October 10th, 2023 | New York

Global Leaders in Real Estate Summit

Register Today

8:00 am - Registration & Networking

Morning Plenary Sessions:

8:45 am - Chairperson’s Welcome

Daniel Sullivan

Principal and Financial Markets & Real Estate Leader PwC US

Dan Sullivan leads PwC's Financial Markets & Real Estate (FMRE) practice, a global team of 500+ financial products and real estate specialists who use data and technology to resolve complex problems across the financial instrument and real estate lifecycle.

 PwC’s FMRE practice serves the market for alternative products, including the world’s largest banks, alternative asset managers, insurance companies, and corporate treasury functions. Dan’s team helps clients make better decisions around managing and investing in Real Estate and other financial products. His team has worked on the most complex real estate debt and equity deals, as well as helped large investors modernize their finance and investment infrastructure and establish hedging and risk management programs. Dan’s practice also leads PwC’s efforts for real estate and financial instrument valuation inclusive of real estate (debt & equity), private equity and credit, and derivatives.

 

Dan is a Chartered Financial Analyst.

9:00 am - Keynote Interview

Interviewer

Krystyna Blakeslee

Partner, Real Estate Department Chair of the Real Estate Finance Practice Group Willkie Farr & Gallagher

Krystyna M. Blakeslee is a partner in the Real Estate Department and Chair of the Real Estate Finance practice group, where she focuses on commercial real estate finance and investment. Ms. Blakeslee has been the lead lawyer on some of the country's largest and most high-profile commercial real estate transactions in recent years. She has particular concentrations in the origination, acquisition and disposition (including securitization and syndication) of mortgage loans, mezzanine financings and subordinate debt, post-closing modifications, restructurings and workouts and loan sales and purchases. Ms. Blakeslee has experience in representing domestic and foreign real estate companies, funds, and institutional lenders, investment banks, life insurance companies, commercial banks, loan servicers and investors across all asset classes. Ms. Blakeslee has experience with data centers, retail, office, hospitality, assisted living/nursing care and condominium properties, as well as construction financing, TIC structures and ground lease transactions. She is also experienced in handling joint venture investments and acquisitions of real estate assets, including hotels, and advises funds in connection with their investment and financing activities in real estate.

Ms. Blakeslee is ranked as a leading practitioner in the area of Real Estate Finance (New York) by Chambers USA (2022). She is also recognized by The Legal 500 U.S. (2022) and was ranked as a "Next Generation Partner." In 2021, Ms. Blakeslee was honored as a "Notable Veteran Executive" by Crain's New York, and in 2018 she was recognized as a "Working Mother of the Year" in the October/November issue of Working Mother.

Ms. Blakeslee previously served as a sergeant in the U.S. Marine Corps and also served in Iraq.

Keynote Speaker

Justin Pattner

Head of Real Estate Americas KKR

Justin Pattner (San Francisco) joined KKR in 2011 to help form KKR's Real Estate Platform. He is the Head of Real Estate Equity in the Americas and oversees all aspects of the business, including acquisitions, asset management and fundraising. He sits on KKR's Real Estate Investment and Portfolio Management Committees across both Equity and Credit products in the Americas. Prior to joining KKR, Mr. Pattner was at Eton Park Capital Management where he focused on real estate and real estate related opportunities. Prior to Eton Park, he worked at Lehman Brothers in the real estate private equity group (LBREP) as well as at Lubert Adler Partners. Mr. Pattner graduated magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania where he received a B.A. in Economics. Mr. Pattner is currently a member of the Urban Land Institute and the Fisher Center's Policy Advisory Board.

9:45 am - Power Players Talk: CRE Outlook – Finding Opportunities Amid High Interest Rates, Recession Concerns and Economic Uncertainty

As global inflation hits its highest levels in 40 years and rising interest rates put an end to the post-Covid deal-making surge, discover today’s most promising investment opportunities while also gaining an understanding of major challenges and strategies for success. Key topics to be discussed include:

  • When are interest rates likely to peak? What’s the likelihood that the US economy will have a “hard landing”?
  • From a historical data perspective, how would different property types perform in a v-shaped, u shaped or w shaped recession?
  • Political and policy challenges including legislative efforts to cap apartment rents and increase eviction protections, climate change laws, and a proposal to impose a mortgage recording tax on mezzanine and preferred equity financing
  • What will happen to loans maturing in the next two years? Can they be refinanced? Are a wave of defaults and foreclosures imminent? What are the opportunities and challenges for borrowers and lenders?
  • What are the implications of recent bank failures for the commercial real estate sector?
  • What do defaults by gold standard office investors say about the future of this asset class? Which markets and segments within the office sector offer the greatest potential for risk-adjusted returns?
  • How low do office values need to go to start investing again? What other fundamentals need to occur?
  • What’s likely to happen to private real estate valuations over the next year and how will that affect dealmaking activity?
Moderator

Chester Lee

Partner and Co-Chair of Real Estate Duane Morris

Chester P. Lee is co-chair of Duane Morris' Real Estate Practice Group. Mr. Lee practices in the area of real estate law, providing strategic and legal advice for all types of commercial real estate transactions. Mr. Lee has represented both lenders and borrowers in secured financings and loan restructurings, including construction loans, Real-Estate-Owned properties (REOs), leasehold financings, debtor-in-possession loans, exit financings, project financings and mezzanine debt.

Mr. Lee also has counseled clients acquiring, disposing and/or developing real property, including ground-lease and sale-leaseback transactions (including sale-leasebacks involving call centers and medical facilities). Many of these matters involved purchases of multiple sites located in numerous jurisdictions. He has represented many foreign investors (including those from China, Russia and France) in their initial acquisitions and developments of projects in the United States (such as retail and manufacturing sites). He also has worked with landlords, tenants and subtenants in the leasing and subleasing of real estate assets, including built-to-suit facilities, retail locations and warehouse and distribution centers.

Mr. Lee has represented international and domestic investors in natural resource acquisitions, including uranium and coal mining projects. Mr. Lee has counseled clients in the financing of energy assets such as wind farms and propane gas distribution facilities.

David Weinreb

CEO Weinreb Ventures

Known for his passion and tenacity, David R. Weinreb is an entrepreneur and respected leader who since 2020 has been the Chairman of Weinreb Ventures, a multi-faceted investment and advisory firm with a focus on creating and enhancing real estate that will stand the test of time. Mr. Weinreb previously
served as co-founder, CEO and a member of the Board of Directors of The Howard Hughes Corporation from 2010 to 2019. Mr. Weinreb directed the company’s efforts since its inception, building a portfolio of some of the most sought-after real estate in the country and growing the company’s share price
over 300% during his tenure.

While at Howard Hughes, his vision, leadership, and acumen led him to be honored with the 2013 Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year® Award in Real
Estate for the region. Additionally, he was named as one of the Top 200 CEOs in the U.S. by ExecRank and listed multiple times in the Commercial Observer Power 100 as one of the most powerful people in New York City real estate. His accomplishments at HHC include the successful transformation of the Seaport District in Lower Manhattan into one of the city’s leading destinations for unique
hospitality and entertainment experiences, such as the Rooftop at Pier 17, which was named the country’s “Best New Concert Venue” in 2019 by Pollstar. Prior to leading the emergence of The Howard Hughes Corporation as a publicly traded company, Mr. Weinreb spent 17 years creating and running his own investment firm, TPMC Realty.

Andrew Holm

Co-Head of Investments in U.S. Real Estate and Partner Ares Management

Mr. Holm is a Partner and Co-Head of U.S. Investments in Ares Real Estate, where he serves as a Co-Portfolio Manager of the U.S. opportunity funds and leads the group's equity investment activities across the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic U.S. Additionally, he serves as a member of the Ares Real Estate Global and U.S. Development and Redevelopment Fund II Investment Committees and the Real Estate Debt Investment Committee. Prior to joining Ares in 2013, Mr. Holm was a Principal at AREA Property Partners, where he focused on sourcing and executing real estate investments across asset classes for AREA's equity and mezzanine debt businesses. Previously, he was an Analyst at Lazard in the real estate investment banking group. Mr. Holm serves on the Board of Trustees of the Ethical Culture Fieldston School. Mr. Holm holds a B.A., summa cum laude, from Harvard College in Government.

Yorick Starr

Investment Officer and Managing Director of North Real Estate Invesco Real Estate

Yorick Starr is Senior Director of Structured Investments with Invesco Real Estate ("IRE"). Based in New York, Yorick is primarily responsible for loan originations covering the East Coast region, with an emphasis on the primary and gateway markets. Loan products are focused on non-recourse, floating-rate, transitional senior and subordinate loans (including mezzanine loans and B-notes) secured by institutional quality real estate. Prior to Invesco, Yorick worked at Wells Fargo for 15 years in Real Estate Merchant Banking division, with experience ranging from opportunistically acquiring commercial real estate loans (single notes & pools) in the secondary market and providing leverage on commercial real estate loans acquisitions (performing loans through NPL pools) as well as leveraging direct originations by debt funds (A/B, senior/sub, note-on-note, & repo structures).

Yorick is a graduate of the University of San Diego (BBA, Finance, Accounting, IT, Computer Science).

Max Pastor

Executive Vice President & Director of Acquisitions Time Equities

Max Pastor, Executive Vice President of Time Equities, Inc. (TEI), has been actively engaged in multiple facets of commercial real estate for over 20 years. 
Max currently leads a national investment, acquisitions, and asset management team, is the Vice-Chair of TEI’s Investment Committee, a member of TEI’s Executive Advisory Committee and is a registered principal of Time Equities Securities LLC (a FINRA licensed broker dealer). On an executive level, Max contributes strategic advice and counsel for the formulation, implementation, and management of TEI’s investment, equity, debt, finance, and joint venture activities, and regularly evaluates new and alternative opportunities.
Since 2015, Max has originated and led the acquisition of approximately 6.25 million square feet of real estate spanning 15 states. Max’s responsibilities include originating, structuring, formulating, and executing business plans for a diversified national real estate portfolio, consisting of industrial, multifamily, office and ground-up development projects. In addition, Max has notable expertise in re-positioning underperforming industrial and office assets.
Max received his B.A. from The Ohio State University and his J.D. from the Yeshiva University, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. He is a member of the New York and Florida bars and holds Series 22, 63 and 39 licenses. Max serves on the Board of Trustees and Executive Committees of Art Omi, Inc., Art Omi Pavilions @Chatham, Inc., The Francis J. Greenburger Foundation and is a commissioner on the Downtown Bridgeport Special Services District.
Originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, Max currently resides in Fairfield County, Connecticut.

