Aaron Cohen joins firm as chief operating officer.
By Christine Serlin | Multifamily Executive
CGI+ Real Estate Strategies, a Los Angeles-based multifamily investment and development firm, has set a bold five-year plan for growth in the industry.
“We are hoping to invest at least $1 billion per year over the next five years. We are currently heavily invested in the West Coast, primarily Los Angeles, as well as key markets in the Southeast, including Atlanta and Orlando, Florida, where we will continue to build at scale,” says founder and CEO Gidi Cohen.
Gidi Cohen, founder and CEO, CGI+ Real Estate Strategies
The firm is already ahead of its aggressive business plan of increasing assets under management to $5 billion with strong 2021 activity. It recently completed one of the largest multifamily acquisitions in Atlanta this year with the $144 million purchase of a two-property, 712-unit portfolio. It has received full entitlements on a mixed-use development that will include multifamily, hotel, and retail in Los Angeles’ Miracle Mile District. By the end of the year, it also will have closed on the acquisition of two suburban multifamily communities in Los Angles and Orlando as well as a ground-up development of a 500-unit community in LA.
Cohen says these are examples of assets the firm plans to pursue through ground-up development and acquisition over the next five years. “Typically, our portfolio is 70% acquisition and 30% ground-up development,” he adds.
As part of its growth goals, the firm has hired Aaron Cohen as chief operating officer. Aaron Cohen, no relation to Gidi Cohen, has nearly two decades of experience in multifamily operations, acquisition, and asset management, previously spending 13 years at JRK Property Holdings. There, he was responsible for overseeing the asset and property management division for JRK, which owns and operates more than 28,000 units across the country.
“With people like Aaron, we are building a dynamic infrastructure that is allowing us to expand our geographic footprint, increase the size and sophistication of our investments, and significantly grow our investor base,” says Gidi Cohen.
Aaron Cohen, chief operating officer, CGI+ Real Estate Strategies
In his role as COO, Aaron Cohen will help manage CGI+’s growing $1.7 billion multifamily and mixed-use portfolio in Southern California, New York, and major markets in the Southeast. He will oversee the firm’s operating departments, including property operations, asset management, administrative functions, and the execution of all development, renovation, and construction activities.
“My main goal is to grow the company. I came on board to escalate the speed and size of the deals,” he says. “Day to day, I’m concentrating on the asset management side of the business and improving how we run and operate properties with a physical, sustainable, and fiduciary approach to make them extremely successful for our investors and company.”
He says he is setting up tools to sustain growth, with the hiring of high-level vice president positions for asset management, capital expenditures, marketing and branding, and human resources. And he’s dedicated to growing the company with dedicated employees with good work-life balances paired with performance-driven results.
“In addition to hiring Aaron as our new COO, we are continuing to build out our capex and ground-up development teams. While we are a growing midsized firm, we are spending a lot of time and capital in creating a corporate culture that is more inclusive so that everyone feels that they are an important part of the firm’s growth,” adds Gidi Cohen. “This has really helped to attract new employees and retain our existing people.”
Read the original article at Multifamily Executive here: https://www.multifamilyexecutive.com/business-finance/los-angeles-multifamily-firm-sets-five-year-growth-plan_o
