TEAM

As Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer of CEI, Alla Sorochinsky oversees the execution of the CEI vision. Heading finance, asset management and development, she ensures that CEI functions at the highest level of efficiency, integrity and quality.

Between 2001 – 2010 Alla managed the company’s 3,500 unit value-add portfolio, adding significant value through heavy renovation, effective financing strategies and top notch asset management. When the company shifted its focus to ground up Class A development, Alla became instrumental in creating an asset management platform for new development assets.

Previously, Alla was the financial controller of several publicly traded technology companies. Alla graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, with a degree in International Economics and received a Master’s degree from the University of Southern California.

Bruce Fairty joined Cypress Equity Investments as Chief Operating Officer with thirty-five years of multifamily real estate development experience and investment background as a principal. Immediately prior to joining CEI, Bruce was active as a developer in the San Francisco Bay Area, first as a partner with the Castle Group Company and then as a partner with Thompson-Dorfman Partners. At Thompson-Dorfman and the Castle Group Bruce oversaw the acquisition, entitlement and development of approximately 4,400 units in San Francisco and the Bay Area. At Castle he led the company’s efforts in the use of modular construction processes for multifamily projects.

Prior to moving to San Francisco Bruce was a developer in Florida and founded Heritage Development Company in 1996 in partnership with Chicago’s Pritzker family where he oversaw all aspects of the development process for over 5,600 units. Between 1990-1995, he acquired over 6,000 REO and distressed debt units as Co-founder of Bailey Capital Company in partnership with the Whitehall Fund and Apollo Real Estate Advisors.

Previously, Bruce was CFO of Trammell Crow Residential’s Central Florida Division and later Area Partner, responsible for overseeing the development of 8,500 multifamily units across four regional divisions. Mr. Fairty received his undergraduate degree from Drew University and MBA from Rutgers University.

As Senior Vice President of Acquisitions, Adrian is responsible for sourcing and analyzing new investment opportunities, including real estate acquisitions and equity co-investments across the US; as well as fostering and growing CEI’s network of equity partners, lenders and brokers.

Adrian’s acquisitions focus includes: (a) land for multifamily development, (b) value-add retail, office and multifamily properties, and (c) GP and LP Equity co-investments with sponsors and operators.

Adrian brings over 15 years of business development experience in roles in New York, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia. Prior to joining CEI in 2015, Adrian lived in New York where he grew a successful real estate brokerage business focused on investment sales and retail leasing.

Adrian is originally from Sydney, Australia and completed his MBA at the Macquarie Graduate School of Management in Sydney in 2004. He also has an Advanced Diploma in Telecommunications Engineering from the Lidcombe College of TAFE in Sydney.

He began his career working for several architecture firms after receiving a Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of Notre Dame.

As Senior Vice President of Development, Beau Breck oversees development activities for CEI in Colorado and the Mountain Region. Beau supports Cypress’ acquisitions and capital market efforts, leading underwriting, due diligence, entitlements, project capitalization, and disposition activities for the Denver office. Prior to joining CEI, Beau spent seven years with LCP Development in Denver, participating in 11 mixed-use projects for total capitalization of $200 million, including the development of over 500 apartment units.

Beau has 10 years of development experience in Colorado, a BA in Finance from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and an MBA from the University of Denver.

As Vice President of Development, Laura is responsible for delivering mixed-use projects in markets across the US.  Prior to joining CEI, Laura was a Development Associate at CIM Group in Los Angeles working on the entitlement, design and construction of both commercial and residential mixed-use projects.

Prior to joining CIM Group, Laura was a Development Manager focused on high-rise residential development in Canada. Laura has over 10 years of real estate experience as well as a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering and MBA from the University of Calgary.

As Vice President & Financial Controller, Josh supervises the CEI’s financial reporting and cash management functions. His responsibilities include construction and property management accounting, construction draws, financial reporting, financial projections and cash management. He also provides support in acquisitions, loan origination and deal closings.

Prior to joining the team, Josh worked as Controller at Fortress Builders, a real estate developer in Atlanta specializing in single family home development projects. Josh graduated from Georgia Southern University with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting and a Master’s degree in Accounting. Josh has also been a Certified Public Accountant since 2014.

As Vice President of Acquisitions, Tim oversees all new property acquisitions on the East Coast.  His responsibilities include sourcing, underwriting, closing of acquisition opportunities and managing the due diligence, project management and entitlement process.

