Team

Christopher Peatross founded Swift Real Estate Partners in 2010 and is responsible for Swift’s strategic vision and leadership for the firm’s investment platform. Before founding Swift, Christopher was the President and CEO of CarrAmerica, Trizec and Equity Office Properties (“EOP”), where he oversaw all aspects of EOP’s 56 million square foot office portfolio, successfully creating one of the nation’s leading real estate companies. Prior to joining EOP, he served for five years at CarrAmerica as the Northern California Managing Director. Earlier in his career Christopher served at Spieker Properties and Catellus Development Corporation where he worked on industrial assets. Christopher holds a Quantitative Economics degree from Stanford University and is a member of ULI.

Damian Manolis is the Chief Investment Officer at Swift. Previously, Damian had an extensive and well-rounded career with PGIM Real Estate (formerly Prudential Real Estate Investors), where he most recently served as head of its U.S. Transactions Group and Chair of its Investment Committee.  In this role he was responsible for all real estate acquisitions, dispositions, development and capital markets activities on behalf of the firm’s U.S. focused investment vehicles.  Damian holds a B.A. from Cornell University and M.B.A. from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.

Steve Blue is the Managing Director for Swift’s Southern California region. Prior to joining Swift in 2015, Steve was a Partner from 2008 to 2015 at Davenport Partners. At Davenport, Steve led the acquisition, financing and operational efforts of numerous office properties for private and institutional investors. Before joining Davenport, he served as Senior Vice President and Partner with Buchanan Street Partners and was responsible for identifying, structuring and underwriting joint venture investments. Prior to Buchanan Street Partners, Steve served five years as Vice President at Spieker Properties. He began his career in real estate with LaSalle Partners. Steve holds a B.A. in Economics from Stanford University and an M.B.A. from Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management.

Tamara Tanner is the Managing Director of Human Resources at Swift, overseeing Swift’s HR strategic initiatives and employee relations. Prior to joining Swift in 2010, Tamara served for fifteen years as the West Coast Sr. HR Generalist at CarrAmerica where she contributed to the growth and development of CarrAmerica’s West Coast platform. Tamara attended the University of Maryland, College Park and studied Humanities.

Rachel Sergi is Swift’s Managing Director of Finance and Accounting. Rachel oversees the financial, accounting, tax and IT activities of the organization. Prior to joining Swift in 2015, Rachel served as the Vice President of Fund Accounting at Carmel Partners and the Assistant Controller at MBK Real Estate. Rachel began her career at PricewaterhouseCoopers in their real estate division where she was a Senior Associate. Rachel is a California licensed CPA, holds a degree in Business Economics, with a Minor in Accounting, from the University of California, Los Angeles and an M.B.A. from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.

Rick Buziak is Managing Director of Operations at Swift, managing protocols across Swift’s asset management, property management and construction management divisions. Previously, Rick spent seven years at Kilroy Realty Corp as Senior Vice President of Asset Management, during which he helped grow the firm’s presence in Northern California dramatically. Prior to Kilroy, Rick was with Equity Office Properties and Boston Properties, where he covered both leasing and property management initiatives. Rick holds a B.A. from University of Buffalo and M.B.A. from San Francisco State University’s College of Business.

Doug Abbey is the Chairman Emeritus of Swift Real Estate Partners and joined Swift in 2012. Doug previously co-founded two investment management organizations, AMB Property Corporation (merged with Prologis: NYSE) in 1983, now the largest global industrial REIT, and IHP Capital Partners, formed in 1992, a provider of equity to the single-family homebuilding industry.  He is a Trustee and past Vice Chairman of the Urban Land Institute and serves as the Chair of the ULI Foundation and on the board of the ULI Terwilliger Center for Housing.  He serves on the board of Bridge Housing, the leading non-profit affordable housing developer on the West Coast with over 13,000 units under management.  He also serves on the real estate committee of the UCSF Foundation.  Since 2005 he has taught the real estate class at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.  Doug holds a B.A. from Amherst College and an MCP from University of California, Berkeley.

Todd is a Senior Property Manager serving the Portland, Oregon Metro area for Swift. Prior to joining Swift he managed office, retail, and industrial properties in the Portland, Seattle, and Sacramento markets.  Todd has directed tenant improvement projects, construction projects, and negotiated Lease Agreements. He has assisted in the acquisition and disposition of several assets for Swift including a complex subdivision project. Todd holds an Oregon real estate Broker’s License and earned a B.A. in Business Management from Seattle Pacific University.

