CALMWATER CAPITAL - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Capital Markets Associate
As a Capital Markets Associate, Aaron Joiner oversees Calmwater's diverse lines of credit. His pivotal role extends to crafting and maintaining intricate financial models that steer cash dynamics.
Preceding his tenure at Calmwater, Aaron was part of The Walt Disney Company's esteemed Global Cash Management team. He played a critical role in steering cash flows throughout various divisions including Lucasfilm, ABC Signature, and 20 th TV. His prior experience also includes several years at First Horizon Bank (acquired by TD Bank), where he earned experience in both Commercial Real Estate Lending and Financial Planning & Analysis. Aaron is a distinguished alumnus of Tulane University.
Job Titles:
- Associate Investor Relations
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Underwriting
DaJuan Bennett is primarily involved in underwriting and execution of financing opportunities at Calmwater Capital.
Prior to joining Calmwater Capital, he was a part of the Credit Strategies team at CBRE Global Investors where he was responsible for underwriting, conducting due diligence and executing debt investments. DaJuan has additional experience on the Office Development team at Irvine Company where he focused on the redevelopment of assets within the portfolio. He also worked on the Real Estate Investments team at the Los Angeles County Retirement Association (LACERA) where he created the go-to-market strategy for investments in Latin America. DaJuan began his career as a consultant at Accenture where he focused on HR Transformation for Fortune 500 companies.
DaJuan earned an M.B.A. from UCLA Anderson School of Management and a B.B.A from Howard University.
Job Titles:
- Controller
- in 2023 As Controller
Daniel joined Calmwater Capital in 2023 as Controller to oversee the accounting and back-office operations of the firm and its investment vehicles. He is responsible for coordinating with the fund administrators and outside service providers to ensure timely and accurate reporting. Daniel joined Calmwater with over 10 years of experience in the alternative investment industry. He began his career at a boutique fund administrator catering to emerging managers and went on to work at various investment advisors in the credit space including Oaktree Capital where he was a Senior Manager in the Strategic Credit strategy. Daniel graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in Economics and Accounting and is an active CPA in the state of California.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer at Karlin Asset Management
David A. Cohen serves as Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer at Karlin Asset Management, which he co-founded in 2005. David has more than 30 years of principal investing experience in public and private securities, real estate, and private equity across a broad spectrum of industries. His career has spanned investment banking at Lazard Freres & Co. to senior executive roles at large private corporations and investment firms. He is a frequent speaker and thought leader on distressed investing, risk management, asset allocation, and contrarian thinking. He serves in executive leadership roles or board positions with a variety of non-profit organizations in the areas of education, public policy, medical research, and animal welfare. David holds degrees from Boston University (B.S. in Engineering, summa cum laude) and Cambridge University (M.Phil.) and completed graduate work at Sydney University as a Rotary Foundation Scholar.
Job Titles:
- Principal
- Managing Principal / Dean Chang / Principal
Dean Chang is responsible for all legal and operational matters for Calmwater Capital in the underwriting and management of its real estate debt portfolio. Dean serves as the firm's General Counsel and is a member of its Investment Committee. Prior to joining Calmwater, Dean was Senior Director of Acquisitions and Legal Affairs at CityView, a Los Angeles based real estate fund manager where he advised senior management on a portfolio of over $2B in real estate development projects nationwide. Dean started his real estate career as an associate at the law firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP where he represented lenders and institutional investors in commercial real estate transactions. Dean received his B.S. in Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley and his J.D. from UCLA School of Law, where he graduated Order of the Coif and was an editor of the UCLA Law Review. Dean also clerked for the Honorable Judge Ronald S.W. Lew of the United States District Court for the Central District of California.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Head of Investor Relations
Jerry Aversano joined the firm in 2023 as Director, Head of Investor Relations. This is a global position based in the firm's Park Avenue, New York, NY office. He is responsible for Calmwater Capital's investor relations department.
Mr. Aversano, with a Master of Science in Real Estate Investment & Finance from New York University Schack Institute of Real Estate, an MBA from Rutgers Business School, and a Bachelor of Science degree from Fairfield University, brings nearly 20-years of expertise across client service, product development and capital raising from J.P. Morgan Asset Management, PGIM Real Estate and Franklin Templeton.
