13th Floor Investments

13th Floor Investments is a vertically integrated real estate investment and management company based in Miami, Florida. Through our family of real estate fund vehicles, we acquire real estate assets, either directly or indirectly, by investing at various levels of the capital stack. We seek to invest in real estate assets at a cost-advantageous basis and drive value through a focus on operations and cash-flow management. Critical to our success has been the ability to invest opportunistically and to assume the role of both investor and operator, across all asset classes and stages of the economic cycle. We have experience negotiating through and structuring around complex, special situations. In fact, we thrive in these situations and believe outsized returns can be realized with manageable risk through prudent due diligence and structuring. We have closed transactions involving financially constrained developers, complex joint ventures, special servicers, banks, and other financial institutions, acquiring fee simple real estate, performing and non-performing notes, bonds, and other real estate-related securities. Our ability to perform extensive due diligence on, understand, and appropriately structure complex, special situations gives us a significant competitive advantage.

Real Estate Specialization
Multifamily
Industrial
Residential Income
Investment Type
JV partnership
Acquisition/Fee Simple
Investment Style
Value-add
Opportunistic
Typical Deal Size
$10,000,000 - $50,000,000
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Managing Principal

Arnaud Karsenti

Arnaud Karsenti is the Managing Principal of 13th Floor where his core focus is new business origination, risk evaluation, and financial structuring. Mr. Karsenti is primarily responsible for the general direction of the firm’s investment strategy and overall capitalization. In this capacity, Mr. Karsenti’s role is one of revenue generation and fund raising from investors and lenders. Mr. Karsenti has been active in the real estate business since 2003 when he began his real estate career assembling and developing land parcels in Miami’s urban cores. These initial one-off acquisitions led to the creation of 13th Floor as a fully vertically integrated real estate investment firm which has acquired and managed approximately $425 million in real asset value (projected total project cost) since inception. The consummated transactions have ranged between simple property acquisitions to restructuring of distressed debt, fractured residential inventory, community district development bonds, and a host of joint venture structures. In each case, Mr. Karsenti’s role is to first identify intrinsic value within the underlying property, and then determine the most optimal structure by which to acquire it. When faced with uncertainties and risk, Mr. Karsenti is well versed at pricing those risks and identifying the required business plan required to extract value made on the purchase. Prior to founding 13th Floor, Mr. Karsenti founded Collegeboxes, one of the nation’s leading college-based shipping and storage company. Originally the subject of an engineering class project, Collegeboxes grew to over 40 markets across the United States before being acquired in 2004. Today, the firm is owned by U-Haul and remains nationally recognized as one of the premiere solutions for college students across the country. Mr. Karsenti graduated cum laude from the Pratt School of Engineering at Duke University, with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, and holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School.

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Chief Financial Officer

Daryl Shevin

Daryl A. Shevin, CFA, has over 14 years of experience in the real estate, hedge fund and private equity industries. Mr. Shevin has been CFO of 13th Floor since February 2010. From 2007 to early 2010, Mr. Shevin was the CFO/COO of White Barron Asset Management, an asset manager focusing on the asset backed bond market, specifically the mortgage market. At White Barron, he handled all operational and accounting aspects of both the fund family and the management company, including all aspects of the startup process. Additionally, from 2008-2009 Mr. Shevin provided consulting services to America’s Capital Partners, a commercial real estate owner and operator. Prior to White Barron, Mr. Shevin was the head fund accounting manager at United Capital Asset Management, a fund manager with over $1.3 billion in assets under management at its peak, specializing in distressed fixed income investment strategies. At United Capital Asset Management, Mr. Shevin was responsible for reviewing and approving all financial statements, including the year-end audit, as well as all other fund related issuances for the entire fund family. Before joining United Capital Asset Management, Mr. Shevin spent more than 7 years as a fund administration supervisor at Kaufman, Rossin & Co. His responsibilities at Kaufman, Rossin & Co. included leading a team administering over $10 billion of client assets with direct supervision of a group of 15 people reporting on over 50 funds. Mr. Shevin was named CFO of the year in 2012 by the South Florida Business Journal in the division of Small Private Companies (defined as 100 employees or fewer). Mr. Shevin has been a CFA charter holder since 2006 and graduated from the Warrington School of Business at the University of Florida.

