A key element of Highland Realty Capital, Inc.’s (“HRC”) competitive edge is the added value offered by the company’s principals who, collectively, have closed more than $7 billion in real estate transactions.
R. Brad Sevier
Principal
Brad Sevier is the founder and President of Highland Realty Capital, Inc. With over thirty years of experience in real estate brokerage, finance and law, Mr. Sevier is a strong advocate and advisor for real estate investors and developers. Mr. Sevier began his career as a real estate attorney, focusing on the financing, acquisition, development, leasing and disposition of commercial and residential projects. Since transitioning into real estate finance in 1997, Mr. Sevier has established a broad base of capital relationships including banks, fund managers, insurance companies, CMBS originators and private investors. He has extensive experience arranging and closing asset sales, permanent loans, bridge loans, construction loans, mezzanine debt and joint venture equity. Prior to forming Highland in 2005, Mr. Sevier was a partner and Senior VP with a real estate investment bank where he led a team of professionals that arranged debt and equity for real estate investors and developers. Mr. Sevier holds a B.A. in Business Economics from the University of California at Santa Barbara, and a J.D. from Loyola University in Los Angeles. Mr. Sevier is a member of the California State Bar and the Professional Fiduciary Association of California, and is a licensed real estate broker.
Jeffrey K. Eliason
Principal
Jeffrey K. Eliason is a principal of Highland Realty Capital. Through his 22 years of real estate experience, as an advisor arranging debt and equity capital for owner/developer clients, as an acquisitions director for an investment firm, and as a banker in both Chicago and San Francisco, Mr. Eliason has become one of the leading real estate capital advisors in Northern California. Prior to joining Highland Realty Capital as a Managing Director in 2006, Mr. Eliason was a partner and Senior Vice President with Buchanan Street Partners, a West Coast based real estate investment bank. In addition to joining as one of the original partners of the firm in 1999, he served as a senior member of Buchanan’s San Francisco office and one of its top originators of business. Mr. Eliason also served in a business development capacity with Finova Realty Capital and Belgravia Capital, the two predecessor firms to Buchanan Street Partners. Starting his career in 1982 in the real estate department of Continental Illinois National Bank in Chicago , Mr. Eliason built a foundation in real estate lending. Following graduate school in 1986, he worked as a capital advisor with two subsidiaries of Grubb & Ellis, Miller Wallenstein & Associates in Dallas and George Smith Financial in Los Angeles . In the 1990’s Mr. Eliason was the Director of Acquisitions for a Northern California real estate investment firm, worked as a consultant with 1st Interstate Bank, and became a partner with a Sunnyvale real estate advisory firm. Mr. Eliason earned a B.S. in Finance from the University of Iowa , where he graduated summa cum laude, and received his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School . He serves on the Board of the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the National Association of Industrial & Office Properties (NAIOP), and is its Program Chairman. Additionally, Mr. Eliason is a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and has been a licensed California Real Estate Broker since 1992.
Leland Ortega
Senior Vice President
Leland Ortega joined Highland Realty Capital in 2017 as Vice President and Transaction Manager in Northern California. Leland is responsible for overall deal management including underwriting, structuring, and closing the placement of debt, mezzanine, and equity opportunities for a broad range of commercial real estate assets and ground-up developments. Prior to joining Highland Realty Capital, Leland transacted on over $1.3 billion in closed deals including direct property acquisitions, raising institutional joint-venture equity, and arranging conventional/structured debt. While at CBRE in the Multifamily Debt & Structured Finance team, Leland provided production, and underwriting support for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and debt fund capital. At Wood Partners, Leland supported the Acquisitions team by sourcing value-add investment opportunities and by raising JV equity, co-GP, and debt capital. Leland also assisted in due diligence, renovation/repositioning planning, and asset management. Leland received a B.S. in Business Administration with a major in Finance from California State University, Chico and is a licensed CA Real Estate Broker. Leland is a member of the San Francisco Urban Land Institute.