Houston Women Leading Real Estate

As a member of Lionstone’s capital formation team, Anar Shah supports investor relations, institutional and retail business development, and strategic planning and development of new fund vehicles across the firm’s investment programs. Ms. Shah has over 20 years of experience in institutional investment management. Prior to joining Lionstone in 2020, Ms. Shah was a senior vice president on the alternative investment sales team at Citi Private Bank. She received a B.S. in Finance from Louisiana State University and holds the FINRA Series 6, 7, 31, 63, and 66 registrations.

Ashley serves as Managing Director and is based in Houston. She is responsible for leading and executing lending and financial placement for projects across different product types in various regions. Ashley is also responsible for developing and maintaining the firm’s commercial lending relationships. Ashley brings over 25 years of commercial real estate lending experience with various regional and national banks. She joined Transwestern in early 2015 and has arranged over $1.5 billion of debt financing for development projects across multiple product types included multi-family, industrial and office in various cities across over twenty different markets. Prior to joining Transwestern, Ashley was managing director of the Southwest regional office of MidFirst Bank for the National Income Property Group, where she ran the lending group based in Houston and was responsible for maintaining and growing banking relationships, underwriting, credit-worthiness and profitability and originating new business. Prior to MidFirst, her experience includes real estate lending positions with Regions Bank, Key Bank and Wachovia.

Aura Malpica is a Senior Investment Associate with Allied Orion Group in charge of all aspects of multifamily development and investments–ranging from origination to disposition. Since joining Allied Orion Group in 2017, Aura has assisted with the development of more than 1,500 apartment homes throughout Texas and has developed diverse expertise in the real estate industry, including land acquisition, due diligence, market research, financial underwriting and modeling, capital raising, project financing, design and construction management, preparation of institutional-grade reports and dispositions. Prior to joining Allied Orion Group, she worked as an accounting analyst in the finance department for the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce where she was responsible for financial reporting, annual audits, financial planning, budgeting and forecasting, and presenting and advising the Board of Directors and investors on the financial status of the Chamber of Commerce. Aura started her professional career in Venezuela where she served as Chief Operating Officer for a general contracting firm, reporting to the CEO, and was responsible for all financial and administrative matters for the company. Aura holds a Master of Business Administration and a Master of Science of Finance from the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas, as well as a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Carabobo in Venezuela. In her spare time, Aura enjoys spending time with her husband David, and her children Damian and Anabella.

Chace Henke serves a Principal at Edge Capital Markets. She specializes in the representation of owners in the disposition of their income-producing assets with an emphasis on multi-tenant retail and office. Prior to joining Edge, she was a Vice President at Transwestern for seven years where she was actively engaged in the stabilization and disposition of retail assets throughout Texas and Louisiana. During her career, Chace has been instrumental in the sale of over half a billion in investment real estate transactions. Chace brings a unique knowledge base and perspective to the investment sales platform, having previously leased a portfolio comprised of over 1 million sf of retail space, thus allowing her to fully understand the fundamentals of the assets she is selling. Chace’s leasing efforts alone have generated over $75 million in value for her clients. Prior to that, Chace was a member of the Page Partners retail brokerage team where she honed her skills by facilitating dispositions of distressed and REO assets for the nation’s largest special servicers. Chace received her BBA in finance with a concentration in real estate from the Red McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin.

Jamie Safier is a Managing Director, Capital Markets with Marcus & Millichap Capital Corporation based in Houston. Mrs. Safier is primarily responsible for sourcing debt and equity for commercial real estate transactions of all asset types including multifamily, retail, office, and self-storage. She joins MMCC from LMI Capital, where she was a Senior Director and served her clients for 10 years. Over the course of her career, she has placed hundreds of millions of dollars in transactions of all types and established prosperous, enduring relationships with multiple lenders and property owners across the country. She began her career as an investment banking analyst where she worked in the Financial Institutions Group. Mrs. Safier received a Bachelor of Business Administration with a concentration in finance from the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin.