Craig Biedler is VP Fund Accounting at Swift. Prior to joining Swift in 2016, Craig served as a Fund Controller at Carmel Partners. Craig began his career at Deloitte where he was a Senior Associate in their Halifax, Canada office.  Craig is a licensed CPA, CA (Canada) and holds a degree in Economics from the University of Calgary and a degree in Commerce, with a Major in Accounting, from Dalhousie University.

Sam Birnbaum is a Director at Swift and is also responsible for asset level and investment vehicle debt financing. Prior to joining Swift in 2019, Sam was a Director of Investment Management at Hines. Additionally, Sam worked in the Equity Capital Markets Group at Jefferies and covered the firm’s real estate clients. Sam holds a B.A. in Economics from Carleton College and an M.B.A. from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.

Michael Burnaz is Swift’s Vice President of Construction and Development. Prior to joining Swift, Michael was the National Vice President of Construction for Laramar Group where he was responsible for the day to day operations and strategic direction for the Construction Services Department. Michael has extensive experience working on several multifamily and assisted living development platforms in the western US in both Construction and Engineering. Prior to Michael’s real estate career he spent 10 years as the Code Enforcement Official for the City of Moreno Valley, CA. Michael graduated from University of Phoenix with a B.S. in Business Management, is a licensed General Contractor in California and has proudly served in the US Marine Corps (active duty) and as an Army Reservist.

Nate Carlson is a Director at Swift and is responsible primarily for asset management in Swift’s Silicon Valley and East Bay markets. Prior to joining Swift in 2011, Nate served as a senior financial analyst at Equity Office Partners. Before joining EOP, he worked for O’Brien Homes, Spieker Properties, and AvalonBay in both finance and accounting. Nate brings almost twenty years of real estate experience to Swift and holds a B.S. in Finance from Santa Clara University.

Elyse Cartmell is a Property Manager at Swift.  Elyse is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations at Concord Tech Center, a campus comprised of over 1 million square feet of Class A office buildings. Prior to joining Swift in 2011, Elyse spent seven years at Equity Office and CarrAmerica where she was an Asst. Property Manager for their assets in the Pleasanton, Fremont, and Berkeley. Elyse holds a B.A. from CSU, Chico.

Molly Castles is the Senior Creative Services and Marketing Manager at Swift. Molly is responsible for Swift’s corporate and asset marketing. Prior to joining Swift in 2017, Molly spent five years at Jamestown, L.P. where she focused on their San Francisco office assets and the repositioning of Ghirardelli Square. Molly holds a B.A. from Lehigh University.

Tommy Christman is a Director at Swift and is responsible for acquisitions and asset management in Swift’s Southern California markets. Prior to joining Swift, Tommy was an investment analyst at BBT Capital Management, a multi-strategy hedge fund.  Additionally, Tommy worked as an analyst in the mergers and acquisitions group at Rothschild, Inc.  Tommy holds a B.S. in Commerce, with a Finance concentration, from the University of Virginia, McIntire School of Commerce and holds an M.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin.

Bernard Chua is a General Manager at Swift, responsible for management operations for the Los Angeles/Orange County portfolio.  Prior to joining Swift in 2019, Bernard oversaw operations of Class A properties in Pasadena and Glendale for PGIM Real Estate.   Bernard has over 20 years of commercial real estate experience which includes overseeing a 2.5 million square feet office and mixed use asset in Downtown Los Angeles.  Bernard holds a B.S. in Computer Science and a Masters of Business Administration degree from Pacific States University.  He is also a LAFD Certificate of Fitness holder for High Rise Life/Safety.

Nicco Cipolla is an Investment Manager at Swift and is primarily responsible for assets in the East Bay market. Prior to joining Swift in 2015, Nicco was a Financial Analyst at CBRE and The CAC Group for over three years. Nicco has a B.A. in Business Administration and Management from University of the Pacific’s Eberhardt School of Business.

Rod Collings is a General Manager in the Property Management Division at Swift. Rod joined Swift in 2014 to work on the repositioning of Rosewood Commons, a one million square foot office park in Pleasanton California. Rod began his real estate career in 1980 working for a private developer renovating, leasing and managing office buildings in the financial district of San Francisco. Rod then turned to the East Bay to work for Bedford Properties. After the savings and loan crisis in 1990, Rod returned to the San Francisco financial district and enjoyed the next 25 years managing and renovating many Class A high-rise office buildings for SAE America, William Wilson & Associates, The Swig Family, Ellis Partners, Beacon Capital Partners and TIAA-Cref. 

Alexandra Collins is the Southern California Senior Project Manager for Swift. Alex is responsible for the management of complex capital expenditure projects, tenant improvements, and repositioning projects in her region. Prior to joining Swift, Alex worked in project management on the tenant representation side for JLL and Cushman & Wakefield. Alex holds a B.S. in Mathematics and B.A. in Spanish from UCSB.

