FTI Consulting announced the further expansion of its Capital Markets practice within the firm’s Real Estate & Infrastructure industry group with the appointments of Eric Hamermesh as Managing Director and Sam Khazary as Director. In addition, Senior Managing Director Michael VanderLey has been appointed to lead the Real Estate Capital Markets practice. Hamermesh is based in Los Angeles, and Khazary and VanderLey are based in San Francisco.
Hamermesh has 35 years of experience in the real estate and real estate capital markets industries and assists clients with sourcing and executing transactions involving debt, equity and hybrid capital products, as well as asset and portfolio real property and loan sales. In addition, he advises clients on transactions involving ground leases and real estate-related securities, including interests in whole loans, subordinate debt and mezzanine securities, as well as fractional interests in property owning entities. Prior to joining FTI Consulting,Hamermesh held positions at institutional investment banks Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse, the hedge fund Canyon Capital and middle market real estate investment banker George Smith Partners, Inc. In his new role at FTI Consulting, he will perform strategic advisory work including the evaluation of real estate-related “special situations,” transactions related to both in- and out-of-court restructurings, as well as assisting emerging real estate investment managers with accessing institutional capital and high net worth family offices.
Khazary has more than 12 years of experience in the real estate capital markets industry. With the product development and marketing of real estate investment securities, he has advised on a number of significant capitalization transactions and liquidity events, at both the entity and real estate asset level within the private, non-listed REIT industry. Prior to joining FTI Consulting, Khazary was a Vice President at RCS Capital Corporation, where he helped lead strategic advisory services on sell-side and buy-side M&A engagements. Prior to RCS, he served as a Director of due diligence at Cole Capital, where he oversaw business development initiatives and worked with external advisors to underwrite exit strategies for its various non-listed REIT programs. Khazary has also held positions at Morgan Stanley, Ehrenkranz Partners and OppenheimerFunds focusing on the implementation of investment strategies for high-net-worth individuals, foundations and endowments. In his new role at FTI Consulting, Khazary will focus on strategic advisory services for mergers, acquisitions, capital markets transactions and corporate development.
VanderLey has more than 30 years of experience in the real estate industry and the capital markets that serve it. He has been involved with transactions representing every major real estate asset class and has advised on, originated, acquired or managed investment positions at every level of the capital structure. He also has extensive special situations experience, having represented debtors, secured creditors, creditors’ committees and equity interests in connection with numerous restructurings and Chapter 11 cases, including directly leading or advising on financing and sale processes totaling more than $5 billion in connection with these mandates. Since joining FTI Consulting in 2009, VanderLey has assisted stakeholders in evaluating, developing and implementing strategic and operational plans and structuring and negotiating complex asset acquisitions and dispositions, debt and equity financings and special situations transactions. He has also served as testifying expert or consultant-to-counsel on engagements involving Chapter 11 interest rate and plan feasibility matters, leasehold valuation and damages, partnership disputes, loan underwriting procedures, loan servicing and administration and real estate capital markets conditions.
“Today’s market provides both real challenges and exciting opportunities for owners and developers seeking capital for growth, investors seeking to deploy capital and operating businesses seeking to enhance or unlock enterprise value. Both Eric and Sam bring noteworthy backgrounds and deep industry relationships to FTI Consulting, where we see capital markets as being a key link in the value chain our real estate practice provides to clients,” stated VanderLey.
The Real Estate Capital Markets team, part of FTI Consulting’s wholly-owned, broker-dealer subsidiary, FTI Capital Advisors, LLC, helps public and private sponsors, operators, investors and operating businesses strategically dependent on real estate with debt and equity financings, asset and portfolio-level transactions, business combinations including joint ventures and M&A, and on strategic issues affecting enterprise value.
FTI Consulting, Inc. is a global business advisory firm dedicated to helping organizations protect and enhance enterprise value in an increasingly complex legal, regulatory and economic environment. With more than 4,400 employees located in 26 countries, FTI Consulting professionals work closely with clients to anticipate, illuminate and overcome complex business challenges in areas such as investigations, litigation, mergers and acquisitions, regulatory issues, reputation management, strategic communications and restructuring.