Croatan Fund Management Team
Croatan has assembled a team of motivated real estate professionals with a combined 100+ years.
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Paul Van
Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer
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Eric Smith
Chief Operating Officer
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Jeffrey Mack
Chief Administrative Officer and Head of Portfolio Management
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Adam Nelik
Vice President Capital Markets
Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer
Paul Van is the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Croatan Investments. Maintaining the vision for Croatan is his main focus, which includes growth planning and corporate culture development. He also guides Croatan’s overall investment strategy and provides leadership to the firm’s transactions function.
Mr. Van began his career as a mergers and acquisitions investment banker at UBS in New York City and advised on transactions in the gaming, consumer product, food service, agricultural, healthcare, and technology industries. Mr. Van then transitioned to Harbor Group International where he became a Vice President of Acquisitions covering multifamily markets across the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Midwest and Texas.
Mr. Van is currently active with the Urban Land Institute (ULI), National Multi-Housing Council (NMHC), Alternative & Direct Investment Securities Association (ADISA), and Association of Asian American Investment Managers (AAAIM). He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Duke University.
Chief Operating Officer
Eric Smith is the Chief Operating Officer of Croatan Investments. Executing the corporate growth plan and driving efficiency across the day-to-day operations of the firm is his main focus. He also provides leadership to the firm’s capital markets function and ground-up development investment efforts.
Mr. Smith most recently served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Investment Officer for Armada Hoffler Properties (NYSE: AHH), a publicly-traded REIT. His experience includes a broad range of asset types, including multifamily, retail, office, mixed-use, and hospitality, across the mid-Atlantic and Southeastern U.S.
In addition to the acquisition of stabilized assets, Mr. Smith had oversight of over $1 billion of development projects during his tenure as COO and CIO of Armada Hoffler with many of these projects containing a public-private partnership component. Mr. Smith was also part of the three-member executive team that shepherded Armada Hoffler through its 2013 IPO on the New York Stock Exchange which raised in excess of $230 million.
Mr. Smith spent the early years of his career in the management consulting, international corporate finance, and investment advisory fields as well as owning his own trading seat on the New York Futures Exchange. Mr. Smith holds a Master of Business Administration from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Connecticut.
Chief Administrative Officer and Head of Portfolio Management
Jeffrey Mack is the Chief Administrative Officer & Head of Portfolio Management of Croatan Investments. He provides management and leadership to the firm’s asset management, construction management, fund management, accounting, and corporate administration functions.
Mr. Mack brings 30 years of extensive experience and expertise in real estate investment management covering multifamily, office, retail, industrial, and parking asset types. Most recently, Mr. Mack served as a senior executive at CIM Group where he oversaw a multibillion-dollar national portfolio and managed a team of over 250 personnel. His previous experience includes positions at Jones Lang LaSalle, publicly-traded REIT SITE Centers (NYSE: SITC), and Robinson Development Group. Mr. Mack has also performed advisory work for Harbor Group International as a consultant.
Mr. Mack holds a Master of Business Administration from The University Chicago Booth School of Business and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Computer Studies from Northwestern University.
Vice President Capital Markets
Adam Nelik is a Vice President of Capital Markets for Croatan Investments. He is primarily focused on building and expanding the firm’s private wealth investor base, joint venture partnerships, and institutional relationships.
Prior to Croatan, Mr. Nelik was a director for Henley USA and held previous posts at Morgan Stanley Investment Management, TD Ameritrade, and Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. Over the course of his career, Adam has successfully raised capital for both alternative and traditional strategies, covering both direct- and fund-level investments for a variety of clients. He received his Bachelor's degree in Finance from Pennsylvania State University and earned his Master's of Business Administration from New York University's Stern School of Business. Mr. Nelik currently holds a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designation as well as Series 7 and 66 licenses.
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Charles Barry
Vice President National Accounts
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Geoffrey Chen
Senior Vice President Capital Markets
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Justin Stelzer
Analyst Transactions
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Shaunte Cooper
Vice President Accounting
Vice President National Accounts
Real estate financial executive, accomplished in controllership levels of asset and property management, corporate accounting and development.
Directed portfolio accounting and reporting activities of core-plus value/add closed-end commercial real estate funds generating annual revenues of over $350MM.
Led the accounting and treasury onboarding of a $1.6B light industrial portfolio comprising 30MM sq. ft. across 16 major US markets.
Experienced in REIT compliance, lender financial reporting, restricted and cash monitoring.
Graduate of Boston College.
Senior Vice President Capital Markets
Geoffrey “Geo” Chen is a Senior Vice President at Croatan Investments. Mr. Chen involved in business development and capital sourcing.
Mr. Chen started his career in New York City as a currency trader for the Royal Bank of Scotland. He then segued to Credit Suisse in Singapore where he managed the developed markets currency trading business. In 2017, Mr. Chen left the banking industry to manage capital through his family office, Stratosphere Trading.
Mr. Chen is a member of the Association of Asian American Investment Managers (AAAIM) and received his Bachelor of Science degree from Duke University. He is active in the Asian investment community as well as philanthropy, where he supports causes in environmental conservation and humanitarian aid.