Justin Yagerman

Head of Capital Markets Roofstock

Mr. Yagerman leads strategy and execution across Roofstock’s investment platform. This includes new business development with institutional asset owners in the real estate investment industry as well as driving strategy, structure, formation, and distribution across Roofstock’s suite of proprietary investment products targeting institutional and retail investors.

Prior to Roofstock, Mr. Yagerman was an Executive Director for Invesco Private Capital and Head of Business Development for the group. In this role, he led a variety of global functions, including product development and structuring, client and market strategy, business development, investor relations, and fundraising across the private capital business.

Prior to Invesco, he held the position of Senior Vice President of Investor Relations and Business Strategy at Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc., now owned by Mercuria. Before that, he was an Executive Director and Senior Client Portfolio Manager at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, in charge of strategy and business development for transportation and maritime investing. Earlier in his career, Mr. Yagerman held the position of Senior Equity Research Analyst covering the transportation and shipping industries at several firms, including Bear Stearns & Co. Inc., Wachovia Securities (now Wells Fargo), and most recently, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc.

Mr. Yagerman was recognized for his research by Institutional Investor magazine, as well as StarMine, and has made television appearances on both CNBC and Bloomberg. He has been in the financial services industry since 2001.

Mr. Yagerman earned a bachelor’s degree in government from Cornell University.

10:30 am - Networking Break

Build meaningful connections through one-on-one meetings.

11:00 am - Power Players LPs: Investor Perspectives – Assessing Opportunities in a Volatile Market

Currently there is over $2 trillion of dry powder in the US available for real estate investment but investors face a challenging environment with significantly reduced dealmaking activity and returns.

  • In which CRE markets and sectors do investors and developers see the greatest potential for risk-adjusted returns?
  • What are the near-term and long-term challenges of getting deals done and what are some strategies to overcome those challenges?
  • How are investors considering the risk of rising rates, high insurance costs, reduced occupancy and soaring construction costs in their decision-making?
  • What are the most important considerations for investors in terms of ESG & DEI?
  • What is the LP's outlook on lending for adaptive reuse, value-add, and construction projects?
  • How are state and local taxes (SALT) being met at the closing table and are there any strategies that most have not been considered before?
Moderator

Daniel Sullivan

Principal and Financial Markets & Real Estate Leader PwC US

Robert Deckey

Managing Director Invesco
Robert Deckey is a Managing Director with Invesco Real Estate (IRE). In this role, he
is responsible for executing IRE’s investment strategy in the East Coast, including industrial, apartments, office, affordable housing, manufactured housing, self storage, and retail. Since joining Invesco, he has completed $6.5 billion in investments, including ground up developments, value-add redevelopments, joint ventures and core. He is a member of the screening committee and investment strategy group. He also is a board member of Homestead Communities, a
manufactured housing company based in San Francisco. Prior to joining IRE in 2016, Mr. Deckey was chief investment officer of George
Comfort & Sons, Inc., where he was responsible for new acquisitions and capital
markets, including a number of large distress office building investments, like Worldwide Plaza in NYC in 2009. Mr. Deckey also worked for over 10 years in real estate corporate finance at Citigroup and JP Morgan. He advised real estate investment trust clients on equity and debt raising, initial public offerings, mergers and acquisitions, and asset sales. Before that, Mr. Deckey worked at AEW and EF Hutton in acquisitions and portfolio management. He has over 30 years of real estate experience. Mr. Deckey earned a bachelor of administration degree in electrical engineering and economics from Brown University, and an MBA in real estate finance from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He is a member of the Urban
Land Institute and the Real Estate Board of New York.

Elizabeth Bell

Principal Hamilton Lane

Elizabeth Bell is a Principal on Hamilton Lane’s Real Assets team, where she is responsible for due diligence of primary, secondary, and co-investment opportunities in real estate.    

Prior to joining Hamilton Lane in 2022, Elizabeth was a Managing Director with Jaguar Growth Partners where she was responsible for leading Latin American real estate private equity investments.  Previously, Elizabeth was an Investment Manager at Aberdeen Asset Management on the Property Multi-Manager team and was a Vice President at Equity International, responsible for investing in emerging markets real estate companies.  Earlier in her career, Elizabeth was an Associate at real estate private equity firm, JER Partners, and an investment banking analyst at Deutsche Bank.    

Elizabeth received her M.B.A from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and an A.B. from Princeton University.   

Eric Newman

CPA, CGMA - Accountant / Treasury Manager City of Stamford

Eric is responsible for treasury, investment management, and pension fund accounting. He serves as a Trustee on the Classified Employees Retirement Fund Board, Other Post- Employment Benefit (OPEB) Board, Defined Contribution Retirement Plan Board and City’s Investment Advisory Committee. Eric is a Trustee on the Town of Fairfield Employee Retirement Board and Joint Retirement Investment Board. Prior to entering government finance, Eric held finance positions at Royal Bank of Scotland, IBM Global Financing, Arnhold and S. Bleichroeder, Price Waterhouse and Soros Fund Management. Eric received his B.B.A. in Accounting from Adelphi University; Certificate in Investment Banking from New York University, M.B.A. in Finance from Sacred Heart University and is pursuing a Corporate Finance Certificate at Harvard University. He is a Certified Public
Accountant (CPA) and a Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA).

Todd Jones

CEO RealAdvice

An internationally recognized expert, since 1985, Mr. Jones has provided complex income-producing commercial property valuation, expert testimony, litigation support, ad valorem property tax counseling and representation, appraisal review, investment advice, marketability analysis, and feasibility analysis, including highest and best use analysis for virtually all types of commercial, industrial, residential, and special purpose real estate, on behalf of financial institutions, REIT’s, government entities, publicly traded companies, and
private concerns.
As a former President of the Florida Association of Property Tax Professionals, and an inaugural member of the Florida TaxWatch Tax Advisory Council, Mr. Jones has addressed the Florida Cabinet, Legislature, and various state agencies on property tax policy, technical matters, and issues impacting taxpayers. In 2008, the
Association successfully collaborated with other influential groups to change Florida law affecting how the assessors must develop and support valuations in defending challenged assessments, “leveling the playing field”
by lowering the burden of proof for taxpayers in assessment challenges, and requiring the development of uniform rules, policies, and procedures for Value Adjustment Boards across Florida’s 67 counties to improve
fairness in taxation for all Floridians. In 2011, Mr. Jones served on the Florida Governor’s Tangible Personal Property Taskforce. In 2012, the Florida legislature sought Mr. Jones’ counsel on comprehensive property tax
reform legislation.
For eight years, Mr. Jones taught Appraisal Valuation in the Nathan S. Collier Master of Science in Real Estate (MSRE) degree program at the University of Florida. The UF MSRE program has been consistently ranked in the Top Ten of all university real estate programs in the US since the 1960’s and was named the top real estate master’s degree program in the US in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021. Mr. Jones has been a reviewer for the most widely used university real estate textbook, Real Estate Principles: A Value Approach by David Ling, Ph.D., FRICS
and Wayne Archer, Ph.D. In addition, Mr. Jones taught the appraisal course for the Florida Bankers School for five years. The purpose of the Florida School of Banking (FSB) is to provide bank personnel at the supervisory and officer level the opportunity to increase their knowledge about the banking industry and the economy.
In 2017, after ten years of collaborative scholarship and hundreds of cases, Mr. Jones and Michael J. Mard, CPA/ABV, CPCU pioneered an industry breakthrough. They successfully bridged the differences between
professionally accepted business and real property valuation methods to create the Daubert-tested Authoritative Allocation Method for identifying, separating, and quantifying real property, tangible personal
property, and intangible assets frequently bundled in real property ownership transfers.

Anthony D. Giordano Jr.

Mayoral Appointee NYC Public Schools Board, Executive Committee NYC BERS, PEP Chair Designee, NYC TRS

Mayor Eric Adams appointed Anthony “Tony” Giordano to the New York City Public School Board in January 2023. The School Board appointment includes board membership on the $8 Billion NYC Board of Education Retirement System (BERS). Leveraging his professional experience, Giordano’s colleagues elected him to the BERS Executive Committee & the School Board Chair designated Giordano her proxy to the NYC Teachers Retirement System ($95 Billion).

Professionally, Giordano founded Legacy Partners USA, LLC, a full-service business development consultancy in 2014. Prior to launching Legacy Partners, Mr. Giordano had a distinguished twenty-year career on Wall Street, serving as Director of Sales and Marketing at hedge fund of funds, Larch Lane Advisors; Director of Pension Strategies at Credit Suisse USA; and was a senior vice president at Bank of New York affiliate, Converg Ex. Prior to Wall Street, Giordano was a City Hall lobbyist with Montalbano Initiatives, representing the interests of several labor unions and quasi-governmental agencies.


Brooklyn College (CUNY) prepared Giordano well for his current role as an education policy maker and fiduciary, as he was elected to 2 consecutive terms as chairperson of the University Student Senate (USS) and student member of the City University of New York Board of Trustees, while earning a BA in Political Science.


Giordano currently serves on the board of Bertha Lewis’ action tank, The Black Institute and on the Advisory Board of the New American Alliance. Giordano also directed the mentor program while serving the board of tenant advocacy group, Palante Harlem, and is a supporter of Kentucky-based Sparrow Missions, leading missionary teams of Wall Street professionals to Honduras in 2013 and 2014.


Tony Giordano is most importantly a proud father and husband. His two undergrad daughters, Kira (22) and Devin (20), are respectively preparing for Law and Med school. Mr. Giordano is married to New York City immigration attorney, Aizhan “Aya Baltabek” Yerezhepova.

11:30 am - Power Players in Real Estate Lending: Where Do Capital Providers Want to Be?