Chris Huizenga is a Director at Swift, responsible for overseeing Operations for the Southern California region and Engineering for Swift’s entire portfolio. Over the past 4 years since joining Swift, Chris served as the Asset Manager for ten (10) assets in Southern California totaling 2.4 million square feet.Chris has 23 years of commercial real estate experience spanning multiple disciplines (Asset Management, Financial Analysis & Operations). Prior to joining Swift in 2016, Chris was a Director in Asset Management for Hines where his portfolio was concentrated in the San Francisco Bay Area totaling 4 million square feet. He holds a B.A. in Finance from the Eli Broad School of Business at Michigan State University and is a LEED Accredited Professional.

Lynn has a wealth of property management experience encompassing Office, R&D, Industrial and Retail properties for institutional and entrepreneurial owners. Prior to joining Swift as General Manager, Lynn was Principal of Providien Property Management managing all aspects of Swift’s San Diego portfolio including construction. Before Providien she was Director of Property Management for Brandywine Realty Trust. Lynn was 2016-17 BOMA San Diego President and served on various BOMA Boards and Committees. She was named as one of 2016 Daily Transcripts 100 Influential Leaders in San Diego.

Lynne Johns is the Senior Property Manager for the Swift portfolio of properties in San Francisco:  1390 Market, 260 California, 55 New Montgomery, and 101 Utah.  Prior to joining Swift in 2021, Lynne has been managing commercial properties in the San Francisco Bay Area for over 15 years. Lynne received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Cal State University East Bay where she studied Sociology and also retains a California Real Estate Salesperson License.

Jennifer is the Senior Manager of Property Accounting for Swift’s portfolio. Jennifer has 15 years of property accounting experience in residential, retail, and commercial real estate. Prior to joining Swift in 2018, Jennifer worked for Prometheus Real Estate Group, and Safeway’s real estate division. She holds an MBA in Business – Accounting from University of Phoenix.

Britt Kortan joined Swift as Property Manager of 1111 Broadway in August of 2021. Prior to joining Swift, she worked with Mid Atlantic Realty Partners in the greater DC area with a team managing over a million square feet. In 2019, Britt joined Cushman & Wakefield in San Francisco to manage a historic asset in the Financial District. Britt holds a B.A. from California Institute of the Arts.

Bernadette Kosandiak is Swift’s Assistant Controller. She hails from Adelaide, South Australia and knew from a very young age that her destiny was to make her home in the U.S.A. In 2011 she ventured to the U.S. to fulfill her childhood dream. Before joining Swift, Bernadette was the Controller for Diodati Investments, where she oversaw accounting for a multi-dimensional real estate development firm responsible for the construction and management of light industrial commercial condominiums.  Prior to Diodati, Bernadette devoted eight-years building her financial experience as Senior Accountant at Accru Harris Orchard in Adelaide where she focused on pension funds and accounting for partnerships, trusts, and multi-country entities.  Bernadette studied at the University of South Australia and holds a bachelors degree in Business Administration.

Kristin joined Swift in August 2021 as General Manager of 1111 Broadway and 1333 Broadway assets. She spent most of her career in Austin, Texas working with CapRidge Partners, where she was responsible for the supervision and operations of 16 Class A&B projects in over four states, totaling 2.1M sf. Prior to joining Swift, she worked with various clients at Cushman and Wakefield in San Francisco overseeing a portfolio throughout Union Square, Financial District and SOMA. Kristin is actively involved in the East Bay BOMA, CREW and the downtown CBD District Board.

Michelle Mansfield is a General Manager at Swift and is responsible for assets in the East Bay. Prior to joining Swift in 2013, Michelle spent seven years at CAC Real Estate Management Co. overseeing San Francisco and Oakland Class A Office Buildings. Michelle has a B.A. in Psychology from Humboldt State University and M.B.A. from the University of Phoenix. 

Jennifer Mauro is a General Manager at Swift for the San Francisco portfolio. Prior to joining Swift in 2014, Jennifer worked as a Sr. Property Manager at Equity Office Properties where she was responsible for overseeing the daily operations of one million plus square feet of industrial and office commercial properties. Jennifer has 25 years of commercial real estate management including retail, medical office, and a 5 facility Self-Storage portfolio in the Bay Area. During her career, Jennifer spent 3 years serving on the BOMA Silicon Valley board of directors.

Maritza Mendoza is the Senior Manager of AP/AR at Swift, she oversees all AP and AR functions in Property Accounting. Prior to joining Swift in 2014, Maritza spent 4 years with JLL as AR Accountant for a 3^rd Party client in charge of a portfolio of properties. Maritza holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Notre Dame de Namur University. 

