AUSTIN, TX - Atlanta-headquartered ARA, the largest privately held, full-service investment advisory brokerage firm in the nation focusing exclusively on the multihousing industry, announces the expansion of its National Affordable Housing Platform with new team members in Seattle, WA, Austin, TX and Houston, TX. The team has 60+ years of combined affordable housing industry experience.
Chris Bergmann, former Senior Managing Director for Trammell Crow Residential’s Affordable Housing Division brings more than 25 years of affordable housing investment sales experience to the team. Prior to Trammell Crow, Chris worked as principal of the Shenandoah Group, a LIHTC consulting firm.
Chris has developed over 16,000 affordable housing units over the course of his career. He will leverage his knowledge of the industry to assist clients in the disposition of affordable housing assets and provide guidance to clients contemplating exit strategies for LIHTC and HUD assisted properties. Chris is a graduate of James Madison University; a former President and founding board member of the Texas Association of Affordable Housing Providers (TAAHP) as well as member of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Housing Credit Steering Committee.
Based in Seattle, WA, Jerry Low joins ARA from CBRE’s Affordable Housing/HUD Group where he focused on transacting both LIHTC assets and HUD properties. Jerry began his career as a financial consultant catering to a range of clients includinghigh net-worth individuals, corporations and foundations. After 10 years of successfully partnering with his clients to achieve their financial goals, Jerry earned a M.S. in Real Estate Finance from the University of Denver. In his role at ARA, Jerry will be responsible for transacting affordable housing assets with an emphasis on business development in the western states.
Also joining the team is Texas Department Housing & Community Affairs veteran, Lisa Vecchietti. With more than 10 years of affordable housing experience including LIHTC, HOME and USDA, Lisa will direct the underwriting of all affordable housing assets. A graduate of The University of Texas at Austin, Lisa earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance and a Master of Public Affairs and currently volunteers as a grant writer for Austin-area nonprofits.
Derek DeHay, who joined the team in 2008, is expanding his role by focusing on affordable housing transactions nationally and business development in the central states. Derek is involved in all aspects of the financial analysis, underwriting and marketing of the group's listings. Prior to joining ARA, Derek worked for a private multifamily investment group participating in the acquisition and redevelopment of distressed assets in the Southeast. He also worked as an analyst for Wentwood Capital Advisors, a LIHTC investment and asset management firm where he provided investment performance to corporate limited partners. Derek is a CCIM candidate and graduate of the Hankamer School of Business at Baylor University with a BBA in Finance and Real Estate.
Also joining the team as a Financial Analyst is Jack Simone. Jack is a recent graduate of the University of Texas McCombs School of Business. Prior to joining ARA, Jack completed an internship as a financial analyst underwriting multi-family transactions for Walker & Dunlop. At ARA, Jack will be responsible for research, underwriting, and due diligence support.
ARA National Affordable Housing Group Principals David Fournier and Cliff McDaniel are excited about the recent additions to the team, and remain dedicated to serving the needs of affordable housing owners and investors nationally.
“ARA is a leading national multi-family brokerage firm and is regarded as the premier firm in nearly all of the 27 markets where we have offices”, stated Principal David Fournier. “ARA Affordable will continue to leverage off our local market’s expertise to provide client with the highest level of service.”
“It is a rare opportunity to be able to add such seasoned group of professionals to our team and I’m confidant that they will make an immediate impact in the market and will be a great resource for our clients.”
To schedule an interview with an ARA executive regarding this transaction or for more information about ARA, nationally please contact Lisa Robinson at lrobinson@ARAusa.com, 678.553.9360 or Amy Morris at amorris@ARAusa.com, 678.553.9366; locally, Dave Fournier at dfournier@ARAusa.com or 512.342.8100.
About ARA
Atlanta-headquartered ARA is the largest privately held, full-service investment advisory firm in the nation that focuses exclusively on the brokerage, financing and capital sourcing of multihousing properties including conventional, affordable, distressed assets, notes sales, seniors, student & manufactured housing and multihousing land. ARA is comprised of the country’s top investment professionals who leverage a unique and fully integrated cooperative business platform of shared information, relationships and technology driven solutions. ARA’s unified enterprise approach ensures that clients are delivered the broadest asset exposure, effective matching of buyers and sellers, and the shortest transaction timeframes in the industry. The combination of resources, unparalleled market expertise and nationwide presence in the multihousing marketplace has resulted in average annual production volume of $5.4 billion in real estate transactions since 2004. For detailed information on ARA’s extensive multihousing investment services, visit www.arausa.com