  • How will lending availability and terms change as the real estate market moves forward?
  • How does interest rate volatility drive loan structuring (i.e. issues of hedging, cap costs etc)?
  • Non-bank lenders vs. banks: What are the main risks?
  • Bridging the gap: how are deals getting done in a difficult debt market?
  • What are some effective strategies to secure loan assumptions in the process of acquiring assets?
  • NPLs and DPOs – how to access the deals and the capital to execute?
  • Should investors interested in debt and distress consider NPL strategies?
  • What are some key trends in the use of rescue capital?
  • How are material and labor shortages being factored into lending decisions?
  • What are the preferred markets and assets for capital providers in real estate lending?
  • What criteria are LPs considering when evaluating investments, including returns, time horizons, and agreement terms?
  • Understanding changing loan structures: senior loans, mezzanine financing, preferred equity, bridge loans, C-PACE, credit lease,private placement debt, sale-leaseback and ground lease – how do they fit in today’s capital stack?
Moderator

Bonnie Neuman

Co-Chair, Finance Group Cadwalader

Bonnie Neuman is a co-chair of Cadwalader’s Finance Group, head of the firm’s Real Estate Finance practice, and a member of the firm’s Management Committee. She represents global investment banks, financial institutions, investors, and servicers in domestic and cross-border transactions, specializing in mortgage and mezzanine loans, syndication, loan servicing, non-performing loan securitizations, loan restructuring, and bankruptcy-related matters. She also handles inter-creditor arrangements and secondary market sales of mortgage and mezzanine loans.

In 2022, Bonnie was recognized as a Hospitality MVP by Law360 and a leading real estate finance lawyer by Chambers USA. She has received accolades from The Best Lawyers in America, GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum, Lawdragon, Legal Media Group, and Connect CRE. Bonnie was honored as one of Crain’s New York’s "Notable Women in Law" and "Notable Diverse Leaders in Law."  Bonnie is actively involved in professional organizations like the CREFC Women’s Network and serves as the Co-Chair of the Membership Committee.

Alan Todd

CFA Managing Director CMBS Strategy Global Research Bank of America Securities, Inc

Alan Todd is head of U.S. Commercial Mortgage Backed Securities (CMBS) Research and a member of the CREFC Board of Governors. In this role he is responsible for providing in-depth analysis and macro-level overviews of the CMBS, CMBX and commercial real estate markets. 

Alan brings over 20 years of CMBS experience to this role and is highly regarded for his recommendations and timely market calls. Alan correctly called the recovery of the CMBS market since the 2009 bottom and the decline of the CMBS market in 2008. Alan has been ranked in the top 3 for CMBS strategy in the Institutional Investor All-America Fixed Income Research team survey in each of the last fourteen years. 

Alan joined Bank of America Merrill Lynch in August of 2011 from J.P. Morgan, where he was head of CMBS research since 2005. Previously he spent five years at Bear Stearns, also in CMBS Research. Alan received his Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Syracuse University, his Master’s degree in Finance from Vanderbilt University and is a CFA Charter holder.

Michael Eglit

Senior Managing Director and Head of U.S. Originations in Blackstone's Real Estate Debt Strategies (“BREDS”) group Blackstone

Michael Eglit is a Senior Managing Director and Head of U.S. Originations in Blackstone’s Real Estate Debt Strategies (“BREDS”) group. Since joining Blackstone, Mr. Eglit has been involved in sourcing, underwriting, negotiating and structuring debt investments across all asset types and geographies.

Before joining Blackstone in 2010, Mr. Eglit was with Wrightwood Capital where he underwrote and originated first mortgages, mezzanine loans and preferred equity.

Mr. Eglit received a BA from Lehigh University and an MBA from the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago.

Joel Traut

Head of Originations KKR

Joel Traut (New York) joined KKR in 2015 and is a member of the Real Estate team. He serves as Head of Originations for KKR Real Estate Credit and is responsible for business development, the origination process and team coordination across the real estate direct lending business. In addition, he is involved in sourcing, underwriting, negotiating and structuring debt investments across all credit products, asset types and geographies. Prior to joining KKR, Mr. Traut spent thirteen years at GE Capital, most recently as a region manager at GE Capital Real Estate, where he led their northeast commercial team. He focused on investing in real estate credit strategies including first mortgage and mezzanine loans. He joined GE in 2002 as part of GE Capital's financial management program and during his tenure worked across multiple GE Capital business segments including: commercial real estate, aviation services, and commercial finance corporate. Mr. Traut graduated summa cum laude from the University of Kentucky and holds a B.B.A. in Finance and Marketing. Mr. Traut serves on the University of Kentucky Gatton College of Business and Economics’ Finance Advisory Board. Mr. Traut is currently a member of the Urban Land Institute, Commercial Real Estate Finance Council, and National Association of Industrial and Office Properties ('NAIOP') where he sits on its Capital Markets Council.

Joseph Dyckman

Co-head of U.S. CMBS Citigroup Global Markets

12:00 pm - Networking Lunch

Designed to foster meaningful connections.

Grab a plate of mouth-watering cuisine, strike up a conversation with someone new, and make the most of this fantastic opportunity to expand your network and forge lasting connections.

12:45pm - 1:05pm Special Lunch Presentation - CRE Funds: Waiting in the Wings

Since the onset of the pandemic, capital market swings have been substantial – as markets initially braced during the pandemic, then boomed in the subsequent reopening-recovery, before pulling back on monetary tightening. One of the most affected and dynamic segments of the capital markets, commercial real estate (CRE) has garnered investor attention as both an area of opportunity and risk. Hear from Omar Eltorai, Director of Research at Altus Group, on key trends shaping private market CRE investment, from fund formation, fundraising, and capital deployment, to property and fund performance.

Omar Eltorai

Director of Research Altus Group

Omar Eltorai is the Director of Research at Altus Group, a provider of commercial real
estate asset and fund intelligence. With more than a decade of experience in the
industry in investment management and financing roles, Omar's focus at Altus is on
macroeconomic, capital and market trends affecting the US CRE market.

Customize your agenda

Attend the sessions that interest you the most. After the morning plenary sessions, attendees are invited to explore the following three themed forums. Attendees can attend any forum they like and are encouraged to move between them throughout the afternoon. To get involved, simply head to the designated location and join the conversation.

Mezzanine & High Yield Debt Financing Forum

Real Estate Joint Ventures Forum

ESG & DEI Forum

12:15 pm: Luncheon Workshop: Top Due Diligence Challenges for Lenders in the ESG Era

  • Disclosure- carbon foot printing (PCAF), climate risks and opportunities- TCFD/ISSB, SEC proposed rule
  • Risk Management- how physical and transition risk data informs lending decision-making, structuring, pricing, etc.
  • Innovation- green/sustainable financing products as opportunities
  • Client/Borrower Relations- building mutually beneficial partnerships on the road to net zero
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Noelle Bohlen

Group Product Manager 

measurabl

Noelle is a dedicated Group Product Manager at Measurabl, where she's driven a series of impactful ESG SaaS and DaaS innovations over the past five years. Prior to joining Measurabl, she held a Senior Product Manager role at VTS in New York—an industry-leading platform for leasing and asset management. Holding a B.S. in Computer Science from Fordham University, Noelle thrives at the intersection of technology and Commercial Real Estate, a passion she nurtures by growing her personal real estate portfolio on Long Island.

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Ryan Greenwald

VP, ESG Research

PIMCO

12:15 pm: Luncheon Workshop: Leveraging Data and AI for Value Creation in CRE

  • Explore how the fusion of data and AI can drive smarter decision-making, optimize operations, and uncover strategic opportunities in CRE.
  • Hear from one of our distinguished clients who will share their journey of using Prophia's cutting-edge data management and AI-powered solutions to unlock new dimensions of value in CRE
  • Learn to utilize AI and data-driven insights to optimize acquisition and disposition strategies, enhancing deal analysis, risk assessment, and informed decision-making.
  • Leverage AI-powered tools to elevate portfolio reporting, perform in-depth analysis, and forecast market trends
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Cameron Steele

CEO and Cofounder

Prophia

Cameron Steele is CEO and Cofounder of Prophia, a generative AI data management platform for the commercial real estate (CRE) industry. He brings over 30 years of experience in software, equity and business, which has helped shape Prophia into the future system of record for CRE data. Cameron launched Prophia in January of 2018 in an effort to address data inefficiencies in the CRE market and offer investors a single source platform for data extraction, analysis and insights. Cameron was led to this venture after serving in executive roles at OpenTable and Booking.com, respectively. Cameron was also the COO and part of the founding executive team at buuteeq, Inc. which was acquired by Booking Holdings/Priceline Group in 2014. Cameron has an undergraduate degree from Stanford University and an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.

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Michael Rak

Senior Vice President

Spear Street Capital

Michael has forged a successful career spanning over a decade in finance and real estate. He currently holds the position of Senior Vice President at Spear Street Capital, a role he assumed after joining the company in 2015. Prior to joining his current company, Michael  was contributing to his wealth of experience with A&E Real Estate, Goldman Sachs and Robert W. Baird & Co. after completing a degree in Accounting and Finance from Wisconsin School of Business. With a proven track record in finance and real estate, Michael Rak continues to be a valuable asset in these dynamic industries.

12:15 pm: Luncheon Workshop: The Political Climate of Real Estate: How to Get Things Done in NY

As one of the world’s most vibrant business hubs, New York City has a lot of real estate development opportunities, but getting things done can be complicated. From community boards and City Hall to Albany, the regulatory processes can be onerous and complex. Legislative and political affairs can stand in your way of investment, development, entitlements and permitting, or they can be strategically leveraged to your project’s benefit. 

  • A holistic approach that includes lobbying and urban strategy can save resources and keep your project on track. 
  • Cover how to successfully build support for your project from elected officials and community stakeholders, secure zoning and land use approvals, and navigate the complex rules and regulations of City, State and governmental agencies.   
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Travis Terry

President

Capalino

Travis Terry was named President of Capalino, the largest urban strategy firm in the United States, in November 2020, after serving as the firm’s Chief Operating Officer for nearly a decade. In his role as President, Travis oversees the firm’s operations and execution of its corporate purpose of helping clients succeed in the New York region and playing a key role in spearheading the successful future of the region. In his career, Travis has been a vital strategic advisor to some of New York City’s most recognized corporate and non-profit brands such as Macy’s, UPS, Times Square Alliance, Rudin Management, Industry City, Friends of the High Line and the Museum of the Moving Image.  His efforts and those of the firm have changed the landscape of NYC—creating public parks, raising hundreds of millions of dollars in public-sector funding, creating impactful laws and securing project approvals for major land use projects.  Travis has worked closely with hundreds of businesses to help them successfully expand or enter the New York City market. Travis sits on the Board of Directors of the Friends of the QueensWay, Coro New York and is on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of the Regional Plan Association.  He also is the Chair of the NYC Board of Advisors of PowerMyLearning, sits on the Steering Committee of the Association for a Better New York (ABNY), the Dean’s Advisory Council of the Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Queens Chamber of Commerce Tech Council and the Executive Leadership Forum of BritishAmerican Business.

