The real estate department has scheduled several distinguished speakers to speak on pressing topics throughout the semester. The real estate seminar series is a graduate level class that invites speakers Friday mornings throughout the semester. All real estate students are welcome to attend but seating will be limited so please email Dave Sliwicki, Course Instructor, to check on whether space is available: dsliwicki@wisc.edu.
Most presentations will be from 9 am – 12 am in room 3335 in Grainger Hall. Stay tuned for trips and site visits details. The schedule and speaker information can be found below.
| Date | Topic | Details | Speakers |
| September 19th | Institutional Single-Family Rental (SFR) Investment – Everything A to Z | History, track record, investment thesis, and market fundamentals of this niche asset class by Mark Beckwith and Ross Nemzin. Build to Rent case study and development process by Josh Hartmann. | Mark Beckwith, EVP, Acquisitions, Second Avenue Ross Nemzin, Director, Asset Management, Second Avenue Josh Hartmann, CEO and Managing Partner, NexMetro Communities |
| October 10th | Industrial Development and Investment | Deep dive in industrial market dynamics and case study of industrial development by Stotan. Format will be Steve and Dan presenting as an “equity pitch” with students writing an assignment to recommend whether to invest in their platform. | Steve Disse, Principal and Vice Chair, Colliers Dan Fogarty, Chief Investment Officer-Principal Stotan Industrial |
| October 17th | Milwaukee Field Trip – Focus on Affordable Housing, Sustainable Development, Community Development | Coordinated with Chris and Paul to bring the Affordable/Sustainable sector to general real estate students. | City of Milwaukee Planning Dept, LISC, General Capital, Gorman Company, Neutral, Irgens |
| November 7th | Work-outs and Restructurings – What happens when a deal goes awry? | Focus on key legal considerations and tactics in workouts, with a practical case study by Andrew Cathlina. | Adam Goldstein, Greenberg Trauig law firm Andrew Cathlina, Senior Director of Development, Wanxiang |
| November 14th | 109 E Wilson – Site Visit and Case Study | Follow-up to pre-development case study by Quad Capital for 109 in Spring 24. Site visit plus detailed presentation on development process. | Dan Kennelly, Quad Capital |
Speaker/Bios
Mark Beckwith
Mark Beckwith has over 10 years of experience in the single-family rental industry where he has helped deploy over $1 billion. As the Executive Vice President of Investment Management for Second Avenue he oversees the sourcing and underwriting of all existing home and portfolio acquisitions.
As part of the leadership team at Second Avenue, Mr. Beckwith is passionate about creating a positive corporate culture and promotes cross department collaboration to align the teams during the investment decision making process. He is a mentor to early-stage companies allowing Second Avenue access to new and innovative technologies, products and services supporting the single-family rental industry.
Ross Nemzin
Mr. Nemzin is a Director of Asset Management for Second Avenue. He oversees analytics and portfolio management. Prior to joining Second Avenue, Ross spent the last 10 years at Ventas working on the company’s investments and dispositions team where his responsibilities included providing leadership and guidance during the underwriting, negotiation, due diligence and execution of investments and dispositions in health care real estate. During that time he was involved in the execution of more than $11B of transactions, including single property and portfolio acquisitions/dispositions, ground-up developments, redevelopments, M&A transactions and loans. Ross holds a BBA in Real Estate and Urban Land Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Josh Hartmann
Josh Hartmann is the CEO and Managing Partner at NexMetro Communities, a pioneering development company that has transformed the real estate market by creating an innovative hybrid housing option for consumers seeking a different living experience.
Josh brings more than 25 years of real estate management and development experience to NexMetro, having worked with both private regional developers and large public national homebuilders. He is responsible for the development and implementation of both short-and longterm company strategies to ensure NexMetro’s growth, effectiveness, sustainability and overall investor return. His influence is reflected in the highly entrepreneurial spirit and high standard of execution of the organization. Alongside his business partners and company founders, Josh has innovated a new housing lifestyle of detached, professionally managed, rental home neighborhoods, by creating places that people are excited about and want to call home
Steve Disse
Steve has been with Colliers for 29 years and serves as a principal of the Chicago office. He focuses on investment sales of institutional quality industrial and office properties in Chicago and the Midwest ranging in value from $5 million to $300 million. Steve teams with Jeff Devine to form Chicago’s most active industrial investment sales team. Their team consistently holds a 50 to 60 percent market share of Chicago area industrial investment sales and has closed over $1.5 billion in sales over the last 24 months. This past year, they received the 2019 NAIOP Industrial Investment Transaction of the Year Award for brokering the sale of the Fountain Square Commerce Center in Bolingbrook, IL.
Dan Fogarty
Dan Fogarty joined Stotan Industrial as Chief Investment Officer-Principal in January 2022. He is responsible for identifying, pursuing and directing new build-to-suit and speculative development opportunities across the U.S.
In this capacity, Dan maintains a strong network with national and local brokerage firms and is responsible for directing all relationships with stakeholders involved in each project. A 25-year veteran of the commercial real estate industry, he has extensive experience in acquisitions, leasing, asset management and ground-up development.
Adam Goldstein
Adam M. Goldstein is Co-Chair of the firm’s New York Real Estate Practice and his approach to real estate law has established him as a trusted advisor to developers, investors, and property owners alike.
Adam concentrates his practice on development, financings, acquisitions and dispositions of all asset classes of real estate. A large portion of his practice is devoted to venture formation and sophisticated real estate structures. His experience in large-scale and complex transactions has earned him recognition in the industry.
By staying at the forefront of industry trends and regulations, Adam ensures that his clients benefit from experienced and cutting-edge legal representation in the fast-changing real estate landscape. He provides strategic guidance tailored to his clients’ unique needs and the challenges they face in the dynamic and competitive real estate market.
Andrew Cathlina
Andy is responsible for overseeing Wanxiang’s investment in many of WAREG’s new development project partnerships as well as working with their development partners to execute Wanxiang’s strategic goals with many of their existing assets.
Dan Kennelly
Dan Kennelly is a Vice President responsible for investment and development activities primarily within Madison, WI. Prior to joining QCP, Dan was a Director with Baker Tilly, providing municipal and private sector clients with analysis and strategies on housing and economic development projects. From 2013 to 2020, Dan was the City of Madison’s Office of Business Resources Manager and Economic Development Specialist where he managed major projects and led a team helping businesses and developers navigate city processes and connect with resources. From 2004-2013, Dan held consulting positions with Vandewalle & Associates in Madison and AECOM Economics. Kennelly has a master’s degree in Urban Planning from the University of Michigan and a bachelor’s degree in Economics and Political Science from the University of Wisconsin.
Company Tours – October 17th