Analyst Transactions
Justin Stelzer is an Analyst at Croatan Investments. He is responsible for identifying, underwriting, and structuring investments across the company’s portfolio.
Prior to Croatan, Mr. Stelzer served as a private equity analyst at Brown Advisory, where he supported senior members of the investment team with sourcing, market research, financial modeling, due diligence, and analysis. At Brown Advisory, he prepared due diligence reports for investment opportunities across a variety of asset classes and was responsible for maintaining relationship coverage on over 75 investments equivalent to over $500M of committed capital. Mr. Stelzer earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration at the Stevenson University.
Vice President Accounting
Shaunte Cooper is the Director of Accounting for Croatan Investments. She manages the corporate and investor accounting systems and financial information and implements processes to ensure compliance with reporting requirements.
Ms. Cooper brings 16 years of accounting experience to Croatan. Seasoned in both the public and private sectors, Ms. Cooper previously focused on commercial and residential property management accounting at Divaris Real Estate and SL Nusbaum. She is currently an adjunct accounting professor at ECPI University. Ms. Cooper received her Bachelor's degree from Elizabeth City State University and her Masters in Accounting at Strayer University.
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Angus Yau
Senior Associate Asset Management
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Chris Madden
Senior Vice President Transactions
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Jamie Skinner
Vice President Construction
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Katie Himlin
Vice President Marketing and Investor Relations
Senior Associate Asset Management
Angus Yau is a Senior Associate at Croatan Investments. He provides analytical support for the asset management team.
Prior to joining Croatan Investments, Mr. Yau served as a Senior Analyst on Cushman & Wakefield’s Research & Consultancy team in Hong Kong and focused on providing reports and research on residential, office, retail, and industrial sectors; and advisory services to financial service firms and developers. Mr. Yau is a member of the Association of Asian American Investment Managers (AAAIM) and received his Master’s degree in Business Administration from The Mason School of Business at The College of William & Mary and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a double major in Finance and Business Analytics from Old Dominion University.
Senior Vice President Transactions
Chris Madden is a Senior Vice President at Croatan Investments. Mr. Madden is responsible for identifying, underwriting, and structuring investments across the company’s portfolio. He is also intimately involved with acquisitions, financings, dispositions, and investor relations.
Prior to joining Croatan Investments, Mr. Madden priced and securitized residential mortgages at Atlantic Bay Mortgage Group.
Mr. Madden is a member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI), National Multi-Housing Council (NMHC) and various civic organizations. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance from East Carolina University.
Vice President Construction
Jamie Skinner is the Vice President of Construction for Croatan Investments. He focuses on developing and executing capital investment plans across the Croatan portfolio.
Prior to joining Croatan, Mr. Skinner worked at Harbor Group International where he oversaw $70MM in total capital projects. In addition to multifamily assets, he has extensive experience in commercial properties and government contracts. He previously held a Class A General Contractor license in the State of Virginia and received his Bachelor of Science degree in Construction Management from East Carolina University.
Vice President Marketing and Investor Relations
Katie Himlin is the Vice President of Marketing and Investor Relations at Croatan Investments. Her primary focus is building national brand awareness and leading the investor relations function of the firm.
Prior to Croatan, Ms. Himlin specialized in branding and marketing for small businesses. While the Digital Marketing Consultant at Ciniva Advertising Agency, she managed new business and connected clients with personalized marketing solutions, from digital advertising to video production. Ms. Himlin received her Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the Smeal College of Business at Pennsylvania State University.
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Shannon Riner
Vice President Asset Management
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Ben Bartlett
Senior Vice President Transactions
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Chris Zollo
Head of Capital Markets and Investor Relations
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Jimmy Leffler
Senior Associate Asset Management
Vice President Asset Management
Shannon Riner is the Vice President of Asset Management for Croatan Investments. She focuses on the execution of asset-level business plans and maximizing performance across the portfolio.
Mrs. Riner brings over two decades of industry experience to the team ranging from real estate development, property management, acquisitions, and sales of commercial, multifamily, and single-family homes. Prior to joining Croatan, Mrs. Riner worked with Related Group, LYND, Bell Partners, Fogelman, and The Franklin Johnston Group. Mrs. Riner received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia.
Senior Vice President Transactions
Ben Bartlett is a Senior Vice President at Croatan Investments. In addition to identifying, underwriting, and structuring investments across the company’s portfolio, Mr. Bartlett will be leading our Build-to-Rent division.
Prior to joining Croatan Investments, Mr. Bartlett was the CEO of Convergence Investments, where he was responsible for all corporate leadership for a Real Estate Private Equity Fund focused on the development of Residential Master Planned Communities across the country. During his tenure as CEO, he developed over 2,000 single family units across multiple projects in the mid-Atlantic and Texas. Earlier in his career, he served as Vice President of Operations for Artemis Real Estate Partners, where he was responsible for corporate operations initiatives including the development of a comprehensive Business Intelligence platform with a focus on property, fund, and portfolio level financial performance. Mr. Bartlett received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance from Towson University.