1:15pm - Chairperson’s Opening remarks

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Daniel C. Reynolds

Partner

Cleary Gottlieb

Daniel C. Reynolds’ practice focuses on domestic and international real estate transactions, including the financing, acquisition, and disposition of real property. He has represented clients in the negotiation of joint ventures to acquire, finance, and develop office, retail, hotel, multifamily, and mixed-use properties throughout the United States, and he regularly advises both borrowers and lenders in mortgage and mezzanine financing transactions, including securitized loans, balance sheet loans, bridge loans, and construction loans. He has also represented lenders and borrowers in the workout and enforcement of various financing structures, including mezzanine loan foreclosures. Dan was an associate in Cleary’s New York office from 2000 to 2001, rejoined the firm in 2011, and became partner in 2017.

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Tim Groves

Chief Investment Officer

Dwight

Tim Groves is Chief Investment Officer at Dwight, a vertically integrated real estate investment management platform with a focus on agency lending, where he oversees strategy and execution for their private Mortgage REIT, Dwight Mortgage Trust as well as a number of separately managed accounts.  Prior to joining Dwight, Mr. Groves was Senior Managing Director and Head of Cantor Commercial Real Estate (CCRE), a direct lender and CMBS primary business.  He joined Cantor after nearly 15 years at Citi where he had led their CRE capital markets coverage of GSE's, REITs, and debt funds during which he originated, structured, and distributed Repo facilities, Agency CMBS and CRE CLO’s.  Mr. Groves holds a BBA in accounting and an MBA from Cornell University.    

1:15pm - Chairperson’s Opening remarks

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Ellie Perlman

Founder & CEO

Blue Lake Capital

The founder of Blue Lake Capital Group, Ellie Perlman, has over fifteen years of experience in real estate investment, law, and property management. Ellie leads Blue Lake Capital, which owns and manages over 3,300 multifamily units across the U.S.Ellie started her career in Israel as a commercial real estate lawyer, leading real estate transactions for Israel's largest development company.

Later, as a property manager for one of Israel's most prominent oil and gas companies, she oversaw an extensive portfolio of properties.Ellie holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management Bachelor's and a Master's in Law from Bar-Ilan University in Israel, as well as a bachelor’s degree in law.

In addition, Ellie is a long-term Forbes author on real estate investing.

1:15pm - Chairperson’s Opening remarks

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David Amerikaner

Special Counsel

Duane Morris LLP

David Amerikaner is a member of Duane Morris’ Real Estate Practice Group and focuses his practice on land use, project development, environmental law, eminent domain, and sustainability.

Mr. Amerikaner advises developers, energy companies, and other large users of land through the process of obtaining permits and approvals to develop their land.  This practice includes representation before local and state planning commissions, boards, councils, agencies, and other decision-makers, as well as outreach to and negotiation with project opponents.  Mr. Amerikaner’s experience spans several states and local jurisdictions, particularly the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and other environmental and municipal regulations in California.  He also handles litigation matters that arise from land development.

Mr. Amerikaner handles eminent domain matters for utilities seeking to condemn private properties for public use, and on behalf of private property owners whose properties have been condemned.  He also represents private property owners in tax assessment appeals.

Mr. Amerikaner regularly counsels private equity firms, banks, sovereign wealth funds, and other entities on the environmental aspects of corporate transactions.  He is experienced in performing due diligence, negotiating and drafting contractual provisions, and providing strategic advice in the context of mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, debt and equity financing, real estate transactions, and project finance.

Mr. Amerikaner has an active practice in the field of environmental commodities, including advising clients on the generation and trading of carbon credits and various types of mitigation credits.  He also counsels clients on reducing their carbon footprints and complying with environmental mitigation requirements, on both voluntary and mandatory bases.

In addition, Mr. Amerikaner maintains a robust pro bono practice, including work on behalf of disadvantaged individuals related to land use, government approvals, real estate transactions, immigration, and Holocaust reparations.

Mr. Amerikaner is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. He is a former advisory board member of the Trust for Public Land New York State Chapter, and is active in fundraising and team building for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.  Mr. Amerikaner is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and Harvard University, and also received a master’s degree in Education Leadership from Teachers College at Columbia University.

1:30 pm: Panel Discussion: Mezzanine Loans and Preferred Equity: What are active lenders and borrowers dealing with?

  • What are the legal considerations when choosing between mezzanine finance and preferred equity?
  • How do mezzanine deal structures differ from preferred equity structures?
  • What are the key considerations for multi-lender deals?
  • How would the proposed New York Bill imposing mortgage recording taxes affect mezzanine debt and preferred equity in
  • Real estate transactions?
Moderator

Dan Berman

Partner

Kramer Levin

Daniel Ross Berman counsels developers, investors, lenders and operators in a range of real estate transactions, including acquisitions, dispositions, joint ventures, development deals, preferred equity investments, loans, leases, recapitalizations and restructurings. His work spans hospitality, industrial, health care, entertainment, retail, office, multifamily and mixed-use properties.

Dan has a national practice that includes acquisitions, dispositions and joint venture development deals across the country as well as a localized practice with an emphasis on complex development deals. For example, Dan is currently handling numerous redevelopment projects in New York City involving various religious and charitable institutions, each with different deal structures. These include ground leasing the land during development and dividing the ownership of the completed building between the developer and the institution by converting the property to a commercial condominium.  

Dan is a member of Kramer Levin’s Pro Bono, Ethics and Technology committees.

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Drew Fung

Head of Debt Investment Group

Clarion Partners

Drew D. Fung, equity owner and Managing Director, is the co-Portfolio Manager for Clarion’s

Debt Investment Fund. He oversees the Firm’s subordinate debt investment activities in various types of commercial real estate debt instruments, including mezzanine loans, B-notes and preferred equity interests. Drew is a member of the Debt Investment Committee, which approves all of the Firm’s financing activities, and a member of Clarion’s ESG Committee and Subcommittee on Resilience. Drew joined Clarion Partners in 2012 and began working in the real estate industry in 1987. He has comprehensive commercial real estate experience, including more than 20 years focused on subordinate debt that includes all property types and capital structures. He is a former Chair of a Urban Land Institute (ULI) Urban development/Mixed-Use Council, a member of the Commercial Real Estate Finance Council (CREFC) Board of Governors, a frequent speaker at industry events and has provided expert testimony to the U.S. Senate Banking Sub Committee regarding the impact of regulation on commercial real estate financing markets.

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Boots Dunlap

CEO & Co-Founder

RRA Capital

 

Boots Dunlap has over 15 years of experience consulting on and managing credit assets for many of the largest banks, insurance companies, CMBS servicers and private credit firms, dating back to before the 2008 Great Recession. Since co-founding RRA, he has overseen the origination and management of more than $1.3B of bridge loans and has also consulted for lending clients on $2.4B of distressed commercial real estate. Boots oversees the investment strategy and strategic direction of RRA. He is a member or has been a member of the Urban Land Institute, Mortgage Bankers' Association, Commercial Real Estate Finance Council, the National Association of Office & Industrial Properties, and various other industry organizations. Prior to co-founding RRA, Boots served as an Infantry Officer in the U.S. Army, where he completed multiple combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, earning him the Bronze Star, two Meritorious Service Medals, Combat Infantryman's Badge, Ranger Tab, Airborne Wings, and numerous other distinguished leadership decorations. He graduated from the University of Virginia and holds a certification as a Commercial Investment Member.

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John Randall

Partner

PCCP LLC

John Randall joined PCCP in December 2009 and leads East Coast originations for the Firm out of New York. Since joining PCCP, Mr. Randall has originated over 100 equity and debt transactions aggregating in excess of $2 billion including hotel, retail, office, condo, multi-family and industrial investments and including senior debt, mezzanine, preferred equity and joint venture equity.  Prior to PCCP, Mr. Randall spent six years and invested over $1 billion in real estate debt and preferred equity positions within the Real Estate Private Equity group of Lehman Brothers. Prior to Lehman Brothers, Mr. Randall was a Vice President with Deutsche Bank, originating and underwriting mezzanine investments for the DB Real Estate Mezzanine Investment Funds. Mr. Randall's experience also includes work at Daiwa Securities originating and structuring conduit loans for their CMBS group.  Mr. Randall started his career with Arthur Andersen and Jones Lang Wootton where he valued over $1 billion of real estate in the U.S. and Latin America. Mr. Randall has over 25 years of real estate experience and holds a B.A. in Economics from Bowdoin College, magna cum laude, and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

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Nitin Jagga

Vice President

Goldman Sachs

 

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Clark Briner

Founder & Principal

Revere Capital 

Clark B. Briner is the Founder and the Principal of Revere Capital. Mr. Briner started his real estate career in 1997 when he made his first multifamily real estate investment. He then joined MacFarlan Capital Partners, an institutional private equity real estate firm, where he was a Director. After years in private equity, Mr. Briner moved to New York City as a senior investment banker at Deutsche Bank, where he served on the private equity real estate team, as well as the new business underwriting committee. Over his years in investment banking, he has participated in traditional public market capitalizations and executions, real estate mergers and acquisitions and workout and restructuring assignments. During his real estate career, Mr. Briner has had significant institutional experience on both the principal investment and investment banking side. Mr. Briner has also served as an owner, lender, operator, sponsor and equity partner.

1:30 pm: Panel Discussion: Joint Venture Partnerships in an Uncertain Market: Managing Risks and Overcoming Challenges

  • Risk management: cost overruns, partner defaults, meeting project schedule, worries from LPs, worries from GPs and control issues
  • Interest reserves shortfalls - how can partners share the burden?
  • How should cost sharing be structured between GPs and LPs in long-dated closing situations?
  • Why are fewer investors stepping up to be GPs?
  • How do partnerships navigate zoning approvals, the construction process and cost overruns?
  • What happens in receivership and liquidation?
  • How long will multifamily maintain its outperformance over other asset types in REJV partnerships?
Moderator

Andy Charles

Partner

Kramer Levin

Andrew Charles has extensive experience in all aspects of commercial real estate law, including partnerships and joint ventures, financing for borrowers and lenders, acquisitions and sales, and development and leasing. His client base includes private equity funds, financial institutions, developers, and operators in the acquisition, financing, development, sale and leasing of all classes of commercial properties including office, hotel, multifamily, retail, public storage, mixed use and condominium properties. Andrew focuses mainly on structuring transactions for institutional investors and opportunity funds such as joint ventures, preferred equity investments, mezzanine financing and mixed debt/equity investments.
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Adam Fruitbine

Chief Investment Officer

MAXX Properties

 

Adam is a senior real estate investment professional with 25 years of industry experience, with a concentration in the multifamily asset class. This includes leadership expertise in acquisitions, structured equity finance investing, capital markets, building and leading investment management platforms, fundraising and distribution outreach, development and portfolio management.

