Sue Ansel Gables Residential
Sue Ansel is President and Chief Executive Officer. In her 25 plus years with Gables, she has held positions in acquisitions, development, and operations and has led important company initiatives including the advancement of real estate technology efforts and third-party client services. Sue serves on several boards and committee’s including serving as an officer and on the Executive Committee of the National Multifamily Housing Council, and officer of The Real Estate Council and The Real Estate Council Foundation Board of Directors, The Dallas Summer Musical Board of Directors and DePauw University’s Board of Trustees. Sue is also a member of the Urban Land Institute and a graduate of DePauw University.
Ken Bacon Railfield Realty Partners
Ken Bacon, is co-founder and managing partner of Railfield Realty Partners, an investment management firm that invests in apartments on behalf of institutional investors and family offices. He started Railfield after retiring from Fannie Mae, where he was Executive Vice President for the multifamily business. In this role, Ken was responsible for a $195 billion portfolio, which included senior debt, mezzanine loans, tax credits and equity. Prior to joining Fannie Mae, he served as Director of Securitization at the Resolution Trust Corporation, and as an officer of Morgan Stanley. In addition to his duties at Railfield, Ken serves as a director of Comcast, Ally Financial, Forest City Realty Trust and Welltower. A former trustee of Stanford University, he is also a member of various advisory boards at the school including the Stanford Center on Longevity. He has a B.A. from Stanford, a M.Sc. from the London School of Economics where he studied as a Marshall Scholar, and a MBA from the Harvard Graduate School of Business.
Laurie Baker Camden Property Trust
Laurie Baker is Senior Vice President of Fund and Asset Management for Camden Property Trust. Baker is responsible for the creation, marketing, and administration of Camden's first investment funds, which has $1.2 billion in assets. She is also a member of Camden’s investment committee and is responsible for leading the organization’s pricing and revenue strategies.
During her 18-year tenure with Camden, Baker has held several positions. As Regional Vice President, she was responsible for managing over 10,000 apartment homes in Texas. As Vice President of Property Services, she was responsible for building complimentary technology strategies to enhance revenues and decrease expenditures. She served as the executive sponsor for Camden's technology initiative, which included managing several technology investments and the rollout of Camden's web- based property management software, revenue management, and an online procurement system.
Before joining Camden, Baker was Vice President at Walden Residential Properties and spent nine years at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Chevy Chase, MD. She holds a MBA in Finance from George Washington University, and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Sam Houston State University.
She serves on the Board of Directors Executive Committee for the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC), is a member of ULI's Multifamily Bronze Council, and a frequent speaker in the multifamily industry. Baker is the Immediate Past President of CREW Network, past President for CREW Houston and in 2012 was honored as one of the Top 15 Women in Commercial Real Estate. She is a licensed real estate broker in the state of Texas and was recently recognized by Real Estate Forum as a Women of Influence for a third straight year.
Dave Bragg Green Street Advisors
Dave is a Managing Director at Green Street Advisors. He leads Green Street's residential research team including the apartment and single-family rental sectors and plays a senior role in developing the firm’s macro research. Since joining Green Street in 2013, Dave helped build the firm’s proprietary single-family rental database and also was Green Street's lead research analyst for student housing, self-storage, and manufactured housing. His macro research work includes Transportation Revolution, a mid-‘16 report detailing the significant expected impact of driverless cars and ride-hailing on all real estate sectors, and Reform-Minded, a late-’16 report outlining the potential implications of comprehensive tax reform for real estate. Dave is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and has been quoted widely in the financial media including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Bloomberg, Grant’s Interest Rate Observer and Barron's. He is a member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC). Prior to joining Green Street in 2013, Dave developed and led the REIT effort at Zelman & Associates. Before that, he was a member of the REIT teams at ISI Group and Merrill Lynch. Dave earned an M.A. in International Business from the University of Florida, and a B.A. in International Relations from Tufts University.
Dana Carvey
Dana Carvey serves as the “expert-in-residence” in USA Network’s new comedic half hour series “First Impressions.” The show pits America’s best amateur impressionists against each other in a weekly battle of celebrity impressions with Carvey mentoring each contestant.
Emmy-award winning comedian Dana Carvey is best known for his “Saturday Night Live” characters such as the Church Lady; Hans, of the Hans and Franz body building duo; Garth, Wayne Campbell’s (Mike Myers) ‘Excellent Co-Host’ on popular sketch ‘Wayne’s World,’ and Weekend Updates Grumpy Old Man. Dana has received praise for his comedic impersonations of political figures as Ex-President George Bush, H. Ross Perot, Jerry Brown, David Duke and Bob Dole. He also does impersonations of George Burns, Johnny Carson, Jimmy Stewart, John McLaughlin, Mickey Rooney, Casey Casem, and Regis Philbin.
Carvey can also be seen in Alan Parker’s “The Road to,” for Columbia Pictures, Richard and Lili Zanuck’s “Clean Slate” for MGM, and Twentieth Century Fox’s “Trapped in Paradise.” His early film work includes his debut in “This is Spinal Tap,” “Racing with the Moon,” “One of the Group” where he portrayed Mickey Rooney’s grandson, “Blue Thunder” with James Farentino, “Tough Guys” with Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas, and the comedy “Opportunity Knocks.” In 2004, he starred in “The Master of Disguise,” a comedy fantasy for the whole family which features Carvey in 36 different identities and speaking 14 different languages as the hapless and heroic Pistachio Disguisey.
Carvey won an Emmy Award in 1993 for Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program. He has received a total of six Emmy nominations one of which was for a guest appearance on “Larry Sanders Show.” He was also honored with The American Comedy Award as Television’s Funniest Supporting Male in 1990 and 1991.
Robert E. DeWitt GID
Robert E. DeWitt is Vice Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of GID. He oversees corporate strategy development, new client/equity partner sourcing and procurement, property acquisitions and dispositions, client relations and overall management of the company. In his oversight of GID's equity co-investment programs – the Windsor Realty Funds – Mr. DeWitt directs real estate acquisitions, dispositions, portfolio management and partner communications. Previously, he was Chief Investment Officer of GID and Senior Vice President of GID Acquisitions. Mr. DeWitt joined the company as Vice President of GID Acquisitions in 1987. From 1982 to 1987, he worked as Vice President of Acquisitions at Winthrop Financial Associates, a national real estate investment banking and syndication firm based in Boston.
