About
Biochemist by training. Investor and operator by inclination. Attorney somewhere in between. Here's the fuller picture.
Background
I studied biochemistry at the University of Georgia — not the most obvious starting point for a real estate career. But the analytical habits that come with a science background have turned out to be pretty useful in this business. I went on to Georgia State University College of Law, where I found that the problems I was most drawn to lived at the intersection of law, capital, and operations.
I started out at Burr & Forman, and then spent several years at Eversheds Sutherland as a senior associate, working almost exclusively on real estate investment and development transactions. That experience — structuring deals, managing complexity, thinking carefully about downside risk — shaped how I approach investments today.
I joined Holder Properties because I wanted to be on the principal side — involved in deals from first look through closing, and then responsible for operating the asset on the other side. I'm now the COO and General Counsel, which puts me in the middle of most things we do.
The Basics
Investment Philosophy
The best investments reward patience. I'd rather own a durable asset at a fair price than a mediocre one at a bargain.
I came to value investing through the classics — Buffett, Munger, Klarman, Greenblatt — and what I find compelling is how consistently the same principles apply across asset classes. Whether you're buying a business or a building, the fundamentals that matter are mostly the same: look for a margin of safety, understand what you're buying, don't overpay, and then have the patience to let time do the work.
Commercial real estate is where I spend most of my professional time, and I find it genuinely interesting — particularly assets with durable income, good locations, and long-term tailwinds. I'm skeptical of financial engineering, short hold periods, and deals that only work under optimistic assumptions.
I'm equally drawn to owner-operated businesses where management has significant personal capital at stake, thinks in decades rather than quarters, and allocates capital with discipline. These companies tend to show up in places the market isn't paying close attention to, which is usually where the more interesting opportunities are.
Personal
I live in Sandy Springs with my wife Carly — who runs Shine ATL — and our three kids: Dean (8), Layla (7), and Noah (3). Our house is cheerful, chaotic, and the best part of my day.
I try to take fitness seriously, follow UGA football, the Hawks, and the Braves with probably too much interest, and read whenever I can. Lately that's been mostly investing and business history — a few books that have genuinely shaped how I think: Poor Charlie's Almanack, The Intelligent Investor, The Outsiders, and Thinking in Bets.