Adam currently serves as the Chief Investment Officer for MAXX Properties, a national multifamily owner, operator.  Adam is responsible for leading the firm's sourcing and origination of multifamily investment opportunities throughout the U.S.  Investment strategies include: wholly-owned core and value-add acquisitions as well as providing GP co-investment and JV/LP equity capital to local operators and multifamily developers.  Additionally, Adam is responsible for collaboration with MAXX leadership to build-out the firm's investment management business. This includes building and leading a team of investor relations and capital markets professionals.

 

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Frederick N. Cooper

Senior Vice President Finance

International Development & Investor Relations

Toll Brothers

Fred Cooper is Senior Vice President - Finance, International Development & Investor Relations at Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL).  Toll, a Fortune 500 Company, is the 5th largest U.S. home builder by revenues, the 6th largest multifamily rental apartment developer, and among the largest land and community developers in the U.S. Toll is also one of the nation’s largest urban high-density/high-rise condo and rental tower developers with 50+ buildings and over 7,000 units completed. 

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Raphael Sidelsky

Chief Investment Officer

W5 Group LLC

 

Raphael Sidelsky is the head of real estate investing for W5 Group, which has offices in New York, Miami, and Switzerland. Established in 2009, W5 Group is the Winter Family Investment Office. W5 Group focuses on innovative real estate investments, either directly or alongside high-quality sponsors and provides capital without any pre-determined hold periods. Target investment sectors include multifamily, student housing, co-living, micro-apartments, single family rental, lodging, and mixed-use. Investment structures include single or programmatic joint ventures, direct, entity level, preferred equity, and mezzanine debt. W5 Group has permanent capital, a flexible mandate, and seeks to create enduring value and long-lasting relationships.

Mr. Sidelsky has worked on over $7 billion of direct, entity level and joint venture real estate investments across a broad array of sectors and markets in the United States and Caribbean. Prior to W5,he worked as a Senior Managing Director at CIII Capital Partners ($8BN in AUM) and before that as a Managing Director at Fremont Realty Capital, the Bechtel Family Office. He began his career as an architect and worked in Tel Aviv, Berlin, Los Angeles, Johannesburg, and then in New York for Skidmore Owingsand Merrill. Mr. Sidelsky received a Bachelor of Architecture in South Africa and an MBA from Columbia Business School. He is a board member of the Columbia Business School Real Estate Circle.

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Nicholas Baccile

Director

Canyon Partners Real Estate LLC

Nicholas Baccile is a Director within the Real Estate Investment team at Canyon. Mr. Baccile joined Canyon in 2018 and primarily focuses on sourcing, underwriting, due diligence, structuring and executing debt and equity investments in the Northeast U.S. region. Prior to joining Canyon, Mr. Baccile worked at RXR Realty, where he was responsible for asset management of equity and debt investments. Previously, Mr. Baccile worked at Ares Management, where he was responsible for underwriting, due diligence and ongoing asset management of new equity investments. Mr. Baccile is a graduate of Cornell University (B.S., Applied Economics and Management with a minor in Real Estate).

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Stephen Woodard

Managing Director

Westport Capital Partners LLC 

 

Mr. Woodard is a Managing Director based in the Connecticut office.

Prior to joining the firm in 2011, Mr. Woodard was a Vice President in the Commercial Real Estate Department at CIT Group, Inc. Before joining CIT, Mr. Woodard was an Acquisitions Associate at Lexington Realty Trust.

Mr. Woodard holds a B.A. in Economics from Union College and an M.P.S. in Real Estate Finance and Investment from Cornell University.

1:30 pm: Panel Discussion: Sustainability and Benchmarking: Reports, Metrics & KPIs

  • What are the key metrics and KPIs used to track progress in ESG and DEI initiatives?
  • How can companies ensure their ESG and DEI reports are accurate, transparent, and credible?
  • How can companies leverage ESG and DEI data to improve decision-making and drive positive impact?
  • The future of ESG data collection and analysis: the role of cutting-edge technologies and strategies to keep you ahead of the curve.
  • The role of technology in ESG & DEI benchmarking
  • From an investor perspective, what are the most important elements of the ESG due diligence process?
  • How can companies effectively communicate their ESG and DEI efforts to stakeholders, including investors, customers, and employees?
  • What role do regulatory bodies play in ESG and DEI benchmarking and reporting, and how can companies stay compliant with evolving regulations?
  • What are the “must haves” and “nice to haves” from an ESG data perspective?
Moderator

Randy Hoff

Principal, Financial Markets & Real Estate

PwC US

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Anne Peck

Vice President and Head of ESG+R

TA Realty

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Linda J. Isaacson

Partner

ACRE

Linda J. Isaacson is Partner and Head of ESG & Impact at ACRE. She is responsible for leading the firm’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices and ensuring that ongoing investment decisions, operational actions, and overall business philosophy reflect its core principles and those of its investors.  

Isaacson is a leader in sustainability practices, focusing on strategies accelerating progress towards setting and achieving net zero by 2050. A thought leader in Corporate Sustainability and activating ambitious action to achieve the SDGs, Linda is at the forefront of unlocking business value, building resilience, and enabling long-term growth.

 

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Katie Cappola

ESG Manager

Madison International Realty

Ms. Cappola serves as ESG Manager on the Portfolio & Asset Management team, with primary responsibility for Madison’s ESG initiatives. Prior to joining Madison, Ms. Cappola held positions including Sustainability/ESG Manager at Empire State Realty Trust,  Sustainability Manager at Jones Lang LaSalle, and Associate Sustainability Project Manager at Jones Lang LaSalle.  Ms. Cappola graduated from Freeman College of management at Bucknell University, where she received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration.

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Nicole Wilson

Principal, Sustainable Investing

KKR

Nicole Wilson (New York) joined KKR in 2021 to help implement the firm’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) work across KKR’s real estate portfolios. Prior to joining KKR, she was an associate operations officer with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), where she acted as a subject matter expert on ESG risks and opportunities related to IFC’s investment transactions, advisory projects and existing portfolio. Previously, she worked with PSP Investments’ (PSP) responsible investment team and led ESG integration activities for PSP’s private equity, credit, and real estate investments. Ms. Wilson has a BSc from McGill University and a MASC in Environmental Applied Science and Management from Ryerson University.

2:00 pm: Panel Discussion: The Current Landscape of Mezzanine Lending: Valuations and Return Expectations

Today’s scarce lending environment makes mezzanine debt a necessity – but are these the same mezzanine loans we’ve seen before? This panel will explore:

  • What is driving the growing demand for mezzanine capital in the face of portfolio declines and illiquidity in the market?
  • How are mezzanine loans priced and structured differently in the current environment?
  • What are the return expectations for mezzanine loans in today's market?
  • What are the legal concerns associated with mezzanine lending in the current environment?
  • How do investors and borrowers approach mezzanine lending in the current landscape?
Moderator

Tim Davis

Chair

White and WIlliams

Tim Davis is Chair of the Business Department and a Partner in the Real Estate and Finance Groups at White and Williams LLP. He has over 25 years of experience representing investment funds, insurance companies, and banks in a wide variety of sophisticated real estate finance transactions, including first mortgage loans, participations, mezzanine loans, "B" notes and preferred equity investments. He has extensive experience in the areas of intercreditor, co-lender, and participation agreements. In 2017, Tim was elected as a Fellow in the American College of Mortgage Attorneys. He is ranked by Chambers USA as a Leading Lawyer in Pennsylvania Real Estate Finance, is AV® Preeminent rated by the Martindale-Hubbell peer review rating system, and has been recognized by “Best Lawyers in America” since 2016. He received his BA, MA, and JD from the University of Pennsylvania.

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Nailah Flake‑Brown

Managing Partner Investments

Brookfield Asset Management

Nailah Flake is a Managing Partner in Brookfield’s Real Estate Group responsible for
the origination, underwriting and asset management of Brookfield’s real estate finance
funds.
Prior to Brookfield in 2017, Ms. Flake was a Managing Director and head of originations
for the commercial real estate lending group at Morgan Stanley.
Ms. Flake holds a bachelor’s degree from Spelman College.
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Stephen R. Quazzo

Co-Founder and CEO

Pearlmark

Stephen R. Quazzo is Pearlmark’s Co-Founder, CEO, and Chair of the firm’s Management Committee and the PEP II Investment Committee. From 1991 to 1996, Mr. Quazzo served as President of Equity Institutional Investors, Inc., a subsidiary of investor Sam Zell’s private holding company, Equity Group Investments, Inc. Mr. Quazzo was responsible for raising equity capital and performing various portfolio management services in connection with the firm’s real estate investments, including institutional opportunity funds and public REITs. Prior to joining the Zell organization, Mr. Quazzo was in the Real Estate Department of Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he was a Vice President responsible for the firm’s real estate investment banking activities in the Midwest.

Mr. Quazzo holds undergraduate and MBA degrees from Harvard University, where he has served as a member of the Board of Dean’s Advisors for the business school and as an Alumni Association Director for the college. He is a Trustee of the Urban Land Institute, past Trustee and Chairman of the ULI Foundation, a member of the Pension Real Estate Association, and a licensed real estate broker in Illinois. Mr. Quazzo is a public company director of Marriott Vacations Worldwide (NYSE: VAC) and Phillips Edison & Co. (NASDAQ: PECO). For 22 years (1994-2016), he also served as a director of Starwood Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: HOT), which in 2016 merged with Marriott International (NYSE: MAR). Mr. Quazzo serves on a number of non-profit boards, including: Rush University Medical Center, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Endowment, the Chicago Parks Foundation, and Deerfield Academy.

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Ash Baraghoush

Managing Director

Pacific Urban Investors

Mr. Baraghoush serves as a Managing Director at Pacific Urban Investors. In this role, he is responsible for identifying and evaluating Joint Venture Equity opportunities across the Western US and Preferred Equity opportunities across the Western and Eastern US for multifamily recapitalization, value-add and development projects. Prior to joining Pacific Urban, he served as a Vice President at Ares Management responsible for West Coast investments on behalf of public vehicles, separate accounts, and closed-end funds. Mr. Baraghoush began his career at Bank of America in its Global Corporate Investment Banking division.

