Hilco Real Estate has sold its private real estate mortgage lending company, Hilco Real Estate Finance, to the Garrison Investment Group for an undisclosed amount.
Hilco Real Estate, a unit of Hilco Global, founded Hilco Real Estate Finance in 2012. In the ensuing year and a half, Hilco Real Estate Finance has “exceeded all expectations and financial projections,” according to Neil Aaronson, CEO of Hilco Real Estate.
“Following such a successful first year and a half of lending, originating loans in approximately 20 states and rapid expansion of the operations, we decided that the time was right to carefully transition the company to a new capital partner that wanted to aggressively scale the business,” Aaronson said.
The company has found that partner in the form of the Garrison Investment Group, a private equity firm with approximately $3.5 billion of assets under its management.
Aaronson said that he and Mark Filler, CEO of Hilco Real Estate Finance, spent months researching and meeting with numerous potential capital partners before choosing to sell to the Garrison Investment Group.
Upon completion of the deal, Hilco Real Estate Finance will be rebranded as Jordan Capital Finance.
Jordan Capital Finance will be a direct private money lender serving residential real estate investors who acquire, renovate, sell, and rent properties. According to the company, JCF primarily provides lines of credit to “fix and flip” investors in select national markets, supported by “common sense” underwriting and flexible, customized programs, the company said.
JCF will provide loans to investors that rehabilitate and lease properties, plus new construction loans. JCF will make lines of credit of up to $5 million available to its clients. The company will not make loans for owner-occupied properties.
The company said that Filler will continue in his role and will lead JCF through its expansion. “While our name and ownership structure will change, the entire management team and successful business strategy will not,” Filler said.
Filler joined Hilco Real Estate Finance at the company’s launch from Prospect Mortgage Company. Prior to founding Prospect, Filler also co-founded Prism Mortgage Company.
“Mark Filler, the founder and CEO of Hilco Real Estate Finance has done a tremendous job building and growing this part of our real estate business practice,” Aaronson said. “Mark has been an outstanding leader with an aggressive expansion plan; working together we decided that the time was right to sell the company in order to facilitate further growth.”
John Bunting, managing director of Garrison Investment Group, said that Hilco Real Estate Finance has established a strong market position that will only grow with Garrison’s investment.
“Our investment in Jordan provides a valuable and complementary addition to our portfolio of lending platforms,” Bunting said.
“Mark Filler and his team have a successful track record and have demonstrated the expertise to deliver careful underwriting and highly professional business practices. This group has extensive experience in commercial and residential finance, construction lending, and commercial banking.”
