ARA Expands National Affordable Housing Roster with Addition of Four

Austin, Texas—Atlanta-headquartered ARA, a privately held investment advisory brokerage firm focusing on the multihousing industry, announced the expansion of its National Affordable Housing Platform with new team members in Seattle; Austin, Texas; and Houston.

Chris Bergmann, former Senior Managing Director for Trammell Crow Residential’s Affordable Housing Division brings more than 25 years of affordable housing investment sales experience to the team. Prior to Trammell Crow, Chris worked as principal of the Shenandoah Group, a LIHTC consulting firm.

Bergmann has developed over 16,000 affordable housing units over the course of his career. He will leverage his knowledge of the industry to assist clients in the disposition of affordable housing assets and provide guidance to clients contemplating exit strategies for LIHTC and HUD assisted properties.

Based in Seattle, Jerry Low joins ARA from CBRE’s Affordable Housing/HUD Group where he focused on transacting both LIHTC assets and HUD properties. Low began his career as a financial consultant catering to a range of clients including high net-worth individuals, corporations and foundations.

Also joining the team is Texas Department Housing & Community Affairs veteran, Lisa Vecchietti. With more than 10 years of affordable housing experience including LIHTC, HOME and USDA, Vecchietti will direct the underwriting of all affordable housing assets.

Derek DeHay, who joined the team in 2008, is expanding his role by focusing on affordable housing transactions nationally and business development in the central states. DeHay is involved in all aspects of the financial analysis, underwriting and marketing of the group’s listings. Prior to joining ARA, DeHay worked for a private multifamily investment group participating in the acquisition and redevelopment of distressed assets in the Southeast. He also worked as an analyst for Wentwood Capital Advisors, a LIHTC investment and asset management firm where he provided investment performance to corporate limited partners.

Also joining the team as a Financial Analyst is Jack Simone. Simone is a recent graduate of the University of Texas McCombs School of Business. Prior to joining ARA, Jack completed an internship as a financial analyst underwriting multi-family transactions for Walker & Dunlop. At ARA, Simone will be responsible for research, underwriting, and due diligence support.