Warshaw Burstein LLP announced Lori Anne Czepiel and Kevin Hirson as newly-hired partners and Peter Figdor as newly-hired counsel to the firm.
Lori Anne Czepiel has over 25 years of in-depth experience leading M&A transactions, private equity investments, joint ventures, reorganizations, financings, initial public offerings, securities and other capital raising transactions.
Peter Figdor practices in the areas of real estate and banking and finance.
In his real estate practice, Figdor represents clients with regard to leasing of office space, restaurants, boutiques, art galleries, warehouses and other commercial properties in the New York metropolitan area, as well as across the country. In finance, he represents international banks in various types of lending and financial transactions.
Kevin M. Hirson brings his extensive experience in representing developers, owners and investors in a wide range of real estate transactions throughout the U.S. to Warshaw Burstein.
He has represented clients in connection with the acquisition, sale, financing, leasing and licensing of real property and remains a corporate advisor to those clients concerning ongoing legal issues affecting their businesses.
In retail and hospitality, he represents these clients on real estate issues, as well as alcoholic beverage licensing matters.
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Greystone announced that Kelley Klobetanz has joined as a Managing Director on the FHA team.
Klobetanz will focus on expanding client relationships in the multifamily, affordable and healthcare sectors, and strategic initiatives to further streamline the FHA process for Greystone clients.
Prior to joining Greystone, Klobetanz was a Senior Vice President and FHA Deputy Chief Underwriter at Prudential Huntoon Paige Associates, Ltd.
She is MAP and LEAN certified to underwrite HUD-insured transactions and has worked on over 70 deals totaling $1 billion in her 15-year career.
Prior to joining Prudential, Klobetanz performed market analysis, worked as a project manager for a private developer, and worked for the City of Arvada’s Economic and Development Department and the Urban Renewal Authority.
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The Vortex Group has hired the former head of Cresa’s Law Firm Practice Group, Jonathan Rudes.
Rudes, known for his work in New York’s Silicon Alley and MetroTech, joins Rick Marek, president and founder of Vortex, known for his work advising law firms and financial companies.
In addition to Rudes, Vortex has brought on board long-time marketing communications executive Greg Davis who will lead an advertising industry focus for the boutique real estate firm.
His 35 years of experience in driving new client expansion for many leaders in this sector, coupled with his understanding of today’s complex marketing landscape, enables Davis and The Vortex Group to play an integral role as a real estate advisor for today’s evolving, digitally-centric marketing communications and technology universe.
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NAI James E. Hanson announced that sales associate Justin Allessio has received the Master in Commercial Property (MiCP) designation from the Lipsey School of Real Estate.
Allessio joined NAI Hanson’s Hackensack office earlier this year to work on a team with senior vice presidents Scott Perkins, SIOR, CCIM, and Andrew Somple, SIOR, and sales associate, Christopher Todd, specializing in office and industrial sales and leasing in the northern New Jersey marketplace.
The MiCP designation indicates a real estate professional who has achieved an attainment of a broad knowledge of core disciplines, key skills and systems critical to the sound and ethical practice of commercial real estate.
The goal of the program is to provide practitioners with the skills and knowledge to better serve their clients and succeed in an increasingly fluid, vast and sophisticated commercial real estate market.
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AmTrust Title Insurance Company announced that Cynthia Kern, Esq. has joined the firm as senior underwriting counsel.
An accomplished title practitioner with more than 15 years of experience, Kern was previously Underwriting Counsel and Operations Strategist with World Wide Land Transfer, Inc. where she worked with large developers on multi-site commercial acquisitions and financing transactions.
Before that, she was vice president and director of operations for TitleVest Agency, Inc.,
Earlier in her career, Kern represented lenders, sellers, purchasers and title companies at real estate closings as a sole practitioner.
She also served as an Associate at Weiss, Buell & Bell and, in law school ,she interned with the Legal Resources Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa working on constitutional issues and drafting regulations for the Guateng Landlord and Tenant Act.
In the mid-90’s she worked as a Legislative Aide on Capitol Hill for Congressman Rick Boucher (D-VA) covering housing, tax, and Judiciary Committee issues.
Kern earned a JD degree from City University of New York School of Law, and a BA degree in Foreign Affairs from the University of Virginia.
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AmTrust Title Insurance Company announced that Daniel V. Madrid, Esq., a seasoned commercial real estate attorney with more than 14 years of experience, has joined the firm as New Jersey State Counsel, Vice President.
Prior to joining AmTrust Title, Madrid was a partner in the firm of Fox Rothschild, LLP.