Mr. DeWitt received an MBA from The Amos Tuck School of Business Administration at Dartmouth College and a BA from Middlebury College.
Stan Dobbs Apartment Life
Stan Dobbs is the Founder and CEO of Apartment Life. After a career in sales with Compaq Computer Corporation, Stan went to seminary and joined the staff of First Baptist Church of Euless, TX. During his pastorate he became passionate about serving apartment communities and in 2000 launched Apartment Life. Stan and his wife Vicky have been married for 28 years and they reside in Euless with their children – Amelia, Aaron, Elliott, and Graham.
Lili Dunn Bell Partners
Ms. Dunn joined Bell Partners in 2010 as the CIO and eventually chair of the Executive Committee. In early 2016, she assumed the role of President and oversees all aspects of the company's business including Investment, Finance, Operations, Fund Management, Accounting and Construction. Ms. Dunn is also responsible for guiding the company's investment strategy, broadening its institutional capital sources, strengthening the investment infrastructure and directing transaction and financing initiatives. Prior to joining Bell Partners, Ms. Dunn was a 20-year veteran with AvalonBay Communities, a leading public apartment REIT and a member of the S&P 500, and Trammell Crow Residential, its predecessor entity. In her role, she was responsible for the company's national transaction activity, which consisted of roughly 60,000 apartment homes valued at approximately $6.5 billion. Ms. Dunn also helped to raise and oversee AvalonBay's discretionary institutional investment vehicles with total equity commitments of $730 million.
Ms. Dunn is on the Executive Board of National Multi Housing Council and was Chairperson of its Finance Committee from 2006 to 2010. She is Vice Chair of the multifamily council of ULI and a member of PREA and CREW. Ms. Dunn earned her BS from the University of Michigan where she graduated with highest honors.
Established in 1976, Bell Partners Inc. is a privately held, vertically integrated apartment investment and management company focused on institutional multifamily communities across the United States. With approximately 65,000 units under management, Bell Partners is one of the largest apartment operators and renovators in the United States. The Company completed over $11 billion of apartment transactions since 2002 and achieved a net IRR and multiple of 17.5% and 2.2x on $5.4B of sales during that time.
Ken Dychtwald
Over the past 35+ years, Dr. Ken Dychtwald has emerged as North America’s foremost visionary and original thinker regarding the lifestyle, marketing, health care, and workforce implications of the age wave.
Ken is a psychologist, gerontologist, and best-selling author of 16 books on aging-related issues, including Bodymind; Age Wave: The Challenges and Opportunities of an Aging Society; Age Power: How the 21st Century Will Be Ruled by the New Old; The Power Years: A User’s Guide to the Rest of Your Life; Workforce Crisis: How to Beat the Coming Shortage of Skills and Talent; Gideon’s Dream: A Tale of New Beginnings and, most recently, A New Purpose: Redefining Money, Family, Work, Retirement, and Success. He is currently writing The Longevity Economy: Tomorrow’s Biggest Market is Hiding in Plain Sight. In 2007, he debuted as a filmmaker and host with the highly rated/acclaimed PBS documentary, The Boomer Century: 1946–2046.
Since 1986, Ken has been the founding President and CEO of Age Wave, a firm created to guide companies and government groups in product/service development for boomers and mature adults. His client list includes over half the Fortune 500, and his explorations and innovative solutions have fertilized and catalyzed a broad spectrum of industry sectors—from pharmaceuticals and medical devices, to automotive design and retail merchandising, to financial planning and health insurance. He serves on the Milken Institute Center for the Future of Aging Advisory Board.
Ken was recently honored by Investment Advisor as one of the 35 most influential thought leaders in the financial services industry over the past 35 years. He has served as a fellow of the World Economic Forum, and he was a featured speaker at two White House Conferences on Aging. Ken received the distinguished American Society on Aging Award for outstanding national leadership, and American Demographics honored him as the single most influential marketer to baby boomers over the past quarter century. His article in the Harvard Business Review, “It’s Time to Retire Retirement,” was awarded the prestigious McKinsey Award, tying for first place with the legendary Peter Drucker. During his career, Ken has addressed more than two million people worldwide in his speeches to corporate, association, social service, and government groups. His strikingly accurate predictions and innovative ideas are regularly featured in leading print and electronic media worldwide, including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, USA Today, the Financial Times, Fortune, Time, Newsweek, BusinessWeek, U.S. News and World Report, the Economist, South China Morning Post, the Standard, the Straits Times, 60 Minutes, Good Morning America, ABC World News Tonight, Today Show, PBS, NPR, and BBC.
Through his highly-acclaimed presentations, his breakthrough research and consulting initiatives, and his leadership within both the social science and business communities, Ken Dychtwald has dedicated his life to battling ageist stereotypes while promoting a new, vital, and purposeful role for life’s second half.
Ken and his wife Maddy live in the San Francisco Bay Area with their two wonderful children, Casey and Zak. -
Bob Faith Greystar
As Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Greystar, Bob leads the Company’s Investment Committee, Operating Committee, and Board of Directors. He is responsible for the strategic planning and growth of the Company and maintains oversight over all aspects of the Company, working closely with business leaders while emphasizing Greystar’s Six Pillars of Excellence – People, Customer Satisfaction, Operational Excellence, Profitability, Growth, and Community.
After receiving a BS in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Oklahoma and an MBA from Harvard Business School, Bob began his real estate career with the Trammell Crow Company and served as a partner in their Charlotte, NC office. In 1991, he co-founded Starwood Capital Partners, LP, a private investment company. In 1993, Bob founded Greystar Real Estate Partners, LLC in Houston, TX. From February 1996 to December 1997 he founded and served as CEO of Homegate Hospitality, Inc. Bob also served from December 2002 until February 2006 as the Secretary of Commerce for the State of South Carolina.
