NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – October 24, 2022 – CapRock Partners, a fully integrated real estate private equity firm, today announced the hiring of Mike Kent as senior vice president of asset management, and Sean Grubbs as first vice president of capital markets. Both professionals are known industry leaders with significant commercial real estate experience. Kent and Grubbs’ appointment supports CapRock’s ongoing expansion as a leading investor and developer of logistics assets in the Western U.S. and Texas. The firm is actively pursuing value-add industrial real estate investment opportunities and land sites for large-scale logistics development in targeted locations, adding to its robust portfolio, which will be nearing approximately $3.0 billion of assets under management or advisement by the end of 2022.
“CapRock Partners is proud to welcome Mike and Sean to our team of exceptional real estate professionals,” said Jon Pharris, co-founder and president of Caprock Partners. “CapRock continues to grow, and we remain committed to investing in and strengthening our team with industry leaders who share in CapRock’s collective values and investor-first mindset. We are grateful Mike and Sean chose to come aboard, particularly in today’s competitive hiring environment, which is a testament to our firm’s reputation as a great place to work. We are excited to have them both at CapRock and welcome their expertise and leadership.”
At CapRock, Kent is responsible for leading the firm’s asset management initiatives and overseeing its established portfolio of industrial real estate. He brings nearly 40 years of experience to his role as he guides CapRock’s asset management and third-party brokerage teams in the stabilization of the firm’s development and value-add assets. He works closely with CapRock’s internal executive team and with the firm’s partners and customers in providing high-level market knowledge and tailored solutions for every asset.
“I am thankful for the opportunity to join the CapRock team and bring my experience and insight to the firm,” said Kent. “CapRock is known for its commitment to excellence, and for its dynamic team of tenacious professionals with a proven ability to deliver best-in-class industrial and logistics assets. The firm has a solid foundation for growth and a bright sustained future, and I am excited to be a part of its next chapter.”
Kent is a known industry leader with a history of building effective teams through training, mentoring and empowering individuals. He currently serves as president for the Building Owners and Managers Association of Orange County (BOMA OC).
Prior to joining CapRock, Kent led the national asset management division for one of the world’s largest public industrial REITs. His resume includes several high-level leadership roles in asset management with RREEF (Deutsche Wealth & Asset Management) and American Realty Advisors U.S., as well as starting his career as a broker with Cushman & Wakefield. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara.
On the capital markets side, Grubbs oversees CapRock’s capital markets division. Working closely with Pharris, Grubbs leads the firm’s debt efforts, which includes managing CapRock’s existing lender relationships, sourcing all new loans for acquisitions, development and refinancing, as well as managing CapRock’s interest rate hedging strategy. CapRock anticipates Grubbs will negotiate more than $1 billion of financing activity with traditional lenders, debt funds and life insurance companies over the next twelve months.
Grubbs’ prior experience includes a decade working at premier national lenders. He spent eight years with Bank of America’s commercial real estate balance sheet lending group, where he worked with many of Orange County’s top commercial real estate developers and investors, originating over $2.5 billion in new loans, ranging from construction, reposition and permanent project secured loans, to entity level financing solutions. He also worked at Wells Fargo in their banking division.
Grubbs graduated from Pepperdine University where he was a three-year starter on the Men’s Volleyball team. He is actively involved in NAIOP SoCal and most recently served as a Board Member for HomeAid’s Orange County chapter from 2019-2022.
“Mike and Sean are industry all-stars who are already making a difference and adding tremendous value to the CapRock team,” said Patrick Daniels, co-founder and chief executive officer of Caprock Partners. “As the industrial real estate industry evolves and incurs shifting tides in 2022, CapRock is optimistic about the future, especially as we add more outstanding leadership to our growing enterprise.”
ABOUT CAPROCK PARTNERS
Founded in 2009, Newport Beach, California-based CapRock Partners is a fully integrated real estate private equity firm focused on acquiring and developing logistics assets in the Western U.S. and Texas. The firm specializes in acquiring middle-market, value-add industrial assets and developing large-scale, institutional-quality, Class A industrial warehouse facilities in high-growth markets across California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Texas. Since inception, CapRock has acquired, developed or entitled more than 30 million square feet of logistics assets. CapRock manages a series of private real estate funds and has raised approximately $1.5 billion of equity commitments across multiple partnerships. CapRock is registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. For more information, visit www.caprock-partners.com. Follow the company on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram.
