First Draft Live: Is This Multifamily’s Moment Of Truth?

Real estate investment industry veteran Robert E. Hart is the founder, chief executive, and president of Los Angeles-based TruAmerica Multifamily, a vertically integrated multifamily investment firm with regional headquarters in Arlington, VA; Seattle, WA and Dallas, TX. Since its founding in 2013, TruAmerica under his leadership has become one of the most active multifamily investors in the United States and today has approximately $10.3 billion of assets under management. Hart is responsible for the phenomenal growth and national expansion of the firm’s value-add investment platform, which currently includes 46,000 units in 14 states. He has led TruAmerica to a top 50 ranking of the largest apartment owners in the United States the past four years by the National Multifamily Housing Council. As CEO, Hart chairs TruAmerica Multifamily’s Investment Committee to skillfully select value-add assets for acquisition, repositioning, and eventual disposition to deliver outstanding risk-adjusted returns for the company and its 30 global institutional partners. With a career that spans nearly four decades, Bob is a recognized leader in the multifamily industry where he contributes his time and energy as a board member to a variety of industry organizations including the National Multifamily Housing Council and the Urban Land Institute. Named one of the most influential business leaders in Los Angeles by the Los Angeles Business Journal, he was also recently recognized by Real Estate Forum as the “Best of the Best Bosses” in the real estate industry. Understanding the value of giving back, Hart also generously gives of himself – both in time, talent and treasure – to a wide variety of charitable and academic organizations, raising tens of millions of dollars to better the lives of others in his community. For nearly 16 years, half as Chairman, Bob has been a member of the board of directors of Chrysalis, a non-profit organization dedicated to creating a pathway for homeless and low-income individuals to find and retain employment in Los Angeles. Recognized for his professional and philanthropic contributions to elevate the human condition, he was celebrated by the City of Hope in 2017 with the Spirit of Life Award. He is also the proud recipient of the Humanitarian Leadership Award presented to him by the Alumni Association of his alma mater Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Hart is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Marlborough School in Los Angeles and a member of Board of Governors of the City of Hope. Prior to founding TruAmerica Multifamily, Hart earned industry accolades as the transformational chief executive of Kennedy Wilson Multifamily Management Group, a part of the NYSE-listed Kennedy Wilson global real-estate concern. Hart envisioned and launched Kennedy Wilson’s value-add apartment portfolio strategy that profitably acquired and disposed of more than 20,000 units in 13 years, with a total transaction value of more than $4.5 billion. Previously Hart was senior vice president of portfolio management for global real estate investment management firm, Heitman Capital Management where engineered the turn-around and disposition of a $500 million property portfolio on behalf of pension funds, endowments and domestic and foreign lenders. Previously, he served as Director of Real Estate Marketing for Executive Life Insurance Company, where he was responsible for the orderly liquidation of more than $1 billion in real estate assets and securities. Hart is a sought-after interview by leading publications, and has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, National Public Radio, Bloomberg, The Los Angeles Times and innumerable industry and trade media outlets for his insights into the real estate markets. Hart holds a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts and continues to serve his alma mater as a member of the Board of Trustees. He earned a Master of Business Administration degree from the Anderson School of Management at the University of California, Los Angeles and where he serves on the leadership board for UCLA’s Ziman Center for Real Estate.