Bob is a member of the National Multifamily Housing Council, the Pension Real Estate Association, and the Urban Land Institute. Bob and his family reside in Charleston, SC.
Todd Farrell Lennar Mulitfamily Communities
Todd Farrell is the President of Lennar Multifamily Communities. Todd, a 28-year veteran of the industry, has developed or acquired over 28,000 units at a total cost of over $3.5 billion. Todd has served in leadership positions at JPI and Lincoln Property Company, serving as Regional Partner for both companies. He also served as Executive Vice President-Investments for a publicly traded REIT, Summit Properties (NYSE: SMT). Most recently, he served as President of the Multifamily Division of Crescent Resources, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based real estate firm. He has successfully executed projects with a multitude of institutional partners, including Goldman Sachs, Prudential Real Estate Investors, The Carlyle Group, AIG, UBS among several others.”
Farrell was the founding employee of Lennar Multifamily Communities, which began operation in 2011. The Company has grown to over 400 associates in 13 regional offices nationwide, $3.3 billion in projects either complete, under construction, or JV owned, and a forward pipeline of over $3.2 billion (+8,800 units). Farrell is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and is a member of both the Urban Land Institute and National Multi Housing Council. He resides in Charlotte, North Carolina.
William J. Ferguson Ferguson Partners Ltd. & FPL Advisory Group
William J. Ferguson serves as Chairman and CEO of Ferguson Partners Ltd. and as the Co-Chairman and Co-CEO of FPL Advisory Group. Mr. Ferguson conducts senior management recruiting assignments, with a specialization in president/chief executive officer searches and recruiting assignments for Boards of Trustees/Directors. He also facilitates public company Board assessments.
Before founding Ferguson Partners Ltd.in 1989, Mr. Ferguson was a Managing Director with one of the leading international executive recruiting consultants. There, he co-managed the firm’s national real estate practice. Prior to focusing in real estate, Mr. Ferguson worked for General Mills, Inc. in Minneapolis in strategic marketing.
Mr. Ferguson holds a B.A. from Harvard University, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and an M.B.A. in marketing from the Wharton Graduate School of Business.
Rick Graf Pinnacle
As President and CEO of Pinnacle, Rick Graf draws on over 40 years of experience to provide strategic oversight for the company’s vision and long-term growth, while managing a spectrum of assets for major institutional clients across multiple states. He has served in a variety of leadership capacities since joining the company in 1996. Rick is an active member of NMHC, IREM, NAHB and NAA, where he serves on the Board of Directors as Secretary.
John Gray LMC, a Lennar Company
Mr. Gray is Managing Director and Head of Investments for LMC, Lennar's multifamily arm. Since John joined LMC in 2011; the firm has capitalized over $5.0 billion in apartment development including a $2.2 billion build-to-core fund closed in 2016 and controls a pipeline of approximately 22,000 units for future development.
Prior to LMC, John was with Crescent Communities and Grandbridge. He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a member of NMHC and ULI.
Jeff Greenfield
Jeff Greenfield is an award-winning television journalist and author focusing on politics, media, and culture. He served as a senior political correspondent for CBS News from May 2007 to April 2011. He also contributed to the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric, The Early Show, CBS News Sunday Morning, and other CBS News broadcasts, as well as CBSNews.com.
Prior to his return to CBS, Greenfield had been a senior analyst for CNN since 1998. During that time, he served as the lead analyst for its coverage of the primaries, conventions, presidential debates, and election night, as well as presidential funerals and Supreme Court nomination hearings. He also reported on the media, culture, and trends for the cable network.
Before joining CNN, Greenfield was a political and media analyst for ABC News (1983-1997), appearing primarily on Nightline and delivering weekly commentaries for World News Sunday. Additionally, Greenfield appeared on William F. Buckley’s “Firing Line” television program in 1968 and PBS' “We Interrupt This Week.” He was also the host of the national public television series "CEO Exchange," featuring in-depth interviews with high-profile chief executive officers, for five seasons.
Though Greenfield's reporting has taken him to locales around the world, from South Africa to Japan to Europe, he is principally known for his coverage of domestic politics and media. He has served as a floor reporter or anchor booth analyst for every national convention since 1988. He has twice been named to TV Guide's All-Star team as best political commentator and was cited by the Washington Journalism Review as "the best in the business" for his media analysis. Greenfield has also won four Emmy Awards: two for his reporting from South Africa, one for a report on Ross Perot, and one for a profile of Robert Kennedy.
A native of New York City, Greenfield graduated with honors from the University of Wisconsin, where he was editor-in-chief of The Daily Cardinal. He graduated with honors from the Yale Law School, where he was a Note and Comment Editor of the Yale Law Journal. Following law school, Greenfield worked as a speechwriter for Robert F. Kennedy, both in his Senate office and in the 1968 Presidential campaign. He then worked as chief speechwriter for New York Mayor John Lindsay. Greenfield also spent seven years working with political consultant David Garth.
A prolific author, Greenfield's work has appeared in many publications, including The New York Times Magazine, Harper's and National Lampoon. He is also the author or co-author of 13 books. His first novel, The People's Choice (1995), was a national bestseller and was named by The New York Times Book Review as one of the notable books of the year. Then Everything Changed: Stunning Alternate Histories of American Politics, one of Greenfield's most recent books, became a national bestseller and was a finalist for the 2011 Sidewise Award for Alternate History, Long Form. A chapter of the book was made into a one-hour television program that aired in the fall of 2013 on The Military Channel. His latest book, If Kennedy Lived, has been optioned for development as a mini-series. He is now at work on a novel.
Mitch Harrison First Communities
Mitch Harrison is President and CEO of First Communities. He initially began his career in the capital markets industry in London and New York City. He later transitioned to the Multi-Family industry with First Communities in Atlanta, GA as a Renovation/Maintenance Supervisor and has held various leadership roles within the company. He is actively involved in the management of over 35,000 units that range from class A, B and new development assets located throughout the Eastern and Southern half of the United States.
