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.

Min Zavarella is Senior Vice President of Construction for Cypress Equity Investments, and brings over 40 years of experience in various sectors of the construction industry including nuclear, petrochemical, water treatment, commercial, hospitality, entertainment, and residential. In his role at CEI, Min is responsible for the oversite and management of all projects during the preconstruction and construction phase; developing and nurturing contractor relationships; exceeding expectations throughout the construction process; and achievement of ownership financial goals.

Previously, Min served as Vice President and COO of Suffolk Construction’s Los Angeles division, where he managed considerable growth of field and ops support staff as well as project pipeline from 2014 to 2017. In addition to his many years in operations, as a former Director of Preconstruction for Bernards Construction, Min also offers valuable project preplanning expertise.

Min’s career experience includes major projects such as The Hotel and Residences at LA Live, Symantec Corporation R&D in Culver City, Interactive Corp HQ in West Hollywood, Santa Monica Public Service Facility in Santa Monica, Howard Hughes Center, Sunset LabCienega (residence/hotel towers) in West Hollywood, Grand Hope Lofts in Los Angeles, Park Fifth in Los Angeles, 11 x 12 in Los Angeles, Rolling Hills Country Club in Rolling Hills Estates, The Meridian Condominiums in Newport, G12 in Los Angeles, Olin HallbSchool of Engineering at USC, Uytengsu Aquatic Center at USC, as well as projects for Disney and Universal Studios.

Min is a graduate of the College of Steubenville and received his Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Business Management and his Bachelor of Arts in English. He is also a LEED® Accredited Professional (AP).

As 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 VP 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 multi-family 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 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.