Janie Franco leads our Accounting & Finance teams to support all aspects of “money operations” for our Company. She has worked in the accounting field since graduating from The University of Texas at Austin and has worked specifically for the Real Estate industry in commercial, multi-family and single-family development, construction, operations, acquisitions, and development. At Wan Bridge, Janie splits her time between overseeing our Property Accounting team, Finance, Development and Corporate Accounting while creating systems to integrate our construction & partnership accounting, 3rd party and investor reporting and ongoing compliance audits. She recently was awarded the 2023 REDNews Real Estate Awards CPA of the Year for her work in aiding Wan Bridge’s growth. Janie is an integral part of our business who knew she wanted to work with numbers since she was six years old when she helped her father, who was a small business owner, prepare his cash deposits. Janie’s favorite phrase, often heard in the accounting department is “We have a spreadsheet for that,” showing her comprehensive commitment with a smile. When she is not working, she spends time with her husband of almost 20 years and two children.

Jennifer Ray, Managing Director, works within the Investment Sales team of Walker & Dunlop’s Houston, Texas office. She has extensive knowledge in the disposition of multifamily assets in Texas with over 14 years of transactional experience totaling $6.3 billion. Prior to joining Walker & Dunlop, Ms. Ray worked at Berkadia as a Senior Director on the Houston Investment Sales team for 5 years. Prior to her role at Berkadia, she served as an Associate Director at CBRE. Ms. Ray earned her Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, as well as her Master’s degree in Real Estate Land Development.

Lauren Sparks founded Agility 2020, Inc., the entity that proposed a federally chartered bank, primarily owned and led by women. Today, Agility Bank is open and operating in Houston as the first women-owned and led Minority Depository Institution founded for its purpose in the country. With over three decades of community banking and risk management experience, Lauren is uniquely qualified to foster the growth of digital-forward community bank. As a business owner herself, Lauren executed exceptional opportunities for entrepreneurs, especially women. In 2009, she formed Third Party Resources, Inc. (3PR Inc.), a woman-owned consulting firm specializing in community banks and financial service firms. 3PR serves more than 30 community banks at any given time and has become a preferred vendor for one of the world’s largest software providers. Lauren was also recently honored as one of the Houston Business Journal’s Texas 100 influential professionals to watch in 2023.

Ms. Green has extensive experience in the servicing, portfolio management and closing of commercial real estate debt for life insurance companies, Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and Wall Street conduits. As Managing Director of the Conduit and Agency Group (CAG), Ms. Green’s primary responsibility is the management, coordination and closing of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae loans. Since joining CAG in 2001, Ms. Green has been instrumental in closing over 1,900 Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae transactions totaling $41 billion. Prior to joining CBRE, Ms. Green was a vice president in portfolio management at WMF Washington Mortgage/Prudential, and a senior portfolio manager at Holliday Fenoglio, Inc. In addition to managing multiple servicing portfolios, Ms. Green was responsible for supervising a staff of closers and servicers, and was instrumental in establishing and documenting policies and procedures. Ms. Green began her career in the mortgage banking industry in 1983.

Miranda joined Caldwell Companies in 2010 and now serves as Vice President – Investments. Miranda is responsible for the due diligence process of underwriting the financial feasibility and development viability of potential investment opportunities in order to grow our commercial and residential portfolios. She participates in evaluating development and disposition strategies for portfolio assets along with assisting in the sourcing of debt and equity capital. Miranda began her career with Deloitte Financial Advisory Services, LLC as a real estate analyst in 2008. While with Deloitte Miranda performed appraisals, site inspections, audit support appraisal reviews, market studies, rent studies, lease abstracts, and leasehold interest valuations for property types including retail, office, industrial, land and multi-family properties. Miranda graduated from Texas A&M University, earning her Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing in 2006 and her Master of Real Estate in 2008. She was a member of the Aggie Women’s golf team and she still enjoys playing. Miranda and her husband Brad are members of Houston’s First Baptist Church. They both served on the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Gate Keepers Committee and participated in the MS150. In her spare time she enjoys spending time cooking, traveling, fishing, cycling and watching Aggie football with her husband.