Mr. Baraghoush holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Economics, with a minor in Accounting, from UCLA. He also serves as a Board Member of the Make-A-Wish Foundation and is an active member of the Make-A-Wish Real Estate Chapter.

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Amanda Gray

Director, Capital Markets

Invesco Real Estate

Amanda Gray is a Director of Capital Markets at Invesco Real Estate.

Amanda began her investment career in 2016 and joined Invesco Real Estate in 2018. Prior to joining Invesco, she worked in the real estate banking group at Wells Fargo, where she focused on balance sheet debt originations.

Amanda earned a Business Administration degree with a minor in Psychology from the University of Southern California.

2:00 pm: Panel Discussion: Joint Venture Opportunities Outside of Multifamily

  • What assets are joint ventures looking at today?
  • How do key factors such as opportunity zones, tax incentives, construction financing, and international investments impact joint ventures?
  • A deep dive in the rise of joint ventures in life science buildings, data centers, medical offices, industrial properties, and loan assumptions.
  • How do joint venture partners structure their relationships and responsibilities for alternative asset types?
Moderator

Patrick Fitzgerald

Partner

Phillips Lytle

Patrick T. Fitzgerald is a partner at Phillips Lytle LLP and the Co-leader of the firm’s Private Equity Team.  He has decades of experience in the real estate industry, providing legal advice to investment funds, general partners, limited partners, real estate developers and other clients in complex real estate transactions and investment matters. He advises clients on the formation, structuring, and operation of investment funds, and he has a deep understanding of the underlying documents, including partnership agreements, operating agreements and subscription agreements. He is well versed in regulatory compliance issues affecting real estate investment funds and regularly provides guidance on ongoing operational matters, such as investor communications and fund governance. 

Patrick has extensive experience working on all aspects of commercial real estate transactions, including sales and acquisitions, financing, leasing, land use and zoning, easements and covenants, conditions and restrictions. He assists his clients with their matters from start to finish.

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Alexander Schaefer

Vice President - Acquisitions, Real Assets

AXA Investment Managers

Alex Schaefer is Vice President, Transactions for AXA Investment Managers. AXA-IM is part of AXA Group, the Paris-based multinational insurance firm.  AXA-IM is the largest real estate asset manager in Europe and one of the largest worldwide.  At AXA-IM, Alex focuses on investments across the risk spectrum and across property types in institutional markets throughout the country where AXA typically invests alongside proven, vertically-integrated sponsors.

Before AXA, Alex worked for TKF Real Estate Investment where he focused on value creating investments in office and mixed-use assets located in urban centers throughout the east coast.  Previously, he was Head of Acquisitions for ALTO Real Estate Funds, a NY based private equity fund that invested in value-add assets across the country alongside veteran local operating partners. Before ALTO, Alex was a Director of Acquisitions for VEREIT, a publicly-traded REIT that owned over 4,000 properties in 49 states. He found himself at VEREIT after working for American Realty Capital in various capacities before eventually transitioning over to a publicly-traded investment vehicle that was merged in to VEREIT. Alex graduated from the University of Connecticut with a B.S. in Accounting before working for Cushman & Wakefield.

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Chris Balestra

President and Chief Investment of Officer

Taconic Partners

Chris is President and Chief Investment of Officer at Taconic. He also leads Taconic’s Acquisitions team. As President, Chris oversees corporate matters across the firm. As Chief Investment Officer, he is responsible for all aspects of Taconic’s acquisition businesses and investments. With 20 years of real estate investment experience, Chris has led or been directly involved in the acquisition of nearly $6 billion of real estate while at Taconic, all in New York City metro area. He is also responsible for deal sourcing and structuring, and oversees all of Taconic’s debt and equity financings, as well as fundraising and rezoning initiatives. Prior to joining Taconic in 2005, Chris was a Bank Officer at M&T Bank where he was responsible for underwriting and sourcing commercial real estate loan opportunities in the New York City metropolitan area. Chris earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Colgate University.

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Jerome Nichols

President

Standard Real Estate Investments

 

Jerome Nichols is President of Standard Real Estate Investments, where he is focused on new business development and investment sourcing, in addition to his involvement in all major decisions pertaining to the business. 

Prior to co-founding Standard Real Estate Investments, Jerome spent six years at CBRE Investment Management as a Senior Director and Deputy Portfolio Manager of the CBRE U.S. Development Partners Fund Series. In this role, he served as the lead development sourcing officer for CBRE IM Americas and sourced $6 billion in deal volume. He was actively involved in several initiatives at CBRE IM, including his role as the Chair of the Social Impact Counsel. 

In addition to his time at CBRE IM, Jerome spent six years with The Bozzuto Group, a vertically integrated multifamily development and operating company. He is also a former professional football player.

Jerome is an Alumnus and active supporter of the Robert Toigo Foundation.

He received an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a Bachelor of Science in Business from Wake Forest University.

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Patrick Keeley

Executive Director

Morgan Stanley Real Assets   

 

Patrick is an Executive Director at Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing where he is responsible for acquisitions in the South Atlantic states for both MSREI’s open-end core fund and its closed-end value-add fund. Prior to Morgan Stanley, Patrick was a Senior Vice President and head of the Washington, DC office for Columbia Property Trust and a Principal responsible for Mid-Atlantic investments at Normandy Real Estate Partners. In these prior roles, Patrick oversaw acquisitions and asset management spanning a ~4.5MM SF regional portfolio. Patrick is a graduate of Dartmouth College and received his MBA from The Wharton School where he majored in real estate and finance and graduated with honors.

2:00 pm: Panel Discussion: Utilizing C-PACE Financing for Carbon Emissions Reduction

The Commercial Property-Assessed Clean Energy program offers fixed-rate, long-term financing for projects in commercial buildings that improve water and energy use.

  • With interest rates rising and debt funding scarce, does it make sense to include C-PACE in your financing plans?
  • How do you qualify for C-PACE funding?
  • How does C-PACE funding fit into the capital stack?
  • What are the benefits and potential drawbacks of utilizing C-PACE financing?
Moderator

Aundre Oldacre

Founding partner

AoRa Development

 

Aundre, Managing Partner at AoRa Development, is a construction disruptor with expertise in offsite construction and sustainable development. He oversees the firm's portfolio, from identifying undervalued acquisitions to raising capital. His visionary approach to architectural design and holistic view of deal-making have positioned AoRa as a leader in efficient, sustainable development. His commitment to innovation is evident in his use of cutting-edge technologies, ESG friendly building materials, creative financing and acquisitions strategies. AoRa's strategic use of renewable energy, PropTech solutions, and PACE financing not only benefits the environment but also boosts investor returns.

Aundre has certifications from Cornell’s Commercial Real Estate and Columbia’s Construction Finance Management. He also chairs the Offsite Construction Council with the National Institute of Building Sciences and the finance committee for EIC NY PACE. His innovative prowess was recognized when he won the NYC DOB "Hack the Building Code" contest, creating a solution to expedite permit approval and generate significant revenue for NYC. Aundre's disruptive approach and holistic perspective make him a valuable voice in ESG discussions and a key player in the future of sustainable development.

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Michele Pitale

Managing Director

Counterpointe Sustainable Real Estate

Prior to focusing on sustainable energy finance, Dr. Pitale was an Assistant Professor of Surgery and Otolaryngology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. Dr. Pitale also was a post-doctoral research fellow, in the Laboratory of Clinical Investigation, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a surgeon in the Critical Care Medical Department at the National Institutes for Health in Bethesda, MD. After receiving her medical degree from Temple University, Dr. Pitale completed her surgical residency at SUNY-Downstate and served as the Chief Resident at Georgetown University Hospital. Dr. Pitale holds a BS in chemistry from Juniata College in Pennsylvania. Dr. Pitale has authored a number of peer-reviewed research articles and surgical chapters in textbooks. Dr. Pitale's background provides a unique perspective on the scientific and business needs of sustainable real estate markets.

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Susan C Morth

CEO

EIC PACE

SUSAN MORTH is the CEO of the Energy Improvement Corporation, a NY State C-PACE program administrator. Ms. Morth leads overall operations, including the development and implementation of OPEN C-PACE, a public/private partnership that provides commercial property owners innovative financing for energy efficiency and renewable measures. Ms. Morth is the Founder and Chair of the EIC Advisory Committee, a national C-PACE working group which includes large commercial property managers and specialty finance companies. Ms. Morth has over 20 years of capital markets experience including the development of new financial products. Prior to EIC, Ms. Morth was a Partner at Empirical Research Partners and Sanford C. Bernstein & CO LLC.

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Curtis Probst

CEO

NYCEEC

Curtis Probst is CEO of New York City Energy Efficiency Corporation: a green bank that finances energy efficiency and clean energy projects in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, with a focus on disadvantaged communities. Before joining NYCEEC in 2018, he was a Managing Director and the Head of Sustainable Finance for RMI, a global clean energy think tank. Previously, Curtis worked in investment banking for over 24 years, most recently, as a Managing Director and the Head of Corporate Structured Finance at Goldman Sachs. Curtis received a BComm from University of Calgary, an MPA from Columbia University, an EdD from University of Pennsylvania, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst.

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Ian McCulley

Director

Enhanced Capital

 

Ian is a Director responsible for Enhanced Capital’s Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) business. Prior to joining Enhanced, Ian worked at B. Riley and Dialectic Capital as a hedge fund investment professional. Ian started his career at Grant’s Interest Rate Observer, a biweekly investment publication. Currently based in Denver, Ian attended the University of Colorado and enjoys being outside and in the mountains as much as possible.

