, down from $300m to $176m, with profits falling from $27m to $3m. But guess what? Costs are down almost 42% as well.  

So, you can't fault European chief Mike Strong for not running a tight ship. Let's just hope that CBRE sinks no further in the water.

Jones Lang LaSalle post Q2 figures on August 4^th. It will be interesting to see how far their European revenues and profits have sunk by comparison with CBRE under new leader Christian Ulbrich.

Meanwhile much-missed old leader Alastair Hughes told Reuters today that things are looking up in his new Asian patch.Which is nice.