Mitch is a licensed Georgia Realtor and was the 2013 President of the Atlanta Apartment Association. He is the current Chairman of the Georgia Apartment Industry Education Foundation, sits on the Board of the Atlanta Apartment Association, and is an active board member at the Atlanta Community Food Bank. Mitch graduated From Furman University with a B.A. in History. He is married with three children and resides in Atlanta, GA.
Bob Kettler Kettler Bob Kettler is the Chief Executive Officer and owner of Kettler, one of the D.C. region’s largest private companies and a leading real estate development and property management enterprise.
Mr. Kettler began his career in the early 1970’s renovating apartments and retail stores, as well as building new homes in D.C. neighborhoods. In 1977 he formed Kettler (under the name Kettler and Scott) as a home building company and later transitioned from home builder to planned community developer in the early 1980’s.
Utilizing capital from institutional investors and banking institutions, Kettler experienced rapid growth and became the leading planned community developer in the D.C. region. In over 25 projects, Kettler has provided 46,000 developed lots to both public and private home builders, 15 shopping centers, 10 million square feet of planned commercial uses, and 8 eight championship golf courses. Examples of these developments in Virginia include Cascades, Brambleton and Piedmont. Currently, Kettler has over 2,000 lots in development, primarily in infill locations, on a total of 10 properties from Baltimore, MD to Fredericksburg, VA.
Kettler has been successful in developing several notable commercial mixed-use projects of approximately 5 million square feet including the 1.4MM square foot Village at Leesburg and the 2MM square foot Trinity Center.
Beginning in 1988, Kettler entered the apartment development industry building over 18,000 multifamily units in tax credit, garden, mid-rise, high-rise and mixed-use properties. These developments also include award winning luxury apartment communities such as Metropolitan Park in Pentagon City as well as 2,500 condominium homes with a gross sales value of nearly $1 billion. Examples of these communities are Midtown Alexandria Station and Midtown Reston Town Center.
Currently ranked as the 16th largest multifamily developer in the nation and the 2015 development firm of the year by MHN, Kettler’s development pipeline includes nearly 3,000 total units. Projects currently under construction in the D.C. metropolitan area are Element 28 in Bethesda, m.flats Crystal City in Arlington, 2101 Champlain Street in Washington D.C. and Highgate in McLean, VA.
Additionally in 1988, Kettler established Kettler Management, the property management division of the organization. Recognized for its excellence and ranked #44 on the NMHC Top 50 Largest Apartment Managers list for 2016, Kettler Management provides best in class management, marketing, and pre- development services to its clients. The company currently manages 30,000+ apartments in 100+ communities throughout the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, South East and Texas for both Kettler and third- party clients.
Recognized as a leader in the real estate development industry, Mr. Kettler has been the recipient of the Building Industry Association’s Monument Lifetime Achievement Award, the Developer of the Year award given by the National Association of Home Builder’s as well as appearing on the Washington Business Journals Power 100 list for the last three consecutive years.
Currently, Mr. Kettler serves on the board of the Trust for the National Mall, the Tysons Partnership board, the Kennedy Center corporate board and Wesley Seminary board. Throughout his tenure, Mr. Kettler served on boards for George Mason University, Northern Virginia Community College, the Northern Virginia Building Industry Association, and the National Methodist Church. He has also served as a Trustee at St. Patrick’s Episcopal Day School in Washington, D.C., and the Potomac School in McLean, VA. Mr. Kettler and his wife, Charlotte, co-chaired a successful $50 million capital campaign to redevelop the Potomac School in McLean, VA.
Kettler also sponsors an annual scholars program at the George Mason University Center for Regional Analysis for the study of multifamily housing. Additionally, since its grand opening in 2006, Kettler has been the sponsor of the Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Arlington, the state of the art official training center for The Washington Capitals.
Mr. Kettler has been married to his wife Charlotte for 31 years. The couple has four adult children and reside in McLean, VA.
Mark King adidas Group North America
Mark King, the president of adidas Group North America and chairman of the TaylorMade Golf Company, was born and raised in Green Bay, Wisconsin and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. He joined TaylorMade Golf, then a start-up company, in 1980 and spent 20 years in sales before he was elevated to president in 1999 and CEO in 2002. King immediately implemented a strategy of developing innovative, technologically superior equipment for better players at a fast rate, and success quickly followed. TaylorMade became the No. 1 driver brand on world’s major professional tours, and sales rose steadily from $300 million in 1999 to $1.7 billion in 2012, although the industry was flat and the world economy was challenging. King oversaw the acquisition of the Ashworth and Adams Golf brands, and instigated growth every product category: clubs, balls, footwear, apparel and accessories.
Today, TaylorMade metalwoods and irons each rank No. 1 in U.S. market share and adidas Golf apparel ranks No. 1 and footwear No. 2. King has been the focus of feature articles in numerous publications including Fortune, Brandweek and Harvard Business Review, and participated in the television show Undercover Boss. A member of the Washington Speakers Bureau, King has given scores of speeches throughout the country based on his experiences as a leader in his industry and a lifelong sales professional. Despite the many demands on his time he remains a scratch golfer, and was inducted into the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.
Peter Kuzma Waterton
Mr. Kuzma joined Waterton in 2008 and serves as vice president of multifamily acquisitions. Since joining Waterton, Mr. Kuzma has been involved with the acquisition of over $1.75 billion in multifamily investments nationwide. Mr. Kuzma is currently responsible for sourcing acquisition opportunities in the western region which includes California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, Minnesota and Illinois. Mr. Kuzma resides in San Francisco where he works from Waterton’s western region office.
Mr. Kuzma received a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. He is a member of the National Multi Housing Council Emerging Leaders Group as well as the Wisconsin Real Estate Alumni Association.
Chris Lackett PGIM Real Estate (“PGIM”)
Chris Lackett is an Assistant Vice President with PGIM Real Estate (“PGIM”) and is a member of the PRISA III fund team. Chris joined PGIM in June 2015 and is responsible for oversight on much of PRISA III’s multifamily activities in the eastern portion of the US (~ $1.0 billion of AUM). Prior to PGIM, Chris was a Vice President at BlackRock Realty Advisors where he part of the acquisitions team covering the Southeast, Midwest and Texas markets that originated over $500 million in new investments since 2011. Before joining BlackRock, Chris was an associate within Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s (“BAML”) real estate investment banking group from 2009-2011. During his tenure at BAML, he was involved in over $1.5 billion worth of capital markets and initial public offering transactions.