2:30 pm: Panel Discussion: Structured and Mezzanine Debt

  • What are the current fundraising and investment prospects for structured and mezzanine debt across the capital stack?
  • What are the emerging asset types that are gaining traction in the market and how are lenders and borrowers approaching them?
  • What are the key considerations for lenders and borrowers when structuring financing for these alternative property types?
Moderator

Gary Zimmerman

SVP & Chief Underwriting Counsel

Fidelity National Title Group,

UCCPlus Division

A leading authority on Articles 8 and 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code and UCC Insurance, Gary supervises the UCCPlus team and participates in all of the company’s underwriting and policies.
As the Chief Underwriting Counsel for UCCPlus, Gary reviews and evaluates transaction structure and provides feedback on the insurability of real estate mezzanine loan transactions, project finance and energy transactions, and major-market working capital and term loans. He also advises outside counsel and major commercial lenders on UCC matters. In addition, Gary provides input to the Fidelity National Title Group companies on secured lending and UCC Articles 8 and 9 issues.
A practicing attorney since 1982, Gary is a frequent lecturer on matters involving Articles 8 and 9 of the UCC, commercial lending practices, UCC foreclosure rules and practice, and the terms, conditions and exclusions of personal property title insurance and endorsements. He is also on the faculty of the Commercial Finance Association’s Professional Education Programs.
Gary is a member of the American Bar Association’s Business Law Section and a member of the Chicago Bar Association. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Drake University and his law degree from DePaul University College of Law.
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Manish Shah

Senior Managing Director

Palladius Capital Management

Manish Shah is a Senior Managing Director at Palladius Capital Management, where he focuses on real estate investment origination and management and oversees legal matters for the firm. Mr. Shah is also a member of the firm’s investment committee and helps to lead the debt and income funds for Palladius.

Mr. Shah has decades of experience investing in real estate across the capital stack. Previously, Mr. Shah served as a principal and manager of numerous real estate investments, including control equity, preferred equity, mezzanine and senior debt investments. His prior experience includes the turnaround of a publicly traded company (acquired NYSE: EMR), where he was responsible for business and real estate acquisitions and divestitures. He began his career in the investment banking divisions of Bear Stearns and Morgan Stanley.

Mr. Shah has served on or currently serves on the Board of Advisors for Yale’s Jackson School of Global Affairs, Harvard’s Real Estate Alumni Board and the boards of public and private technology companies.

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Robert Friedman

Founder & Managing Principal

Tiberias Capital

Robert has over twenty five years of experience in finance, real estate and management. He was a Principal at Lanesborough Partners and a Managing Director at Bankers Capital Realty Advisors, both New York commercial real estate firm which specialized in placing debt and equity on behalf of developers, owners and operators of substantial properties and has arranged several billion dollars of financing since its inception. Robert held a senior role on the international finance desk at Oppenheimer & Co in New York and began his career with Paramount Capital. He currently serves as the Chief Business Development Officer of FullStack Modular, a leading modular innovator in the design, manufacture, and construction of mid- and high-rise multifamily buildings, hotels, and student housing in urban environments. He was also a Co-Founder of TechPrefab, a modular developer that uses a proprietary, cloud-based. construction platform for the design, procurement, material delivery and installation of homes, multifamily and commercial buildings.  Robert received his MBA from Yale University's School of Management with concentration in Finance, Real Estate & Marketing  and earned a BA in Economics from Yeshiva University.

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Nicholas Hoffman

Partner

Haynes Boone

Nick Hoffman is a partner in the Real Estate Practice Group in the New York office of Haynes and Boone. Nick regularly represents investment banks, commercial banks, and foreign and domestic private equity clients in sophisticated real estate transactions, including structured loans, mezzanine loans, construction financing, preferred equity investments and joint ventures. Nick devotes a significant portion of his practice to capital markets and syndication work in the debt space including note sales, intercreditor arrangements and participations. Nick also has experience with debt restructurings work-outs, and single asset and portfolio acquisitions and dispositions.

Before joining the firm, Nick was a senior executive with the Ruben Companies, a Manhattan based developer, and was involved in all aspects of the management and development of its office and residential portfolio in New York, Washington, D.C. and Boston.

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Shaunak Tanna

Executive Director

PGIM Real Estate

Shaunak Tanna is an executive director at PGIM Real Estate. Based in New York, Shaunak is responsible for sourcing, underwriting, and structuring real estate investments including senior and mezzanine loans and preferred equity transactions for the eastern U.S. 

Prior to joining PGIM Real Estate, Shaunak was Head of Structured Investments for Basis Investment Group, LLC, where he was responsible for the firm’s mezzanine and bridge lending, and originated a range of investments across stabilized, development and transitional value-add properties. Before Basis, he was with Terra Capital Partners, LLC and its affiliate The Greenwich Group International, LLC. 

Shaunak has a Bachelor of Commerce in accounting and taxation from the University of Mumbai and a Master of Business Administration in real estate from Baruch College. Shaunak is also a Chartered Accountant, and an active member of the Advisory Board for Steven Newman Real Estate Institute of Baruch College.

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Sebastian Post

Managing Director & Co-Head of Investments

Lionheart Strategic Management

Sebastian Post is Managing Director and Co-Head of Investments for Lionheart Strategic Management, LLC, the fund management affiliate of Fisher Brothers, and is responsible for sourcing new investments, capital raising, and management of operations. Since joining Fisher Brothers in 2011, Mr. Post has been involved in the creation of the fund management affiliate which has raised over $1 billion from investors. Mr. Post has been involved in the execution of over $2.0 billion of real estate equity investments and over $4.0 billion of real estate credit investments throughout the United States. Mr. Post received a Bachelor of Science in Finance at the University of Central Florida and received a Masters of Science in Real Estate Finance & Investment from New York University.

2:30 pm: Panel Discussion: Capital Solutions for your Joint Ventures Amid the National Deal Volume Dip

  • Where does the equity come from? Alternative channels for JV equity
  • How do you transition your firm from high-net-worth capital to institutional capital?
  • Foreign capital seeking joint ventures - which countries are most active?
  • Key considerations in cultivating and structuring joint ventures with families and private companies
  • Is joint venture real estate development through Tenancy in Common Investment (TIC) a golden opportunity for 1031 exchange investors?
Moderator

Carly Saviano

Partner

Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP

 

Carly G. Saviano is a partner in the firm's Real Estate Department. Carly represents all types of clients in the real estate industry, including developers, private equity investors and funds, hedge funds, REITS, public companies, high net worth real estate families and other real estate investors and operators, across all real estate asset classes. She advises on a broad range of complex real estate transactions, including acquisitions, dispositions, joint ventures, preferred equity investments, financings, workout negotiations and restructurings.

Carly was recognized as a 2020 Law360 Rising Star in Real Estate. She was also selected to serve on Law360’s Real Estate Editorial Advisory Board in 2020.
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Philip McAndrews

Sr EVP, Chief Strategy Officer

RXR Realty

 

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Michael Sorochinsky

Principal

Cypress Equity Investments LLC

 

As Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Michael Sorochinsky is the visionary of CEI and the driving force behind the company’s real estate portfolio. Michael’s investment strategies, business philosophy, and transaction execution diligence has brought about substantial annualized returns to equity.

Michael received his JD from the UCLA School of Law and is based in Denver, Colorado.

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Paul Fried

Executive Managing Director, Head of Equity Capital Markets

Greystone 

Paul M. Fried, Executive Managing Director and Head of Equity Capital Markets, is responsible for leading Greystone’s equity capital placement services. Paul and his team provide advice on structuring creative equity solutions and source institutional equity capital on behalf of real estate owners and developers across all commercial property types.

Paul has a JD from Rutgers (Newark), where he was an Editor of the Law Review, and a BA from Rutgers College (New Brunswick; History) where he was a Henry Rutgers Scholar. He is a Council Member of the Urban Land Institute.

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Craig Deitelzweig

CEO

Marx Realty & Improvement Co

Craig Deitelzweig joined Marx Realty as its President and CEO in 2017 and has been responsible for growing the company as well as streamlining the company’s strategy by focusing on value-add office investments in three core markets: New York City, Washington D.C. and Atlanta. Craig is also charged with repositioning Marx’s entire portfolio as well as growing the Marx team and profitability. Over his 25-year career, Craig has vast experience in every aspect of the real estate industry and believes in a very hands-on approach.  

 Prior to Marx, he held senior roles at both private equity and private development companies, including redeveloping over 50 assets in major markets across the country with a particular emphasis on NY and DC. Craig’s projects have received various awards from industry groups such as NAIOP, BOMA, Globe St., Crain’s, Washington Business Journal and AIA. He has been interviewed as a thought and innovation leader in several features in the Wall Street Journal, Fortune, CNN, CBS, Bloomberg and on CNBC, and was selected as one of the Real Estate Forum’s Best Bosses of 2019. Under Craig’s leadership, Marx was selected to Crain’s Best Places to Work in 2020, 2021, and 2022. 

 Craig graduated Cum Laude from Tulane University’s Freeman School of Business (where he currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Advisory Board) and earned a J.D. at Fordham University’s School of Law. Craig serves on the Mixed-Use Council of the Urban Land Institute as a ULI mentor; on the Strategic Advisory Council of Shadow Ventures, a venture capital firm specializing in PropTech investments; and on ULI's New York Awards Selection Committee. 

2:30 pm: Panel Discussion: Setting Up the First 90 days, 6 months and 1 year of Your ESG & DEI Journey

Identify the different actions you need to take based on where you are in your ESG and DEI journey. Discussion will include:

  • Establishing appropriate goals
  • Implementing proven strategies for faster and smarter adoption
  • Overcoming obstacles and challenges
  • Ensuring alignment of expectations
Moderator

Elsa Yih

Associate Portfolio Manager

Lendlease Americas

Elsa Yih is the Associate Portfolio Manager at Lendlease. She oversees the multifamily build-to-core and core strategies, managing a ~$3 billion build-to-core portfolio across US gateway cities. She joined Lendlease in 2019 to entitle and develop Downtown West, a transit-oriented masterplanned development in San José, CA, as part of Lendlease’s real estate partnership with Google in Silicon Valley.

Prior to joining Lendlease, Elsa worked for SunCal Companies, a family-owned land developer. She was responsible for acquisition and asset management of the company portfolio, including circa 22,000 units and lots across ~30 projects under development. Elsa has a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from University of Southern California.

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Lizzie Adams

Head of ESG, Americas Real Estate Investing, Goldman Sachs Asset Management

Goldman Sachs

 

Lizzie is a Vice President in Real Estate within Goldman Sachs Asset Management. She works in the ESG team and specifically focuses on reducing energy, water, and carbon emissions. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Lizzie led the R&D team at Carbon Lighthouse, a company that combines tech and retro-commissioning. Lizzie is a Professional Engineer with over 10 years of experience in HVAC design, sustainability consulting, and energy analysis. Lizzie earned a BS summa cum laude in Chemical Engineering from Northeastern University in Boston.

