Brandon Cohen

About Brandon Cohen

Director of Asset Management at Harbert Management, where I oversee portfolio strategy, capital execution, and value creation across a diversified U.S. value-add real estate platform spanning industrial, retail, multifamily, office, and self-storage. My work sits at the intersection of operations, leasing, capital markets, joint venture management, and investment decision-making. I lead business plan execution across acquisitions, lease-up, repositioning, refinancing, recapitalization, and disposition strategies, with a focus on downside protection, liquidity, and risk-adjusted returns. Over the course of my career, I have executed more than $1.6 billion of dispositions, refinancings, and recapitalizations across 4,400+ units and 7.4M+ square feet. I work closely with senior leadership, operating partners, lenders, and counterparties to align asset-level execution with fund objectives, capital allocation priorities, and investor expectations. I serve on NAREIM’s Asset Management Committee and hold a BBA and MBA in Finance and Real Estate from the University of Alabama, along with the CFA charter.

Experience

1. Director of Asset Management

   Harbert Management Corporation

   Jan 2019 — Present · Birmingham, AL, US

   Lead portfolio strategy, operating performance, and capital execution across diversified U.S. value-add real estate funds-Set and execute asset-level business plans spanning leasing strategy, capital planning, refinancing, repositioning, recapitalization, and dispositions-Present and defend recommendations to the Investment Committee on hold-sell decisions, capital allocation, refinancings, and disposition strategy-Lead cross-functional teams of asset managers, property managers, leasing brokers, construction managers, and JV partners to deliver asset-level and portfolio-level performance-Direct major lease negotiations, capital projects, and repositioning programs across multifamily, industrial, retail, office, and self-storage assets-Lead refinancing processes, loan amendments, maturity extensions, DSCR monitoring, and lender negotiations-Direct disposition strategy from BOV analysis through marketing, buyer selection, PSA negotiation, diligence, and closing-Oversee valuations, reforecasts, and fund-level projections to inform capital deployment and exit decisions-Prepare and present Investment Committee materials related to financings, equity requests, recapitalizations, and disposition recommendations-Lead investor-facing communications for institutional LPs on portfolio performance, capital events, and business plan outcomes.

Education

• The University of Alabama

  Bachelors of Science, Finance with a concentration in Real Estate and minor in Economics

  2002 — 2006

• University of Alabama, Manderson Graduate School of Business

  MBA, Finance & Real Estate

  2006 — 2008

Skills

• Investments
• Real Estate Due Diligence
• Appraisal Institute Courses: Appraisal Principals and Appraisal Procedures
• Valuation
• Finance
• Analysis
• Commercial Real Estate
• Real Estate
• Real Estate Private Equity
• Investment Properties
• Asset Management
• Passed Cfa Level Ii Exam
• Commercial Real Estate Analysis
• Disposition
• Dispositions
• Underwriting
• Real Estate Transactions
• Argus Modeling
• Mortgage Lending
• Microsoft Office
• Sales
• Financial Modeling
• Real Estate Financing
• Real Estate Economics
• Due Diligence
• Leases
• Cfa Level Iii Candidate
• Portfolio Management
• Loans
• Private Equity
• Financial Analysis