How Strategic Leadership Uncovered $115M in Hidden Real Estate Value
In commercial real estate, value isn't always what we see on the surface. It’s deep in the underwriting. It’s about vision. As a leader, I don't just value a property’s highest and best use; I empower my team to see it. By fostering a culture of strategic thinking, we ensure no opportunity is left on the table.
Thirteen years ago, my then-manager at MB Financial Bank, Matt Coppola, taught me a lesson that the most successful dealmakers underwrite with the highest level of detail - no matter how many extra zeros are in the business value.
Transitioning from Commercial Banking to Private Equity.
After grad school, I began my CRE career with a small, 4-person family office/PE firm. I touched every type of real estate, leading acquisitions for 28 properties across the Midwest and Southeast…on top of leading asset management for all of them… and building a separate nontraded REIT securities investment platform (Liquidity Partners Trust I).
Transitioning from Private Equity to Institutional Real Estate.
When my family and I were relocated from Chicago to Cincinnati in 2021, I had the opportunity to join a Fortune 500 retail partner and navigate a complex disposition. We received a low, single digit offer for the big-box site - a figure that the broker thought was a fair, “as-is” price for an old building.
But I refused to accept that valuation.
Being in the People Business means protecting the interests of my partners with transparency and rigorous due diligence. Leadership is about more than oversight. It is about having the vision to see what others miss and the integrity to fight for the true value of an asset.
To find the property’s highest and best use, I moved past the physical limitations of the site. I took personal responsibility for the due diligence, utilizing a nimble approach to gather the intelligence I needed.
How I Uncovered the $49MM Opportunity
1) I unmasked the buyer. While they were hidden behind an LLC, I traced their identity through the California and Delaware SOS websites.
2) I connected the dots. I FOIA’d city records and studied adjacent site plans, discovering that this same developer was secretly assembling a massive high-rise site.
3) I built the vision. I developed a customized, management-friendly underwriting proforma for a 1,000+ unit mixed-use mega site.
4) I validated the data. I leveraged my network of lenders for hypothetical debt pricing and collaborated with my property management relationships to ensure my lease-up and OpEx assumptions were grounded in reality.
5) I solved for a low-teens, levered IRR and justified a $47MM land value.
6) However, understanding the art of negotiation, I suggested we counter the LOI at $49MM, anticipating the buyer would negotiate toward our revised internal valuation. But the buyer accepted the $49MM offer outright.
Leading with Purpose.
By applying this same rigor across the portfolio, I successfully identified more than $117MM of added value that would have otherwise been lost. It takes a specific type of leader to look at a dilapidated warehouse and see a $49MM opportunity.
I remain committed to bringing that level of intellectual curiosity and data-driven strategy to every partnership, whether middle-market private equity or institutional-level CRE.