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Randall Drain

Managing Partner & Chief Investment Officer

ReedsBay

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Daren Moss

Principal, ESG - Real Estate Lead

Ares Management

Mr. Moss is a Principal in the Ares Environmental, Social and Governance Group. Prior to joining Ares in 2022, Mr. Moss was a Senior Vice President, Operations and Sustainability at Brixmor Property Group, where he focused on developing and overseeing their ESG program and climate change strategy, directed portfolio wide operations and sustainability initiatives, and led environmental risk and liability management. Previously, Mr. Moss was a Senior Project Manager at Roux Associates, Inc, where he focused on advising clients in a variety of industries related to legacy contamination issues and environmental aspects of property transactions and development. Mr. Moss holds a B.A. from Colgate University in Geology and an M.E.S. from the University of Pennsylvania in Environmental Studies. Mr. Moss is a licensed professional geologist in the State of New York.

3:00 pm: Afternoon Keynote Interview

Interviewer

Dan Berman

Partner

Kramer Levin

Daniel Ross Berman counsels developers, investors, lenders and operators in a range of real estate transactions, including acquisitions, dispositions, joint ventures, development deals, preferred equity investments, loans, leases, recapitalizations and restructurings. His work spans hospitality, industrial, health care, entertainment, retail, office, multifamily and mixed-use properties.

Dan has a national practice that includes acquisitions, dispositions and joint venture development deals across the country as well as a localized practice with an emphasis on complex development deals. For example, Dan is currently handling numerous redevelopment projects in New York City involving various religious and charitable institutions, each with different deal structures. These include ground leasing the land during development and dividing the ownership of the completed building between the developer and the institution by converting the property to a commercial condominium.  

Dan is a member of Kramer Levin’s Pro Bono, Ethics and Technology committees.

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Cary Carpenter

Managing Director  - Head of CRE Capital Markets, Trading & Syndication

Starwood Capital 

 

Cary has 20+ years of experience in different facets of commercial real estate ranging from structured finance to design and development.  Currently Cary is a Managing Director of CRE Capital Markets, Trading & Syndication at Starwood Capital.  His current responsibilities including pricing, structuring and capital commitment for the acquisition and sale of CRE debt for the Starwood REIT.  He is also responsibility financing and sales efforts of whole loans via private sales and the CMBS market as well as managing the warehouse lines for the REIT.

Prior to joining Starwood Cary was a Partner at Coastal Capital (2009 to 2010) where he managed the process of acquiring performing, sub-performing and non-performing CRE debt.  From 2004 to 2008 Cary was an Executive Vice President with Countryside CRE Finance and was responsible for the pricing, structuring and sale of all fixed and floating rate high yield commercial real estate debt.  

Prior to joining Countrywide Cary was a Partner at Coastal Capital Partners; a Managing Director for Precept Corporation, Vice President of Structured Finance at Nomura Asset Capital; Senior Consultant at Deloitte and Touche; Project Designer for The SWA Group and Sasaki Associates.

Cary earned an M.S. in Real Estate Development and Finance from Columbia University in 1993 and a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture from Kansas State University in 1988.

3:00 pm: Afternoon Keynote Interview

Interviewer

Ellie Perlman

Founder & CEO

 

Blue Lake Capital

 

The founder of Blue Lake Capital Group, Ellie Perlman, has over fifteen years of experience in real estate investment, law, and property management. Ellie leads Blue Lake Capital, which owns and manages over 3,300 multifamily units across the U.S.Ellie started her career in Israel as a commercial real estate lawyer, leading real estate transactions for Israel's largest development company.

Later, as a property manager for one of Israel's most prominent oil and gas companies, she oversaw an extensive portfolio of properties.Ellie holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management Bachelor's and a Master's in Law from Bar-Ilan University in Israel, as well as a bachelor’s degree in law.

In addition, Ellie is a long-term Forbes author on real estate investing.

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Dean Allara

Vice Chairman,

Bridge Investment Group

Dean Allara has served as one of Bridge Investment Group Holdings Inc.'s directors since its formation and is the Head of Client Solutions Group and a Partner of the Operating Company. Mr. Allara has been a principal of BFG since 1996. Mr. Allara currently serves on the investment committees for the general partners of Bridge Multifamily Funds III and IV, Bridge Workforce Funds I and II, Bridge Seniors Housing Funds I, II and III, Bridge Office Funds I and II, and Bridge Opportunity Zone Funds I, II, III and IV. He has over 30 years of experience in the real estate investment process including analyzing, capital raising, acquiring, financing, developing, managing, improving and selling properties. Mr. Allara has been directly responsible for capital raising and investment of over $5.0 billion in multifamily, seniors housing, single family residential, commercial office, resort, golf, hotel, and retail properties. Mr. Allara has experience in real property development including permits and zoning, master planning, debt financing, insurance, construction management, homeowners' association management, marketing, and residential sales. Mr. Allara received his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from St. Mary's College with a year spent at Loyola University of Rome and his Master of Business Administration from Santa Clara University including studies at University of Tokyo.

3:00 pm: Afternoon Keynote Interview

Interviewer

Jason S. Rozes

Partner

Dechert LLP

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Brooke Guven

Head of ESG & Sustainability & Managing Director

Cerberus Capital Management

Ms. Guven serves as the Head of Environmental, Social, Governance & Sustainability for Cerberus. In her role, Ms. Guven coordinates the Firm’s Environmental, Social, Governance (“ESG”) and sustainability efforts across all desks and investments.

Prior to joining Cerberus in 2022, Ms. Guven was a Senior Legal Researcher at the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (“CCSI”), a joint center of the Law School and the Earth Institute at Columbia University, which she joined in 2016. Her work at CCSI focused on aligning the legal and normative frameworks governing global investment activities with sustainable development objectives and outcomes. From 2011 to 2015, Ms. Guven was a senior associate in the banking group at Hogan Lovells US LLP, where she represented public and private financial institutions and borrowers in multi-jurisdictional financing transactions. Earlier in her career, Ms. Guven served as a legal advisor to the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare of the Government of Liberia, and as an associate in the banking group at McGuireWoods LLP.

3:30pm - Think tanks

Choose your topic for an interactive discussion with fellow attendees on the most pressing issues facing the industry. Network at small tables and participate in lively topical conversation. This format provides an excellent opportunity to meet your industry peers in a unique setting.

Think tank 1 - The rise and future of Single-Family Rental: Why Real Estate's sweetheart asset class is just getting started

  • Why do Single Family Rental and Build-for-Rent more specifically continue to be so attractive? What are the forces driving appetite and growth for this asset class? 
  • What does it take to win in this asset class? What are the table stakes and how to avoid being a tourist?
  • What are the key risks to keep in mind over the next 5 years and how to manage them (Leverage, construction costs, NOI margins) ?
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Thibault Adrien

Founder & CEO

Lafayette Real Estate

Thibault Adrien is the Founder & CEO of Lafayette Real Estate, as well as the founder & President of both Brandywine Homes USA and Marquis Homes, Lafayette's affiliated Property Management and Homebuilding operations respectively. Thibault oversees all investment decisions, asset management, fundraising and investor relations.

Prior to founding Lafayette, Thibault Adrien was a Senior Analyst at Sureview Capital, a long/short equity hedge fund, where he covered the U.S. Real Estate and Homebuilding sectors, as well as Vice President at Fortress Investment Group in the Private Equity area.

Lafayette was founded in 2011 as one of the first institutional investors in the Single Family Rental asset class. We are a vertically-integrated asset manager focused on addressing the shortage of homes in the US by developing and acquiring professionally-managed, high-quality single-family rental options to US households. Today, Lafayette manages approximately $1bn in real estate assets across a portfolio of ~4,000 single family homes located primarily in high growth Southeastern states. 

Think tank 2 – Maximizing Benefits in Real Estate Joint Ventures through Legal and Tax Strategies

  • What key factors should be considered and included in a written agreement when entering a joint venture?
  • What laws and tax regulations apply to domestic vs foreign investors in a JV?
  • What are the steps for operationalizing a joint venture termination agreement?
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Joseph Lanzkron

Partner

Cleary Gottlieb

Joseph Lanzkron’s practice focuses on real estate, corporate, and financial transaction. He regularly advises high-profile clients on complex real estate acquisitions, dispositions, and joint ventures. He also represents both borrowers and lenders in various mortgage and mezzanine financing transactions across multiple property types, including both securitized and balance sheet loans. Joseph joined Cleary in 2009 and became a partner in 2019.

Think tank 3 - Pursuit for Affordability

  • Explore strategies for development in low- to moderate-income areas, including overcoming market challenges and leveraging innovative financing.
  • Emphasize the importance of community partnerships, local insights, and tailored services for creating impactful and holistic housing solutions.
  • Utilize data-driven approaches and tools to assess project impact and inform future housing initiatives.
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Nina Tschinkel

Vice President

Catalyst Opportunity Funds

Nina is a Vice President at Catalyst Opportunity Funds, an impact-focused real estate investment firm with ~$300m under management and dozens of assets in strategic secondary markets around the US. Catalyst capitalizes ground up development projects led by community-driven, diverse developers working in low- to moderate-income (LMI) communities, with a primary focus on workforce affordable, multifamily housing. Nina leads the firm's impact strategy, investor relations and communications. She brings unique experience in business and sustainability strategy, impact measurement and reporting, brand communications and storytelling, and fundraising.

Prior to joining Catalyst, Nina spent nine years at Eileen Fisher, an iconic B Corp garment manufacturer and industry leader in sustainable apparel and circular design. At Eileen Fisher, Nina managed the Design and Merchandising departments, and developed sustainable product strategies to drive $400m in annual revenue across direct to consumer and wholesale channels. Nina was part of a core leadership team to create, implement and manage the company’s sustainability vision and strategy.

Nina holds an A.A. from Bard College, a B.A. from Davidson College and an M.B.A in Sustainability and Impact Finance from Bard Graduate Programs in Sustainability, the country’s foremost program in sustainable business.

Think tank 4 - Keeping JV Agreements Alive When Things Go Bad

  • During the good times, everyone wants to partner up, but when the economy goes bad, the partnership is the first thing to go bad—how to avoid it in the beginning, and what to do about it now
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Vivian C. de las Cuevas-Diaz

Partner, Deputy Section Leader

Holland & Knight

Vivian de las Cuevas-Diaz is an attorney in Holland & Knight's Miami office and serves as the firmwide deputy section leader of the Real Estate Section, assisting in managing the firm's nationwide real estate practice.
Ms. de las Cuevas-Diaz's practice is supplemented by her bilingual and multicultural team that facilitates her U.S.-based and international clients needs in their U.S. bound projects.

4:30 pm - Cocktail Reception & One-to-One Networking Meetings

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6:00 pm - Invitation Only Post Conference Dinner

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