Head of Capital Markets and Investor Relations
Chris Zollo is the Head of Capital Markets and Investor Relations at Croatan Investments. He is responsible for overseeing fund raising activities for all Croatan investment products, the development of additional vehicles, and communications with both existing and potential investors.
Over Mr. Zollo’s 25 years of experience, he has led best in class client service and investor relations teams directly responsible for developing and servicing $10B in assets under management. His roles have been focused on capital raising, executing distribution models, and product development. He also helped create investor relations teams while fostering the professional growth of his teammates. Prior to Croatan, Mr. Zollo was the Senior Managing Director of Capital Markets at Waypoint Real Estate Investments and led a team that launched their commingled fund business into the institutional and private wealth segments. He received his Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Massachusetts and is an active member of the MMI, AIMSE, and PREA.
Senior Associate Asset Management
Jimmy Leffler is a Senior Associate at Croatan Investments. He executes the firm’s investment strategy at the asset-level and focuses on value creation through direct oversight of property operations and capital programs.
Prior to joining Croatan, Mr. Leffler served as an associate appraiser with Hotel and Club Associates where he valued existing hospitality properties and performed feasibility studies for proposed developments across the country. He brings years of real estate experience to the firm ranging from property management, construction, and appraisals. Mr. Leffler received his Master’s in Business Administration from The Mason School of Business at The College of William & Mary and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a concentration in International Business from Old Dominion University.
Analyst Transactions
Nicolas Kane is an Analyst at Croatan Investments. He is responsible for identifying, underwriting, and structuring investments across the company’s portfolio.
Prior to Croatan, Mr. Kane served as a Project Manager at OWN Real Estate, focusing on accounts receivable and the commission payout process, along with building financial models to educate business planning. Previously, he was an intern at LifeGuide Financial Planning, where he assisted financial advisors. Mr. Kane earned his Bachelor of Science in Finance at Messiah University.
Office Administrator
Shelby Been is the Office Administrator at Croatan Investments. She coordinates office responsibilities and provides interdepartmental support.
Prior to Croatan, Ms. Been served as a tax processor and office administrator at Vaughan and Company, CPA. In this role, she managed client relationships, controlled confidential documentation, submitted invoices, and oversaw office needs.
Vice President Accounting
Caitie Wallace is the Vice President of Accounting. She manages the fund accounting systems and financial information for the company’s investment partnerships and implements processes to ensure compliance with reporting requirements.
Prior to joining Croatan, Mrs. Wallace spent 9 years with FD Fund Administration, where she specialized in supporting private equity and complex middle-market real estate funds. Her experience includes managing multiple client engagement teams while providing accounting services for various fund structures throughout all stages of the fund life cycle. Mrs. Wallace received her Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from James Madison University.
Chief Legal Officer
David Faggert is the Chief Legal Officer at Croatan Investments. He oversees Croatan’s legal work, including participation in the structuring and execution of all investments made by Croatan Investments.
Following his tour as a First Lieutenant in the US Army, Mr. Faggert attended the University of Virginia School of Law and began his career as a law clerk to the Honorable Laurence I’Anson, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia. He then shifted his focus to real estate and related financing concerns at Kaufman, Oberndorffer & Spainhour (now Kaufman Canoles), until starting his own firm, Faggert & Frieden, P.C. in 1988. For over 30 years, Mr. Faggert specialized in commercial real estate acquisitions, development, dispositions, related financings, and business organizations and entities.
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Juleah Landis
Coordinator Portfolio Management
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Ryan Trainor
Vice President Transactions
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Will Martin
Senior Associate Asset Management
Coordinator Portfolio Management
Juleah Landis is a Coordinator at Croatan Investments. She provides interdepartmental support and assists with accounting, portfolio management, construction management, and transaction functions.
Prior to Croatan, Ms. Landis was a Lead Pharmacy Technician, overseeing a team of six. She managed inventory, training, filing, and scheduling.
Vice President Transactions
Ryan Trainor is a Vice President at Croatan Investments. In this role he is responsible for identifying, underwriting, and structuring investments across the company’s portfolio.
Mr. Trainor most recently served as Assistant Vice President at RXR Realty, where he was responsible for the execution of debt and equity capitalization and ongoing development oversight of several ground-up multifamily and industrial projects throughout the greater New York City region. Mr. Trainor previously held roles with Goldman Sachs, where he was responsible for portfolio and asset management for a variety of operating, development, and redevelopment investments across student housing, office, hospitality, and multifamily throughout the United States.
Mr. Trainor began his career in corporate finance and investment management. He holds a Master of Business Administration from Columbia Business School at Columbia University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with concentrations in Finance and Accounting from The University of Richmond.
Senior Associate Asset Management
Will Martin is the Senior Associate of Asset Management for Croatan Investments. He is primarily responsible for the fund management function with oversight of all current and future investment vehicles.
Prior to Croatan, Mr. Martin was the Head of Investor Relations at Scientia Ventures, where he oversaw communication to fund investors and supported the investment team by providing market research for prospective and current portfolio investments across the healthcare and technology space. Mr. Martin received his Bachelor of Science from Regent University in Economics and is pursuing his Master of Business Administration at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. He currently holds a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA).