The Amherst Group, a real estate investment, development, and operating firm based in Austin, Texas, has named David Schwarz as head of Commercial Real Estate Strategies.
Schwarz will lead the expansion of Amherst's commercial real estate business by further developing the existing credit business and leveraging Amherst's expertise to launch new products and business segments across both real estate debt and equity. Additionally, he will manage the company's open-end debt fund, Commercial Real Estate Senior Transitional Loan Fund LP.
Schwarz joins Amherst from Colony Capital Inc. (now DigitalBridge Group Inc.), most recently serving as managing director and head of Colony's expansive hospitality platform.
"We have tremendous ambitions at Amherst, and a key component to diversifying our platform and achieving our goals is broadening our commercial real estate footprint," said Amherst CEO Sean Dobson. "With strong performance history, a core CRE team with a tenured track record, and a deep bench of strategic partners, the company is primed for significant expansion. David's leadership capabilities and breadth of experience across investment strategies will help us catalyze this next important growth phase for Amherst and our stakeholders."
Schwarz brings to Amherst extensive investment experience in commercial real estate. During his decade-long tenure at Colony Capital, he oversaw all functions of the hospitality business, including acquisitions and management of the 245-property portfolio. Previously at Colony, Schwarz led investment activities for the firm's series of opportunistic credit funds focused on distressed real estate opportunities. Earlier in his career, Schwarz served as a principal at Warburg Pincus and previously worked at the Carlyle Group.
"I'm incredibly excited to join such a fast-growing platform and help guide Amherst's evolution within the commercial real estate industry," Schwarz said.
Amherst's commercial real estate lending strategy originates first-lien mortgages on transitional properties across office, retail, multifamily, industrial, mixed-use, and hotel sectors. Amherst's vertically integrated platform is driven by a regimented credit process, quantitative modeling, and a seasoned investment team with deep experience sourcing, underwriting, closing, and asset managing loans throughout different market cycles.