Kurt Nelson is a Director at Swift and is primarily responsible for investments for the Pacific Northwest. Prior to joining Swift in 2017, Kurt served as Vice President – Capital Markets at Harsch Investment Properties in Portland, Oregon. Prior to his tenure at Harsch, Kurt served as Senior Vice President – Acquisitions and Development at Scanlan Kemper Bard. Kurt has 15 years of experience in the real estate arena in Seattle and Portland. Kurt holds a B.A. in History, from Pepperdine University and a M.B.A. from The Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California, Irvine.

Olga Ornelas is the Director of Operations for Swift’s Northern California portfolio. Prior to joining Swift in 2015, Olga worked as a Portfolio Manager at Hudson Pacific Properties, Inc where she was responsible for 2.6 million sq. ft. of office and mixed use assets. Before Hudson Pacific Properties, Olga spent twelve years at Equity Office Partners/CarrAmerica touching every aspect of property management. Olga has sat on the BOMA of Silicon Valley board for the past four years and is currently Past President and Sponsorship Chair.

Kassi Oswald joined Swift in 2016 and serves as the Senior Manager of Construction Accounting. Kassi is responsible for overseeing the Construction Accounting for Swift’s entire portfolio. With over ten years of accounting and finance experience in commercial real estate, and a specialty for the construction and development arena, Kassi has been instrumental in implementing Swift’s job cost process and procedures. Prior to joining Swift, Kassi spent five years at Equity Office where she was responsible for construction accounting for the California and Washington Assets.  

Rob Phelps is a Senior Project Manager at Swift. Rob is responsible for the day-to-day management of all large construction and R&M projects within Swift’s Northern California and the Pacific Northwest portfolios. Prior to joining Swift in 2019, Rob spent two years at LBA Realty, where he managed construction and R&M projects within the firm’s Northern California office and industrial portfolios. Prior to LBA, Rob spent four years in operations with McCarthy Building Companies, one of the country’s largest and oldest commercial general contractors. Rob holds a B.S. in Civil & Environmental Engineering from The University of California, Davis.

Shawn Safavi is a General Manager at Swift, responsible for operation of assets in the Seattle region. Prior to joining Swift in 2021, Shawn spent 15 years at Pinnacle where he directed the commercial department with a portfolio consisting of 2 million square feet of office and retail. He holds a B.A. in Business Administration from the University of Washington.

Stephanie Soderberg is a Senior Property Manager at Swift. She is responsible for 1M square feet of commercial office space in Los Angeles and Orange County. Prior to joining Swift in 2020, Stephanie was at EQ Office/General Electric overseeing an 800K square foot portfolio of creative office. She has 16 years of commercial real estate experience including retail and industrial operations.

Kim Stevens is a General Manager for Swift’s San Diego portfolio. Kim is responsible overseeing day to day office portfolio operations in San Diego. Kim has over 23 years of commercial real estate experience working principally with REITs focused on asset management and lease transactions. Kim holds a B.A. in Accounting from the Eli Broad School of Business at Michigan State University.  

Alina Talbott is the Property Manager responsible for Operations at Five Thirty B Street, a 24-story Class-A office building situated at the heart of the financial corridor in Downtown San Diego. Alina started her career in Facility Management with Hines at Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres. She continued her career with Hines at two other assets of theirs in San Diego for over 12 years total before making the leap to Five Thirty B Street. Alina holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management and Marketing. 

Jack Waldsmith is an Investment Manager at Swift and is primarily responsible for acquisitions and asset management in Northern California. Prior to joining Swift in 2018, Jack was a Senior Associate at PricewaterhouseCoopers covering real estate clients. Jack holds a B.A. in Economics & Accounting from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Vivi Wirjadisastra is responsible for overseeing the Property Accounting function for Swift’s entire portfolio. Vivi has 23 years of property accounting experience in commercial real estate. Prior to joining Swift in 2012, Vivi was a Controller at AMB Property Corporation (now Prologis) where she was responsible for a portfolio in US West and Central regions. She holds an MBA in Finance from California State University East Bay.

Jeremy Wustman is an Investment Manager at Swift and is responsible primarily for acquisitions and asset management in Swift’s Southern California markets. Prior to joining Swift, Jeremy was Vice President of Acquisitions & Capital Markets at Gemini Rosemont Realty. Additionally, Jeremy worked at KSB Realty Advisors in a dual role with acquisitions and asset management responsibilities. Jeremy holds a B.S. in Building Science-Civil Engineering from University of Southern California’s Viterbi School of Engineering.