New Wave Of Young Multifamily Entrepreneurs 'Jump Into Deep End' Of Philly's Next Building Boom

New construction in the Philadelphia multifamily sector is down following a furious, yearslong building boom led by trendy areas like Fishtown.

Now, a handful of fresh-faced entrepreneurs who cut their teeth redeveloping that neighborhood are striking out on their own to position themselves for the next upswing.

“We really felt as if the market was at a critical inflection point,” Trophy Commercial Real Estate co-founder Craig Thom told Bisnow. “If we’re not going to do it now, when are we going to do it? You kind of have to jump into the deep end and learn how to swim.”

Thom’s 33-year-old partner, Saam Tashayyod, started Trophy Commercial last June. Thom, 36, came on board in January after closing out a few final deals at Scope Investment Real Estate Services, where the pair met.

Thom sold undeveloped land in neighborhoods like Fishtown for Scope while Tashayyod serviced the same clients from a financial perspective.

The new firm, which the pair describe as a “middle-market brokerage,” already has at least eight properties closed or under contract. One of its biggest deals so far was the $2.9M sale of a Fishtown development site at 2001 E. Lehigh Ave. that is entitled for 157 units. It also got an 89-unit development site under contract last month.

Nine-month-old Eclipse Development is helmed by an even younger pair of entrepreneurs who were introduced by a mutual friend during their college years.

Michael Dinan and Ryan Kalili, both 26, were early players in Archive Development, where they inked their first deals before they even graduated.

The older firm known for building studio apartments in Fishtown has since wound down, and the new Eclipse is looking to broaden its horizons in Philly.

“We’re definitely still focusing on projects in Fishtown, but we’re now branching out into Center City,” Kalili said.

Eclipse recently purchased the former Red Cross building at 2221 Chestnut St. for $7.2M. The firm plans to lease up the vacant structure, which Kalili said provides a good opportunity for a single tenant in need of an entire building. It is also considering a residential conversion of the property down the line.

Eclipse also bought a surface parking lot at 26 S. 21st St. from Parkway Corp. with plans to build a 12-story, 190-unit apartment building. They expect to break ground late this year or in early 2027.

Center City already has a large volume of new Class-A apartments, but Eclipse wants the project to fit into a new niche within that market.

“Our vision is to bring nice and new Class-A at a slightly more affordable price point than some of the competition,” Dinan said.

He and Kalili plan to accomplish that with a more conservative amenities package than typically offered in the neighborhood. 

“We feel like a lot of those buildings are almost overamenitized,” Kalili said. “The pool is five times larger than it needs to be, the gym is five times larger than it needs to be.”

Eclipse’s plan calls for a rooftop jacuzzi instead of the full-sized pools seen at other high-end Center City buildings.

Both Eclipse deals were closed before the Trump administration’s tariffs began making headlines and wreaking havoc in the construction industry.

The firm hasn’t finalized any more transactions since, Dinan said. But neither has almost anyone else.

“Right now at least, people are probably waiting just because it’s difficult to underwrite deals with a high level of certainty,” Dinan said.

Philadelphia is working through a glut of new apartments that were greenlighted as developers rushed to meet the 2021 deadline for a citywide tax abatement program. But that status quo is expected to shift.

“We are experiencing an all-time low in starts, in projects and permits being pulled,” Tashayyod said. “There’s a lot of inventory coming online right now … and not a whole lot of inventory backfilling it in the next few years.”

While Philly proper does have hurdles for developers in the form of councilmanic prerogative and what can at times become an intense municipal review process, it is still more accommodating than most of the surrounding communities.

“These suburban markets have a ton of red tape that people have to navigate,” Tashayyod said. “It takes even longer to find a viable site.”

Eclipse might expand beyond Philadelphia down the road, but the firm remains focused on the city for the time being.

“We view this as kind of our starting point,” Dinan said. “There’s been a lot of trust placed in us by investors, some of whom have gone out on a limb here. ... We both have made a strong effort to kind of let the business grow and scale organically to make sure we pace things in a way where we never bite off more than we can chew.”

That is one of the main reasons they are holding off on a residential conversion of the former Red Cross building. 

Kalili doesn’t find the pressure he is under to be daunting.

“I don’t think about it as us managing $100M,” he said. “If you put everything together in your head and make it a big thing, it becomes daunting and intimidating.”