Among his achievements while there were representing a Philadelphia-based hospital in a $25 million New Markets Tax Credit financing; and representing a private bridge lender in pre-development, acquisition and providing construction loans ranging from $1-$20 million, among a host of other deals.
Before that, he worked for two law firms; as an associate with Riker, Danzig, Scherer, Hyland & Perretti, LLP, and as a land use and planned real estate development associate with Giordano, Halleran & Ciesla, PC.
Earlier in his career, Madrid clerked for The Hon. Edwin H. Stern, Presiding Judge, Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, and for the Hon. Donald S. Goldman, J.S.C., superior Court of New Jersey, Civil Division.
He earned a J.D. degree from Villanova University School of Law and a BA degree from The College of New Jersey.
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Transwestern announced Charles N. Hazen has been appointed president of Transwestern Investment Group.
He will have leadership responsibility for the strategic direction, investor relationships and operational activities for all of TIG’s business units.
Hazen has spent the majority of his 32-year career at Hines, where he served in a number of executive positions including Senior Managing Director and CEO – Core Fund/REIT Division and CEO of Hines U.S. Core Office Fund, Hines Global REIT and Hines Corporate Properties.
He was a member of the Hines executive committee and managed the acquisition or development of approximately $12 billion of office, retail, industrial and multifamily properties worldwide.
Possessing extensive capital-raising experience with prominent institutional investors, Hazen was involved in raising more than $6.2 billion over a 15-year period.
For the past four years, Hazen has led Stanmore Partners, a real estate development and investment firm founded in 2013.
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CBRE announced Eric Wagner has been promoted to leader of the New Jersey project management team.
Wagner will focus on business development as he partners with CBRE’s leasing and sales professionals on new opportunities.
Tasked to lead the growth of CBRE’s project management offering in New Jersey, he will be solidifying CBRE’s industrial project management service, which is currently working nationally for BASF, Dow and Ford, among others.
Co-ordinating with leasing professionals in NJ to support occupiers, Wagner will also work closely with agency and asset management to support landlords.
Wagner has more than 25 years of experience in the design and construction industry, including five years at SJP Properties as vice president of development.
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NAI James E. Hanson announced that John C. Sawyer has joined its Hackensack office as a sales associate.
Sawyer will work with Russell Verducci and Eric Demmers with a focus on sales and leasing of industrial properties in the northern New Jersey marketplace.
Sawyer brings over 20 years of experience in sales to the position. Previously, he was a sales associate with Blau and Berg . He was also a Territory Manager for Angiodynamics and Boston Scientific managing sales of medical devices and equipment. He has also managed sales portfolios for Verge Marketing, Kobrand Corporation and Gallo Winery of New Jersey.
Sawyer holds a B.S. in Sports Marketing from the University of Massachusetts, where he was awarded a full scholarship to play football for the Minutemen.
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Hunt Mortgage Group announced that Megan Goodfellow has re-joined the firm as chief credit officer for commercial real estate.
Her focus will be on Hunt Mortgage Group’s balance sheet Proprietary Lending Group, a program that launched three years ago. She will be based in the New York office and will report to Jim Flynn, President and Chief Investment Officer.
Prior to rejoining Hunt Mortgage Group, Goodfellow was chief credit officer at RealtyMogul.com where she was a member of the executive and investment committees and oversaw underwriting, closing and asset management for debt, sub-debt and equity investments originated by the RealtyMogul.com platform.
Before her time at Centerline, Goodfellow was with JP Morgan Chase where she was the credit officer and head of underwriting for the bank’s CMBS division. Earlier in her career, she held senior positions at American General (an AIG company) and Fidelity Investments.
Goodfellow earned a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Houston, and a Bachelor of Arts in Social Science, with a minor in Business Administration, from St. Bonaventure University.
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Greystone announced that Michael Doran has joined as a managing director working with the Agency lending team.
A 20-year commercial real estate veteran, Doran will focus on originating mid-to-large sized transactions for permanent, bridge and construction multifamily debt.
Doran most recently served as a principal and portfolio manager at Prudential Mortgage Capital (now PGIM Real Estate Finance) where he oversaw the construction and bridge programs, and the portfolio management and reporting team.
During his 20-year total tenure at Prudential, Doran also served as Originations Manager for the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast Regions and originated regional CMBS, Agency, bridge and portfolio loans.
Previously, he was a vice president of Originations at CWCapital.
Doran earned an MBA from Goizueta Business School at Emory University, and a Bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University.