Prior to joining CEI, Tim worked as the Director of Acquisitions for prominent real estate investor R.A. Cohen & Associates in New York. Tim spent 6 years effectually acquiring multifamily assets throughout New York City and executing on their value-add strategy. Tim has his Masters in Real Estate Development (MSRED) from NYU, and graduated from the University of Washington with his Bachelor’s degree.

As Vice President of Construction, Rudy Valeros oversees construction projects on the West Coast. Rudy brings over 20 years of experience in various sectors of the construction industry including commercial, hospitality, retail, entertainment, and residential

Prior to joining CEI, Rudy worked as a Senior Project Manager at Swinerton on several large mixed-use projects in downtown Los Angeles.  Rudy’s career experience includes numerous multifamily residential projects throughout California.  He has also worked as a construction manager on a variety of entertainment and tenant improvement projects.

He received a BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Southern California and a MS in Construction Management from California State University, Long Beach.

As Vice President of Development, Jessica is responsible for delivering multifamily and mixed-use projects in markets across the US. Jessica joins CEI following a career as a civil engineer, both in transportation planning and construction management.

Jessica holds degrees in business administration and engineering. She completed her MBA in 2020 at the UCLA Anderson School of Management where she graduated with honors and a specialization in real estate. Prior to returning full-time, she spent five months working at CEI as an MBA summer associate. Jessica received her Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver in 2011.

Jessica is a member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI), the Commercial Real Estate Women’s Network (CREW), and the UCLA Real Estate Alumni Group (REAG).

As Vice President of Development, Jacob oversees the full development cycle for mutlifamily projects across the US. Jacob joins CEI with experience in construction management and real estate consulting.

Prior to joining CEI, Jacob worked for DAVIS Construction, managing the construction of Class-A office and residential projects in the Greater Washington, DC area. He has also interned with RCLCO, providing consulting services and research for residential developers. Jacob received his MBA from UCLA Anderson and his BS in Mechanical Engineering from The George Washington University.

As Vice President of Acquisitions, Brad is responsible for sourcing and analyzing new real estate investment opportunities throughout Texas. He also oversees the due diligence, project management, and entitlement process through closing.

Brad has over six years of real estate experience focusing primarily on multifamily, retail, and self-storage development throughout the US. Prior to joining CEI, Brad served as Director of Business Development for The Michaels Organization where oversaw all new business in Texas, Tennessee, and Florida major markets. He was responsible for sourcing and analyzing multifamily development opportunities to maintain a pipeline of $200mm in closed transactions per year.

Brad was born and raised in Louisiana and attended Tulane University where he earned his BSM in Finance and Business Management.

As Vice President of Construction, Alec oversees construction activities in Los Angeles. Prior to joining CEI, Alec was a construction manager at CIM Group where he oversaw the construction of multiple large mixed-use projects in West Los Angeles.

Prior to joining CIM Group, Alec worked at Morley Builders where he was instrumental in the coordination and implementation of mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection systems.  Alec also worked at Lendlease Construction where his experience included high end residential projects in both New York and Los Angeles.

Alec received his M.S. in Construction Management from NYU and his B.S. from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.

As Vice President, Josh focuses on asset management of the CEI value-add portfolio. His responsibilities include overseeing operations, creating and managing the value-add platform, and maximizing cash flow.

Prior to joining CEI, Josh worked for The Related Companies in fund management where he was responsible for a multifamily portfolio of 5,000 units focused on value-add. While at The Related Companies, Josh helped create and manage the value-add platform the fund used to grow AUM. Prior to The Related Companies, Josh spent 8 years at Ilan Investments as an Asset Manager overseeing a 10,000 unit multifamily portfolio. Josh brings 15 years of multifamily experience and has been responsible for capital projects and unit renovations totaling more than $50 million across 7 states.

Josh received his BS degree from Texas A&M University.

As Vice President of Construction, Justin Zuckerman oversees construction projects in the Denver Market. Justin brings over 15 years of experience in various sectors of construction including commercial, residential, medical, industrial, and education in both the private and public markets. 

Prior to joining CEI, Justin worked for OC Construction Managment in New York City as a Senior Project Manager overseeing base building redevelopments as well as Tenant Improvement projects. Justin also worked at Sordoni Construction as a Project Manager overseeing a 40 story multifamily value add project in New York City. Justin started his career working for his family’s construction company, Verticon Ltd. in the Hudson Valley where he held every role across a construction project working in various sectors. 

