An evaluation of the Opportunity Zone program from an owner’s perspective, comparing the value of property transactions in some of the country’s top ranked and lower ranked zones. Has the increased attention in Opportunity Zones created an increase in value?
About Ryan J. Rafter
Ryan Rafter serves as a managing director at Hilco Real Estates, an advisory firm focusing on consulting and transactional services in the field of real estate. The company is based in Northbrook, Illinois.
With the goal of minimizing costs and maximizing values of real estate assets, Hilco strategizes the valuation, monetization and transaction of assets to serve its clients. The firm has the knowledge and experience in managing a broad range of asset types, including retail, restaurants, offices, warehouses, manufacturing and industrial properties. It has monitored more than 35,000 leases and dispositioned properties with a total size of over 200 million square feet.
As an investment sales and leasing broker, Rafter concentrates on business development in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. He has managed the execution of real estate transactions worth more than $500 million. Rafter also leads the firm's Opportunity Zone Practice Group to serve domestic clients.
Prior to joining Hilco, Rafter worked as a relationship manager at the commercial real estate data and analytics department of Reis. He also served as an associate at Savills Studley, where he represented a large variety of organizations to conduct market research and financial analyses. He first entered the real estate industry while working for Eastern Consolidated as an associate, where he focused on the transaction of mixed-use and commercial properties.
Rafter holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Dickinson College, and a Juris Doctor from New York Law School.