National real estate investor and operator Waterton is undergoing a succession transition as Rick Hurd, managing partner, investment management, has announced his retirement after more than four decades in real estate investment and 12 years at the firm. Industry veteran John W. Gray, who has more than two decades of multifamily investment and development experience, has been hired to succeed Hurd as managing partner, chief investment officer.
“Rick Hurd has been an integral part of Waterton’s success over the past 12 years,” said CEO, chairman, and co-founder David Schwartz. “Under his leadership, we have built what I feel is one of the strongest investment teams in the business. We thank him for his many years of dedication and leadership and wish him all the best in this new chapter.”
During Hurd’s tenure at Waterton, he has been instrumental in shaping the firm’s investment strategy, leading the acquisitions and capital markets teams in the acquisition of approximately $10 billion in multifamily transactions and more than $1 billion in debt investments. He also helped lead the portfolio management team, overseeing $5 billion in dispositions.
In anticipation of Hurd’s retirement, Waterton launched a search to identify the right leader for the firm. According to Waterton, Gray was selected for his extensive business experience, strong market reputation, and deep industry relationships.
Gray most recently served as CEO of Fabric Housing, a Blackstone portfolio company, where he focused on multifamily development initiatives. Prior to that, he spent over a decade at Lennar, where he held several leadership roles, including president of LMC Investments, joining as the firm’s second employee, and forming LennarSFR, where he served as president. During his tenure at LMC Investments, he helped grow the platform to national scale with over 25,000 units developed and $8 billion in assets under management. During this time, he was honored as Multifamily Executive’s 2019 Rising Star.
“We are confident that John will be a great cultural fit for Waterton and will help us continue to grow and evolve our investment platform,” added Schwartz. “John brings a wealth of experience in real estate investment and development to our team. We are thrilled to welcome him to the Waterton family and look forward to the leadership and vision he will bring to our investment team.”
This marks the second executive hire over the last several months. In April, Waterton announced that it had hired Kristi Nootens as senior vice president, development, to grow the firm’s joint-venture development strategy.