Chris received his MBA from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in 2009 with a concentration in real estate and finance and received his BA in Economics from Bucknell University in 2002, where he was a member of the men’s baseball team.
David Leopold Freddie Mac
David Leopold is Freddie Mac’s Vice President for Target Affordable Production and Investments for the multifamily business. He is responsible for approximately $5 billion in annual production including all relationships and transactions involving targeted affordable lenders, borrowers, and tax credit syndicators. He is also the lead contact with housing finance agencies, municipalities, and community- based organizations for Freddie Mac Multifamily’s affordable housing and community development products and services.
Prior to joining Freddie Mac in 2015 David led Tax Credit Equity Origination for Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where his team produced $1.2 billion in annual equity investments in Low-Income, Historic, and New Markets Tax Credits. Prior to that he managed Bank of America’s Community Development Lending platform, where he was responsible for $1.6 billion in annual loan originations and a portfolio of $4 billion in real estate secured assets. David’s experience also includes municipal bond financing, loan and tax credit syndication, structured debt products, and public policy related to economic and community development.
David has undergraduate and graduate degrees with honors from Fordham University and the University of Colorado respectively. He is a member of the Urban Land Institute and on the Board of Directors of Enterprise Community Investments, a national real estate investment firm focused on affordable housing and community development. He also serves on the Board and Executive Committee of the Lisner Home, a Washington, DC non-profit providing affordable assisted living and skilled nursing to very low-income seniors. David lives in Washington, DC with his wife and two children.
Cliff Majersik Institute for Market Transformation
Cliff Majersik is the executive director of the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT), a nonprofit organization in Washington, DC, that promotes energy efficiency in buildings. Under his leadership, IMT has expanded its work nationally and internationally, and become a recognized leader in the energy efficiency field.
Majersik is a pioneer of energy efficiency concepts that have gained national prominence. His work on mortgage finance policy led to the introduction of federal legislation in 2011, and he was instrumental in crafting Washington, DC’s Clean and Affordable Energy Act of 2008 and its Green Building Act of 2006. He continues to advise private-sector leaders and provide expert assistance to government officials in developing energy and building policy.
Majersik is a frequent public speaker and has presented at events hosted by the White House Council on Environmental Quality, the U.S. Department of Energy, Bloomberg New Energy Finance, and the New York Academy of Sciences.
Prior to joining IMT in 2002, Majersik directed eBusiness at Conservation International’s Center for Environmental Leadership in Business. He also worked as a management consultant at the Corporate Executive Board, and before that, founded a venture-backed collaboration software company.
A LEED Accredited Professional, Cliff holds a bachelor’s degree from Williams College. You can follow Cliff on Twitter at @IMTCliff
Will Matthews Colliers International
AREA OF EXPERTISE Leader of the Southeast Multifamily Advisory Group, Will brings a high intensity, customer satisfaction, driven personality to the platform. Since 2012, Will has sold 23,587 apartment units totaling $2.7 billion. Prior to joining Colliers, Will worked as the Director of Acquisition for Southeast Capital Companies. Will brings several years of experience in commercial real estate, primarily focusing on multifamily investment services and capital markets. Will’s responsibilities include investment sales, equity raising, business development, existing client relations.
BUSINESS AND EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND Will’s responsibilities include multifamily investment sales, business development, financial and debt analysis, market research, due diligence and offering memorandum production. Prior to Colliers International, Will worked at the following organizations:
• Southeast Capital Companies (Atlanta, GA) 2010-2011
• Colliers CRE (London, UK) 2008
• Opus South Corporation (Atlanta, GA) 2007 – 2008
Will was a double major graduating with honors from the University of Georgia and completed his Masters in Building Construction from the Georgia Institute of Technology
PROFESSIONAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS • 2013 L. Frederick Glass, Jr. Rookie of the Year Recipient • 2013 CoStar Power Broker
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT • Two time Ironman finisher
Hessam Nadji Marcus & Millichap
Hessam Nadji is president and chief executive officer of Marcus & Millichap, a leading commercial real estate firm specializing in investment sales, financing, research and advisory services. Founded in 1971, Marcus & Millichap has grown to over 1,600 investment and financing professionals with offices throughout the United States and Canada. In 2015, the firm completed 8,700 transactions with a sales volume of $37 billion.
Mr. Nadji joined Marcus & Millichap in 1996 as vice president of research and advisory services and positioned the firm as a leading provider of market trends, analyses and expertise. Over the years, his role expanded to include marketing and strategy, enabling him to play a key role in establishing and growing Marcus & Millichap’s national brand. In 2010, Mr. Nadji assumed the leadership role for all of the firm’s national specialty brokerage divisions, which grew rapidly under his supervision. Marcus & Millichap’s specialty divisions function as client service teams of specialists with in-depth expertise in 12 real estate segments and achieved sales of $21.5 billion in 2015. Mr. Nadji also played a leading role in the preparation and execution of the firm’s IPO in 2013 as Marcus & Millichap’s chief strategy officer. He was named president and CEO in April 2016. Mr. Nadji is frequently sourced on behalf of the firm by national business media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, Investor’s Business Daily, Real Estate Forum, CNBC, Fox Business TV, Bloomberg TV, and numerous commercial real estate publications.
Prior to joining Marcus & Millichap, Mr. Nadji was senior vice president at Grubb & Ellis, where he began his career in 1986. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in information management and computer science from City University in Seattle. Mr. Nadji is a member of the National Multi Housing Council executive committee, the Urban Land Institute, the International Council of Shopping Centers and NAIOP.
Ella Shaw Neyland Steadfast
Ella Shaw Neyland serves as President and affiliated director of Steadfast Apartment REIT III. She also serves as President and an affiliated director of Steadfast Apartment REIT and Steadfast Income REIT, positions she has held since October 2012. From October 2011 to September 2012, Ms. Neyland served as an independent director and Audit Committee Chair of Steadfast Income REIT.
