Education
I began my career in 1975 after graduating from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, where I received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Economics.
At that time our country was in a “stagflation” with high inflation rates, high unemployment, and a struggling economy. The Wharton School is noted for its emphasis on forecasting and teaching about emerging economic trends and changing market conditions, as well as government economic policies. My career began with this educational background.
My Real Estate Career Begins
I began my career as an Appraiser-Trainee with International Appraisal Company, Inc., a New Jersey-based appraisal company that specializes in large manufacturing facilities throughout the United States for Fortune 500 companies. After a few months of training and working alongside the senior appraisers, I was assigned my own projects. Being a young guy in my early 20s with a lot of energy and enthusiasm but no seniority, I sometimes found myself appraising manufacturing facilities in the Midwest during blizzard conditions or in the Southwest during a heat wave.
I obtained extensive experience at a young age in the valuation of major manufacturing facilities throughout the United States, preparing appraisal reports for clients including Kraft Foods, Hughes Aircraft, Lever Brothers, Simmons Bedding, Du Pont, and Parker-Hannifin.
Although this was an excellent experience, I needed to eventually broaden my real estate experience with a wider variety of property types.
Broadening My Real Estate Career
Market conditions gradually improved in the early 1980s, and I furthered my real estate career with Appraisers & Planners, Inc. (A&P) as a Senior Appraiser. This was a prominent New York City appraisal company that was involved in some of the major properties in New York City and around the country. With A&P, I appraised high-rise office buildings & apartment buildings in New York City, as well as assemblage projects, shopping centers, mixed-use projects, large HUD-subsidized projects, and many special-use properties.
Some of the special-use projects I appraised included the Warner Brothers Burbank Studios in Los Angeles, the former world headquarters for Atari Corporation in Silicon Valley, California, and the Times Square Building in New York City. I also appraised the properties that were included in the 42nd Street Redevelopment Project for the City of New York. This redevelopment project served to transform the Times Square area in Manhattan into the popular entertainment hub that it is today.
While at Appraisers & Planners, Inc., I received my MAI designation from the Appraisal Institute in 1982. I then became the youngest MAI appraiser in the United States at the age of 28 years. Upon receiving my MAI designation, I started my own company in New York as an independent commercial appraiser and real estate consultant.
My Move to Arizona
As I continued to appraise properties throughout the United States, I received several assignments in Arizona and admired its rapid growth and development, as well as its excellent quality of life.
In 1984, I moved to Scottsdale, Arizona with my wife, and relocated my real estate appraisal company. At that time, the economy was booming, and property values were increasing very quickly. Real estate speculators and investors made lots of money for a while. However, in the late 1980s, the economy suffered a severe downturn due to overbuilding and an overheated real estate market that included a lot of mortgage debt. As a result, property values quickly decreased, and bank foreclosures significantly increased.
The Hospitality Industry
Between 1988-1990, I joined Pannell Kerr Forster (PKF), which was an international accounting and real estate consulting company with offices throughout the United States and the world. The company’s main emphasis was on the hospitality industry. I soon became a Principal with PKF and directed the real estate consulting/valuation division for the Los Angeles and Phoenix offices.
At PKF, I was involved with the valuation and feasibility analysis of many existing and proposed hotel properties in Arizona, California, and Hawaii, including Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort, Marriott Maui Hotel, Grand Wailea Resort, Los Angeles Hilton Hotel, San Francisco Hilton Hotel, Westin La Paloma in Tucson, Scottsdale Radisson Hotel, Scottsdale Registry Hotel, Phoenix Omni Hotel, and many others.
Staying In Arizona
Since many of my PKF clients and assignments were in California, it was important that I worked full-time in our Los Angeles office. However, being that I enjoy living with my family in Scottsdale, Arizona, I decided to leave PKF and remain in Scottsdale.
In the early 1990s, the economy was still depressed, and the federal government created the Resolution Trust Company (RTC) to oversee the default and closing of many banks throughout the country, as well as the sale of thousands of bank-foreclosed properties.
Since 1990, I was self-employed as an independent real estate consultant and appraiser. At that time, I was retained by the RTC to review the appraisal reports for many of the foreclosed commercial properties in Arizona and evaluate the reliability and accuracy of their valuations for the sale of the properties. The foreclosure mess was eventually resolved, and the economy and real estate market eventually stabilized.
Continuing my Career as a Real Estate Consultant & Independent Commercial Appraiser
I continue to be involved in the valuation and evaluation of investment real estate as a real estate consultant and independent commercial appraiser for a wide variety of assignments. I also identify potential acquisitions for investors, and help facilitate sales between buyers and sellers.