Rhonda J. Sands is a Frost senior vice president and relationship manager serving customers in the Houston region. Rhonda has 39 years of industry experience. Her wealth of knowledge coupled with her expertise help build strong banking relationships with her customers and colleagues. A proud graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with a BBA and an MBA, Rhonda’s commitment to continued learning and leadership development is evident through her involvement with Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) Network, both as a member and by serving on the board. Her community involvement includes the Advisory Board for Women’s Resource of Greater Houston, and Treasurer of St. Philip Presbyterian Church. In addition to helping Frost grow and prosper through her strong interpersonal skills and her vast product knowledge, Rhonda enjoys spending time playing golf and summertime hiking in the mountains.

Kristin Burton is a Managing Director of Finance for Greystar. She serves as co-lead for the North American Development project finance team overseeing the company’s capital execution for development assets in the Central and West regions of the United States and Canada. Kristin has been active in the multifamily industry since 2005. Prior to joining Greystar in 2015, she worked for JP Morgan in the company’s commercial real estate group, serving in various roles, including multifamily project underwriting, loan structuring and syndicated finance, legal documentation, and relationship management. Kristin holds a master’s degree in Land Economics and Real Estate, as well as a bachelor’s of science degree, both from Texas A&M University.

Anne Marie Rogers is the Vice President of Sales and Business Development at Quest Trust Company. After joining the company in 2013, Anne Marie has played a pivotal role in growing Quest and identifying new business opportunities. She has extensive knowledge of retirement planning through alternative investing and more than a decade of sales and marketing experience. As an investor herself, Anne Marie understands both the conceptual and practical uses of Self-Directed IRAs, with much of her investment experience in private lending and other passive investment opportunities. As one of the lead female public speakers at Quest Trust Company, Anne Marie is passionate about educating Americans on the benefits of Self-Direction. She has been featured in the media on KHOU Great Day Houston, and on the cover of Think Realty Magazine as a Woman to Watch in the industry. Anne Marie received her Bachelor of Arts from St. Edward’s University and holds the designation of CISP and SDIP.

Summer Carter is the Business Development Executive for commercial general contracting firm, WC Construction based in The Woodlands, TX. Summer entered commercial real estate after obtaining her bachelor’s degree at the University of Houston in 2019. Summer was presented with an opportunity, not realizing the pathway ahead held a potentially long-term future. She joined WC Construction in the role of Assistant Project Manager and continued to excel ahead within the company. Within a year, she took on the role of Superintendent, where she led the firm’s construction projects onsite. Her first assignment was a 435,000 square feet demolition project for Developer James Warmack and Avison Young in Research Forest Lakeside. Summer completed projects across the Greater Houston area covering a region as far north as College Station and as far east as Beaumont. The following year, Summer was immersed within the company and created a new division to serve as the Business Development Executive to expand the company’s client portfolio and maximize the company’s profit. She has elevated company awareness and opportunities through outlets such as sponsorships, partnerships, panelist opportunities, spotlights, and much more. She was recently invited to speak on the AIA (The American Institute of Architects) panel on “Navigating the Ropes” where she advised career guidance for students and peers in the AEC (Architectural, Engineering, and Construction) industry. Summer is a committed advocate of the commercial real estate industry and is involved in numerous committees and programs. During her term serving Leadership Montgomery County, she assisted the local nonprofit Community Assistance Center. Summer was elected to the Board of Directors for The Woodlands Area Chamber of Commerce where she is highly involved. She has served as the Sponsorship Team Lead for the Annual Economic Outlook Conference, Annual Chairman’s Ball, and currently serves as a member of the Executive Leadership Council and represents WC Construction as a Corporate Partner. Additionally, she has been elected to the Board of Directors for the Commercial Real Estate Association of Montgomery County representing WC Construction as a Gold Sponsor partner. She is an incoming Board Member of CoreNet Global Houston Chapter and is incoming Chairman for it’s Emerging Leaders committee. Due to her role and initiatives, WC Construction is partnered with many other Corporate Real Estate committees and organizations in the Houston area including NAIOP as a Gold Sponsor, Urban Land Institute where she was a past ULI Next Generation committee member, Bisnow past panelist and partner, and an advocate for CREMM. Summer focuses on enriching the development of WC Construction by working alongside the firm’s clientele in the pre- construction phase of the projects, engaging in networking events, attending conference seminars, actively building new and nurturing current relationships within the community and in the surrounding areas. Summer continues to seize new opportunities for WC Construction and continually stays actively involved in multiple assets of the community to enhance the economic viability.