Job Titles:
- Founder
- Managing Principal
- Managing Principal / Dean Chang / Principal
Larry Grantham is a founder and Managing Principal of Calmwater Capital responsible for overseeing the originations, underwriting and asset management of the firm. He is a member of its Executive and Investment Committees and has led the firm's real estate transactions in excess of $2.7B. Larry has 20+ years of experience in commercial real estate and structured finance. Prior to the inception of the Firm in 2015, he launched and managed the $1B real estate lending platform for Karlin Asset Management since 2010. Previously, he was a director of a credit joint venture funded by Fortress Investment Group, responsible for sourcing, underwriting, and executing investments, including loan originations and purchases of non-performing loans secured by real estate and corporate assets.
Over his career, Larry was a principal with East Hill Management in Boston and a principal with Cypress Tree Investment Management, an early CLO manager, helping the company grow from $500 million to $3+ billion in assets under management. He is a member of the California Mortgage Bankers Association, CRE Financial Counsel, Urban Land Institute and the Pension Real Estate Association. Larry is also a frequent speaker and panelist at real estate conferences and events across the West Coast.
Larry received a B.A. degree from Vanderbilt University.
Mark Sato is a highly accomplished CFO with nearly twenty years of progressive Finance and Accounting Experience. As the Chief Financial Officer at Calmwater Capital, he oversees all financial matters for the organization and its investment vehicles, while also serving on the valuation committee. With extensive experience in the commercial real estate industry, Mark previously held similar roles at Arixa Capital and Watt Funding. He honed his skills as an Assurance Manager at Deloitte and PwC, where he worked in the Financial Services and Real Estate groups. Mark holds a Bachelor's degree in economics from UCLA, where he graduated with honors, as well as an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management where he earned specializations in Finance, Entrepreneurship, and Real Estate. During his time at Anderson, Mark was recognized with the Global Access Program (GAP) Fellowship. He is a former CPA with the state of California.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Originations
Ryan Altman is responsible for the sourcing, underwriting, and execution of loan opportunities in the NY Metropolitan area, Florida and Southeast.
Prior to his current role, he served on the underwriting team where he was primarily involved in underwriting and execution of financing opportunities as well as the fund development team which he joined in 2015. Ryan began his career as a fund accounting oversight administrator for State Street Corporation.
Ryan graduated with a B.Comm. in Accounting from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Underwriting
Ryan has over 10 years of institutional experience. Prior to joining Calmwater Capital, Ryan was a Vice President in the originations group at Starwood Property Trust in Los Angeles, CA where he was involved in sourcing and structuring large ($100 million +) construction and bridge loans. Ryan has additional experience on the CMBS team at Morgan Stanley in Los Angeles, CA and New York, NY where he underwrote stabilized loans as well as experience on the Bridge Loan team at Walker & Dunlop Investment Partners (fka JCR Capital) in Denver, CO where he focused on originations and underwriting. Ryan began his career in the CMBS group at Moody's in New York, NY.
Ryan earned a B.A from Princeton University.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director of Asset Management
Simond Lavian is Calmwater Capital's Managing Director of Asset Management, and he is an Investment Committee member. Simond supervises the asset management group's oversight of borrower business plan execution, ongoing investment underwriting, and risk mitigation strategies to secure successful loan payoffs. He also leads the firm's REO activities and dispositions.
Simond has been with Calmwater for seven years, and he has been involved with the management of all four of its funds. He has held senior roles in investment and general business operations for 15 years, and has experience across the capital stack on multiple sides of real estate transactions, including equity sponsorship, legal, and credit. Prior to joining Calmwater, Simond was a Senior Analyst at Regence Holdings, where he worked closely with the principals to lead underwriting and due diligence for the company's investment activities. Simond's experience is focused on structured risk mitigation, creative solutions, and value preservation. He demonstrated entrepreneurship in the early stage of his career by founding and operating a national print magazine publishing business, which he later sold to private equity investors.
Simond obtained an M.B.A. from the UCLA Anderson School of Management and a J.D. from the UCLA School of Law. He also has a B.A. in Economics from York University in Toronto, Canada. Simond is a member of the State Bar of California.
Job Titles:
- Director, Originations / Western USA