Ms. Neyland has considerable experience in real estate investment, development and finance. Most recently, while with Montecito Medical Investment Company, she advised the company in the acquisition of 43 medical properties with over two million square feet in 13 states, as well as the acquisition of 8,300 apartments in 29 communities.
From 2001 to 2004, Ms. Neyland served as Executive VP, Treasurer and Investor Relations Officer of United Dominion Realty Trust (“UDR”), where she was responsible for capital market transactions, banking relationships, and presentations to investors and Wall Street analysts. Ms. Neyland also was a voting member of UDR’s Investment Committee, which oversaw the repositioning of over $3 billion of investments.
Prior to 2001, Ms. Neyland served as the CFO at Sunrise Housing, a privately-owned multifamily development company, and as the Senior VP of Finance and the VP of Troubled Debt Restructures/Finance for the Lincoln Property Company, a multifamily development and property management firm.
In addition to her extensive real estate background, Ms. Neyland has held executive positions in the banking industry, including CIBC, BancOne and Frost Bank.
Ms. Neyland is currently a Board member for the Investment Program Association (IPA) and she is a member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI).
Ms. Neyland received a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice is currently the Denning professor in Global Business and the Economy at the Stanford Graduate School of Business; the Thomas and Barbara Stephenson senior fellow on public policy at the Hoover Institution; and a professor of Political Science at Stanford University. She is also a founding partner of RiceHadleyGates, LLC.
From January 2005-2009, Rice served as the 66th Secretary of State of the United States, the second woman and first African American woman to hold the post. Rice also served as President George W. Bush’s assistant to the President for national security affairs (National Security Advisor) from January 2001-2005, the first woman to hold the position.
Rice served as Stanford University’s provost from 1993-1999, during which she was the institution's chief budget and academic officer. As provost, she was responsible for a $1.5 billion annual budget and the academic program involving 1,400 faculty members and 14,000 students. In 1997, she also served on the Federal Advisory Committee on Gender-Integrated Training in the Military.
From 1989 through March 1991, Rice served on President George H.W. Bush’s National Security Council staff. She served as director; senior director of Soviet and East European Affairs; and, special assistant to the President for national security affairs. In 1986, while an international affairs fellow of the Council on Foreign Relations, Rice also served as special assistant to the director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
As professor of Political Science, Rice has been on the Stanford faculty since 1981 and has won two of the highest teaching honors—the 1984 “Walter J. Gores Award for Excellence in Teaching” and the 1993 “School of Humanities and Sciences Dean's Award for Distinguished Teaching”.
She has authored and co-authored numerous books, including two best sellers, No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington (2011) and Extraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family (2010); Germany Unified and Europe Transformed: A Study in Statecraft (1995) with Philip Zelikow; The Gorbachev Era (1986) with Alexander Dallin; and Uncertain Allegiance: The Soviet Union and the Czechoslovak Army (1984).
In 1991, Rice cofounded the Center for a New Generation (CNG), an innovative, after-school academic enrichment program for students in East Palo Alto and East Menlo Park, California. In 1996, CNG merged with the Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula (an affiliate club of the Boys and Girls Clubs of America). CNG has since expanded to local BGCA chapters in Birmingham, Atlanta, and Dallas. She remains an active proponent of an extended learning day through after school programs.
Since 2009, Rice has served as a founding partner at RiceHadleyGates, LLC, an international strategic consulting firm based in Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C. The firm works with senior executives of major companies to implement strategic plans and expand in emerging markets. Other partners include former National Security Advisor Stephen J. Hadley and former Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates.
Rice currently serves on the board of Dropbox, an online-storage technology company, C3, an energy software company, and Makena Capital, a private endowment firm. In addition, she is a member of the boards of the George W. Bush Institute, the Commonwealth Club, the Aspen Institute, and the Boys and Girls Clubs of America. Previously, Rice served on various additional boards, including: KiOR, Inc.; the Chevron Corporation; the Charles Schwab Corporation; the Transamerica Corporation; the Hewlett- Packard Company; the University of Notre Dame; the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; and, the San Francisco Symphony Board of Governors.
In 2013, Rice was appointed to the College Football Playoff Committee (CFPC), formerly the Bowl Championship Series (BCS). In 2015, The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame named Rice the 2015 recipient of the organization’s highest and most prestigious honor, the “NFF Gold Medal”, citing her “significant contributions to our country and her love of the game of college football.” The award Rice is the first woman to ever be nationally recognized by the NFF.
Born in Birmingham, Alabama, Rice earned her bachelor's degree in Political Science, cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of Denver; her master's degree from the University of Notre Dame; and her Doctor of Philosophy degree from the Graduate School of International Studies at the University of Denver.
Rice is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has been awarded 11 honorary doctorates. She currently resides in Stanford, California.
Mitt Romney
Widely praised for his leadership as a public servant and businessman, former Governor Mitt Romney was the Republican nominee for president in 2012, running on a platform of creating jobs, reducing the debt, reforming tax law, and healthcare reform. One of Massachusetts’ most successful governors, he established a healthcare law that was the first of its kind in the nation and ensured coverage for all citizens of the state. In 2012, TIME included Romney in its list of the “100 Most Influential People in the World,” praising his “work ethic, analytical mind, and devotion to family and country.” Romney shares insights on the current political environment and business today, and audiences appreciate his ideas on the future of the nation, focusing on solutions to the debt, private sector growth, education, and immigration. He marries his practical business and gubernatorial expertise with his experience running for higher office in a presentation that leaves audiences with thoughtful approaches to the most pressing public policy issues of our time.
Governor. As the Governor of Massachusetts from 2002–2007, Romney led a dramatic reversal of state fortunes and a period of sustained economic expansion. Without raising taxes or increasing debt, he balanced the budget every year of his administration, closing the $3 billion budget gap he had inherited. By eliminating waste, streamlining the government, and enacting comprehensive economic reforms to help spur growth, Romney got the economy moving again and transformed deficits into a surplus that totaled nearly $1 billion. He also worked to dramatically lower unemployment rates and incentivize companies to add tens of thousands of jobs in Massachusetts.
