3rd Tuesday: Build For Rent

Margaret Whelan has been CEO of Whelan Advisory, LLC since 2014. In this role she provides strategic and financial counsel to leaders of both public and private companies in the U.S. and Canada. She is a seasoned executive and industry expert with a deep knowledge of industry drivers, players, valuation and financing alternatives. She serves on the boards of three companies: TopBuild (NYSE: BLD), privately held Mattamy Homes, and John Burns Real Estate Consulting. Whelan was a Managing Director and senior coverage partner in the Real Estate and Lodging group within the investment bank at JPMorgan from 2007 to 2013, advising clients on strategic and capital initiatives through the housing industry’s biggest boom and subsequent downturn. From 1997 to 2007, she worked at UBS as a Managing Director and highly regarded stock analyst covering more than 30 stocks including homebuilders, manufacturers and retailers. She was also the Global Head of Housing Research. More recently, from 2013 to 2014, she ran the finance group of a fast-growth, publicly traded real estate private equity firm and, as its CFO, oversaw budgeting, financial reporting, capital raising, investor and media relations, human resources and regulatory compliance. She started her career in the equity research department at Merrill Lynch.

Steve joined the company in 2019. He oversees field operations, including project execution, budget development and accountability, safety, quality, training and customer relations. Prior to joining the company, Steve served in operational roles with two Phoenix area homebuilders where he delivered tangible results such as reductions in cycle times, reductions in BTA spending and improvements in customer satisfaction scores. He is a member of several industry organizations, such as Home Builders Association of Central Arizona, where he is the Co-Chairman of the Subcontractor Safety Committee; American Subcontractor Association of America; Southwest Construction Leadership Group; and Steve was instrumental in developing the South Mountain Community College – CTE Program.

Matt Nicholas began his insurance career in 1999, and is currently a Vice President of Alliant’s Real Estate & Hospitality Group. He has specialized in real estate & construction risks for the last 18+ years, and although he is qualified to work with companies across many industries – his expertise and choice, is to work solely with real estate and construction companies. Matt has spent 20+ years working in the placement, underwriting, service, and administration of insurance programs for clients spanning multiple geographies and risk areas. Prior to joining Alliant in 2020, he was with Willis Towers Watson, where he co-developed and ran a SFR/BFR practice for 6 years. Matt attended college at Arizona State University and has continued his professional insurance education by earning his CLCS and CIC designations. In 2017 Matt was chosen as a top 40 national performer by Business Insurance Magazine and awarded with the “Break Out Award”.  In the community, Matt serves as a participating member of Kiwanis-La Jolla where he volunteers throughout  the year to help raise money for many different charities that serve children in need.

Dean Rana began his career in the industry 28 years ago, pushing a broom in the truss yard. Now the President and Owner of Truss Fab Companies, Dean has extensive experience and a limitless passion for the industry. Dean started Truss Fab in 2005 and over the years has added TF Lumber, TF Panels, TF Transportation and Craneco to the family now known as the Truss Fab Companies. Dean believes that innovation and forward thinking is the key to continued growth and a critical factor to attract the younger generations to the industry. Over the past several years, Dean has focused much of his attention on researching and implementing the correct technology to improve the day-to-day experience of his employees, increase productivity, enhance the quality, and ultimately positively impact the profitability of his companies. Dean recognizes that off site construction is a game changer for modernizing the industry. Controlled environment, less waste, faster cycle times all lead to efficiencies, profitability, and growth.

Rich Rodriguez has 20+ years of experience focused on quality management in housing and is currently Executive Vice President, Operations for Amherst Residential & Amherst Holdings in Austin, TX. Amherst is a private real estate development company which specializes in Single Family Rental and other real estate investments. Rich’s team currently manages 23k SFR assets across several states. Prior to Amherst, Rich was President of Dunhill Homes (Single Family) & Nathan Carlisle Homes (Active Adult) in Dallas, TX from 2016-2019.  Over that period, Dunhill tripled its volume and successfully sold to Tri Pointe Group, Inc (NYSE: TPH) in Dec 2019. Prior to joining Dunhill, he served as Senior Vice President of Operations for Starwood Waypoint Homes, a Single Family Rental (SFR) Corporation that acquires homes, renovates and handles the leasing and property management of them as assets. In that role, Rich was responsible for Field Operations’ profit and loss – leading 200 field personnel across 15 metropolitan areas, standardizing material specifications, reducing construction and turnover costs, reducing cycle times by more than 20%, overseeing maintenance and warranty service operations, and establishing the company’s Build To Rent Operations. He helped guide the firm through acquisition, a public spin-off and eventual merger with Colony & Invitation Homes. Before getting into the SFR space, Rich served in senior leadership roles focused on operational development and process improvement for a number of other leading builders and developers, including History Maker/Rendition Homes, PulteGroup, John Laing, Centex and Arvida/St. Joe including a tour as CEO of Emaar Dubai where he led the construction of the Burj Khalifa, the Dubai Mall and several other iconic projects.   Rich holds a Bachelor of Science from the United States Naval Academy, a MBA from Xavier University and holds the rank of Rear Admiral (Naval Special Warfare – SEAL) as a Naval Reserve Officer.