Justin graduated from the University of Massachusetts Amherst where he received a BS in Resource Economics with a focus in Managerial Economics. 

As Vice President of Construction, Kyle Fluker oversees construction projects on the West Coast. Kyle brings over 10 years of experience in multifamily residential mixed-use projects.

Prior to joining CEI, Kyle worked as a Senior Project Manager at Onni Group on several large mixed-use projects throughout LA County and Vancouver, Canada. Kyle’s career experience includes several multifamily residential projects ranging from 150 to 700 residential unit projects throughout LA County and Vancouver, Canada. Kyle attended the British Columbia Institute of Technology where he obtained certificates in Construction Operations and Construction Supervision.

As Assistant Vice President of Development, Tara leads the development of the value-add portfolio in Texas. This role includes overseeing the design and construction of modular facilities, renovations of common areas and standardization for the Fidus portfolio.

Prior to joining CEI, Tara spent 8 years with boutique real estate development firm Todd Interests where she led adaptive re-use developments consisting of mixed-use, multi-family and hospitality projects. Tara has assisted in the acquisition, development and disposition of projects totaling over $500MM.

Tara received her BA from University of Texas at Arlington and resides in Dallas with her husband, two daughters and dog.

As a Senior Associate, Andy Syang focuses on asset management of the CEI portfolio. His responsibilities include managing the initial launch and lease-up of recently delivered projects, overseeing the operations of stabilized assets, and executing the disposition process through sales, recapitalizations, and refinancing.

As a Senior Associate, Cristian supports various development activities on multifamily projects in markets across the US. Cristian’s responsibilities include underwriting new opportunities, creating complex financial models, conducting market research, and assisting in capital markets and due diligence efforts. He joins CEI following a career working on the owner side of multifamily investments.

Prior to joining CEI, Cristian was a Senior Associate of Asset Management at Essex Property Trust, where he oversaw the development of value-add strategies for a region of 35,000 units. He has also worked in multifamily acquisitions for the investment arm of Beijing Construction Engineering Group, a top 50 ENR general contractor. Cristian received his BS in Business Administration from The Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley.

As a Senior Associate, Tom focuses on acquisitions, capital markets and underwriting. Prior to joining CEI in 2021, Tom worked as an Associate at Intesa Sanpaolo, a leading European bank, where he provided non-recourse financing for over $6 billion of large-scale real estate and infrastructure transactions worldwide.

Tom graduated from the University of Southampton in the UK with a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics

As a Senior Associate, Sam focuses on underwriting, capital markets, and project management of existing projects. Prior to joining CEI, Sam worked as an Associate at The Carlyle Group in Los Angeles, specializing in real estate acquisition and development opportunities throughout the West Coast.  Sam also worked as an Investment Banking Analyst at Deutsche Bank, working in the Real Estate, Gaming, Lodging and Leisure group in New York.

Sam received a Bachelor’s degree from Amherst College in Mathematics.

Taylor is responsible for sourcing and analyzing new investment opportunities across Los Angeles and Southern California.

Prior to joining CEI, Taylor served as Associate Director – Deal Making for WeWork’s rapid Southern California expansion, sourcing, underwriting, negotiating, and leading their HQ product line. Before that, Taylor spent nearly 4 years on Unibail-Radamco-Westfield’s Major Development Finance team overseeing the UTC shopping center’s retail, multifamily and mixed used program underwriting, investor reporting, and project management functions on over $1.5B of development and operating assets.

Taylor grew up in San Diego, CA and has an Economics degree from The Ohio State University.

As a Legal Associate, Natalie assists in all legal aspects of the company. Her responsibilities include the formation and maintenance of limited liability companies in various states and assisting the CFO in the review and drafting of legal contracts and real estate agreements. Natalie also acts as our real estate closer. She manages the process and ensures the accuracy of closings on our land acquisitions, construction loans, and debt and equity raises.

Before joining CEI, Natalie worked as a legal analyst for a private equity firm focused on developing operating companies for a variety of markets including esports and video gaming, and digital content production. Natalie specialized in contract review, legal agreement drafting, entity management, and sports, production and labor law. Natalie has also worked as a defense litigation paralegal for major medical and pharmaceutical class action lawsuits.

Natalie has been a certified paralegal since 2017. She received her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California, Berkeley.