Romney was a catalyst for changing Massachusetts’ healthcare and education programs. He is well known for his healthcare reform law. In 2006, he proposed and signed into law a private, market-based reform that ensured every Massachusetts citizen had health insurance, without a government takeover and without raising taxes. Romney also worked to ensure that young people could compete in the global economy. Additionally, Romney was elected chairman of the Republican Governors Association in 2006 and raised a record $27 million for candidates running in State House contests.
Olympic Games. Prior to his time as governor, Romney was president and CEO of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, where he first gained national recognition. He succeeded in erasing a $379 million operating deficit, organizing 23,000 volunteers, galvanizing community spirit, and overseeing an unprecedented security mobilization just months after the September 11th attacks, leading to one of the country’s most successful Olympics.
Business Career. Romney started his career in business in 1978 as vice president of Bain & Company, helping companies grow and improve their operations. In 1984, he founded Bain Capital, one of the nation’s most successful venture capital and investment companies. In 1991, he returned to Bain & Company in order to lead a financial restructuring of the organization.
Today, Romney is a director of Marriott International and an advisor at private equity firm. He is also the author of Turnaround: Crisis, Leadership, and the Olympic Games (2004) and No Apology: The Case for American Greatness (2011).
David Schwartz Waterton Associates
Mr. Schwartz co-founded Waterton Associates L.L.C. with Peter Vilim in 1995 and serves as CEO and Co-chairman. Mr. Schwartz, along with Mr. Vilim, shares the ultimate responsibility for Waterton’s business activities and operations. Mr. Schwartz participates on Waterton’s leadership and investment committees.
Prior to co-founding Waterton in 1995, Mr. Schwartz was a vice president of acquisitions for Equity Residential Properties Trust (EQR-NYSE) and from 1985 through 1989 was with AMLI Realty Co. During that time, he invested over $1 billion in 70 properties totaling approximately 20,000 units. Mr. Schwartz received his Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the University of Illinois and Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Chicago, Booth School of Business.
Mr. Schwartz is a member of the executive committee, a senior officer and Secretary of the National Multi Housing Council. He is also a member of the Urban Land Institute and is chairman of the Multifamily Blue Council, is a member of the Pension Real Estate Association and the Economic Club of Chicago. Mr. Schwartz is a member of the Visiting Committee of the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Chicago.
Bob F. Simpson Fannie Mae
Responsibilities: Bob is responsible for managing Fannie Mae’s Multifamily Affordable, Green and Small loan business lines.
Experience: Since 2007, Simpson has held various officer positions throughout Fannie Mae’s Multifamily Mortgage Business including Priority Borrower Relationships, Seniors Housing, Structured Finance, and Affordable lending. He has also served as Fannie Mae’s Vice President of Community Lending and Development where he was responsible for strategic initiatives and investments in rural, Native American, and Gulf Coast Recovery markets; and Fannie Mae’s Affordable Business Channel which provided financing for small affordable multi-family lenders and Certified Development Financial Institutions across the country.
Before joining Fannie Mae in 2000, Simpson served for seven years as a legislative aide to Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle.
Simpson previously served as a board member of Mercy Housing, the Sioux Falls Homeless Coalition, and as a member of Governor’s Special Task Force on K-12 Education in South Dakota. He is currently a member of the Affordable Workforce Housing Council for the Urban Land Institute, the Workforce Housing Subcommittee of the National Multi-Housing Council and the University of South Dakota Foundation’s Board of Trustees.
Education: Simpson graduated from the University of South Dakota.
Julie A. Smith The Bozzuto Group
Julie A. Smith, Chief Administrative Officer and Partner of The Bozzuto Group, has worked with the principals of The Bozzuto Group for the past twenty-six years. Ms. Smith is responsible for the oversight and strategy of Bozzuto’s Marketing, Human Resources, Technology, and Research departments. Julie’s expertise in brand building, talent, and technology is integral in the company’s ongoing expansion efforts into targeted markets as well as in the alignment of the Bozzuto brand with the evolving expectations of today’s customer.
Previously, Julie served as the President of Bozzuto Management Company where she oversaw a $9 billion apartment portfolio of over 54,000 units in 200 properties from Atlanta to Boston with a large concentration of assets in the Washington, DC region.
In 2015, Smith was named one of Washington’s Women of Influence by the Washington Business Journal as well as the top ten most influential women in multifamily by Multifamily Executive magazine. She was also named the 2013 Multifamily Executive of the Year.
Ms. Smith holds a BS in Business Administration with a minor in Economics from the State University of New York at Oswego. She serves on the board of Victory Housing and is an Advisory Board Member for the Master in Real Estate Development (MRED) program at the University of Maryland. Smith chairs the Diversity Committee for the National Multifamily Housing Council and is Vice Chair of Women’s Leadership Initiative for ULI Washington, DC.
Drew Torbin Black Bear Energy
Drew founded Black Bear to accelerate the adoption of renewable energy and clean technology by the institutional real estate community. He is responsible for customer engagement and project development. Prior to starting Black Bear, Drew founded and led the renewable energy group at Prologis, the world’s largest industrial real estate investment trust (REIT). During his tenure the group deployed over 120 megawatts of distributed solar projects across North America, Europe and Asia. Before Prologis, Drew held positions at Litchfield Capital Management, LLC, a U.S. equity long/short hedge fund, and at Wells Fargo. Drew received his M.B.A. with a concentration in Finance from the University of Pittsburgh, his B.S. from the University of Colorado at Boulder, is a graduate of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL) Energy Executive Leadership Program and serves on the Colorado New Energy Improvement District board.
Ken Valach Trammell Crow Residential
Ken Valach is the Chief Executive Officer of Trammell Crow Residential and Crow Holdings Industrial. After joining Trammell Crow Residential in 1989, he served in a variety of positions including overseeing development, finance and construction for Trammell Crow Residential in all major markets in the western half of the U.S. In 2009, Ken assumed the CEO role of Trammell Crow Residential when the Crow family charged him with leading the company through the 2008-2010 economic recession. In 2015, Ken was named CEO of Crow Holdings Industrial to help build a national platform for development of speculative and build-to-suit industrial projects.