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Chief Operating Officer

Ray Melendi

Rey Melendi joined 13th Floor in 2012, and oversees the development, construction, and operational asset management of the Sponsor’s investments. Prior to 13th Floor, Mr. Melendi was the Director of REO at Rialto Capital Management LLC. At Rialto Capital Management LLC, he managed over $300 million in commercial and residential REO properties in the Pacific Northwest, Midwest and Eastern Seaboard. Prior to joining Rialto, Mr. Melendi held several senior roles within Lennar Corporation. Most recently, he was Senior Vice President at Lennar Ventures, focusing on strategic partnerships in the Renewable Energy Industry, as well as managing Lennar’s Government Affairs initiatives at the Federal and State level. As a member of the Lennar family for over 17 years, he held the titles of President (of the South East Florida Land Division), Real Estate and Sales Agent, Superintendent, Construction Area Manager, Director of Construction, VP of Construction and Division President. Mr. Melendi’s areas of expertise include construction, development, underwriting and acquisition of land, and day-to-day management of large groups of personnel. He has in depth knowledge of land entitlement, permitting processes and DRIs. Mr. Melendi was President of the Builders Association of South Florida and is a member of its Board of Directors. He is also involved with the United Way Young Leaders. In 2005, he was awarded the prestigious Latin Builders Association “Land Developer of the Year” Award. He holds an associate degree in Criminal Justice and has a General Contractor’s License.

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Principal

Michael Nunziata

Michael Nunziata joined 13th Floor in 2009. While primarily focused on acquisition initiatives and new business procurement, Mr. Nunziata is also actively engaged in the ongoing oversight, management, and disposition of 13th Floor’s and its affiliates’ real estate portfolio. Since joining 13th Floor, Mr. Nunziata has been involved in the acquisition and management of assets with an aggregate value in excess of $250 million. Prior to joining 13th Floor, Mr. Nunziata was responsible for the sourcing and underwriting of non-performing commercial real estate secured debt with New York based Lane Capital Partners and its predecessor fund, Rossrock. Mr. Nunziata started his career with SunTrust Bank as a portfolio manager in the commercial real estate finance group, where he worked on the origination and analysis of lending facilities between $5 million and $50 million throughout the Southeastern US. Mr. Nunziata is currently a member of the Urban Land Institute and the UF Friends and Alumni of Real Estate Organization and has previously participated in NAIOP, Junior Achievement, and the Central Florida Homebuilders Association. Mr. Nunziata holds a bachelor’s degree in economics with a minor in entrepreneurship from the University of Florida and a master’s of science degree in real estate from Columbia University.

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Principal

Jacob Roffman

Jacob Roffman joined 13th Floor in 2012. In his role at 13th Floor, Mr. Roffman concentrates his efforts on acquisition initiatives and new business procurement. Mr. Roffman is also focused on the oversight, management, and disposition of 13th Floor’s and its affiliates’ real estate portfolio. Prior to joining 13th Floor, Mr. Roffman was a private equity Associate at H.I.G. Capital, LLC, which manages private equity funds totaling over $10 billion. At H.I.G. Capital, LLC, he led diligence processes and built detailed financial models across a variety of industries. Further, Mr. Roffman sourced potential investments, built relationships with management teams, and assisted in structuring deals across all levels of the capital structure. Prior to H.I.G. Capital, Mr. Roffman worked as an investment banking analyst in the Global Industrials and Services group at Credit Suisse, where he served as a member of client deal teams that provided advice on corporate strategy, defense maneuvers, public equity and debt offerings, and mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Roffman is currently a member of the Urban Land Institute and is active locally with the Ponce Society of Young Professionals. Mr. Roffman graduated cum laude from the University of Notre Dame with a degree in Finance and a minor in Public Policy and holds an MBA from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.

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Key Focus Areas
Construction Development Financial Analysis Private Equity Real Estate
Geographical Area
Mapped Location