Prior to attending business school, Ken served as chief financial officer of a private company in Southern California and as a management consultant with Price Waterhouse.
Ken received his B.A. in Economics and Math, cum laude, from Claremont McKenna College, where he currently serves as a member of the Board of Trustees. He received his MBA degree from Stanford Graduate School of Business. Ken is the Secretary of National Multifamily Housing Council, a Director of Kimble Senior Housing, a Director of New Hope Housing, and is active in the Boy Scouts of America organization.
Kevin Verdi National Real Estate Advisors
Mr. Verdi is a leading member of National’s Management Committee, working closely with the CEO to oversee all aspects of National’s operations. He is responsible for developing and implementing the firm’s investment strategy, including management of all operations related to identifying and pursuing highly complex, institutional quality commercial real estate investments. He leads National’s high performing group of investment management professionals and is responsible for evaluating, structuring and executing investment opportunities. Mr. Verdi oversees the implementation of policies and practices governing all investment procedures, including portfolio reviews, investment strategies. He is also an active participant in evaluating National’s asset management strategies, working closely with the Portfolio and Asset Management staff.
Mr. Verdi is in his 16th year with the firm and previously served as Managing Director of Equity Investments, under the firm’s predecessor, NEBF Real Estate. He was formerly an Associate Director at GE Capital Real Estate and, prior to concentrating on commercial real estate, gained Investment Banking experience with Friedman, Billings and Ramsey and Prudential Securities.
Mr. Verdi graduated from the University of Maryland with a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Planning and holds a Master of Business Administration from George Mason University. He is a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers and a periodic participant in NARIEM roundtable meetings.
Brenna S. Walraven Corporate Sustainability Strategies, Inc.
Ms. Walraven has proven track record in executing the business case for how to successfully lead a national effort of improved energy management, operational efficiency and environmental stewardship. CSS’s first client was USAA Real Estate Company (Realco), her former employer for almost 16 years and for whom she continues to lead their sustainability execution. Experience includes roles as Head of Property Operations and Portfolio Manager, with responsibilities and skills including providing strategic leadership and direction for a $12B, 100M square foot national real estate portfolio reporting to the CEO. Results include: 13 Energy Star Partner of the Year Awards, the most by any real estate company, saving of over $22M and energy consumption reductions of over 43%. Led by Ms. Walraven’s expertise, USAA Realco has had consistent top performance recognition with the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) having at least one fund named a Green Star and ranked in the top 5 for 4 of the first 5 years of existence for leadership in sustainability strategy, management and execution.
Brenna has an undergraduate degree in Economics and an MBA, both from University of Southern California. She is past Chairman of BOMA, and has served on the board of directors and as vice chair of the Sustainability Policy Advisory Council for the Real Estate Roundtable. She also served on California Governor Schwarzenegger’s Real Estate Leadership Council and has testified before US Congress on issues of energy efficiency and sustainability. Brenna has been a public speaker for over 15 years, been interviewed on Bloomberg News and written articles on issues surrounding real estate strategy, thought leadership and sustainability. G. Ronald Witten Witten Advisors
Current Responsibility: Ron Witten is Founder of Witten Advisors, a market advisory firm serving apartment developers, investors and lenders nationwide. Since 2001, Witten Advisors has provided quarterly market forecasts and commentary to help owners, investors, developers and lenders make informed decisions on development, acquisitions and dispositions across the nation’s major apartment markets.
Experience: Ron began his career at M/PF Research in 1973 and served as its president from 1978 to 2000. In that role, Witten led M/PF as the firm became a national leader in apartment market data and market analysis. Ron has been a frequent speaker at the industry’s leading conferences, addressing market conditions and trends as well as emerging demographic forces shaping the apartment markets.
Industry Involvement: Witten has been particularly active in the Urban Land Institute and the National Multifamily Housing Council. He is a past Chairman of ULI’s Multifamily Silver and Gold Councils and is now a member of the Multifamily Green Council at ULI as well as NMHC’s Research Committee. He also serves on the boards of Apartment Life, a non-profit that creates a sense of community among residents and staff in apartment properties, and TIER REIT, a NYSE-listed owner of office buildings.
Educational Background: Ron received a BBA degree in Marketing from Texas Tech University and has completed graduate classes in Statistics and Economics at Southern Methodist University.
Michael Zatz ENERGY STAR Commercial Buildings Program U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Michael Zatz is a manager with the U.S. EPA’s ENERGY STAR® Commercial Buildings Program. In this role, Mr. Zatz oversees the development and implementation of activities aimed at improving the energy efficiency of a wide variety of building types, including offices, K-12 schools, multifamily residences, retail stores, healthcare facilities, hotels, data centers, congregations, and others. Mr. Zatz is also responsible for oversight of ENERGY STAR’s Portfolio Manager® sustainability benchmarking tool, which has been used by nearly 500,000 buildings across the U.S. to evaluate and track their energy and water use and greenhouse gas emissions.
Mr. Zatz joined ENERGY STAR in February 2006, after nearly 14 years with ICF International, a private environmental and energy consulting firm. During his tenure at ICF, Mr. Zatz worked with governments and local and multinational companies in the U.S. and around the world to identify and implement methods for reducing the impacts of their operations on the environment. He has specific expertise in the development and implementation of voluntary public-private partnerships. While with ICF, Mike worked for 3 years in Bangkok, Thailand, where he designed and managed a voluntary program to reduce energy and water use in more than 400 manufacturing facilities and nearly 200 schools, while at the same time improving the bottom line for the businesses, and improving the learning environment for students. Mr. Zatz has an M.S. in Environmental Science and Policy from Johns Hopkins University, and a B.S. in Engineering and Public Policy from Washington University in St. Louis.
Contact Info:
Michael Zatz Chief, Market Sectors Group ENERGY STAR Commercial & Industrial Branch U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW MC 6202A Washington, DC 20460 E-mail: [email protected] Tel: 202-343-9152 Fax: 202-343-2203 Web: www.energystar.gov/buildings