Real Hospitality Group (RHG) has added Joseph Yi to its executive team as chief investment officer.
Ben Seidel, president and CEO, noted the move represents a major strategic initiative, embracing the opportunity to cultivate relationships at a deeper level with ownership, asset managers and investment groups. He added, "With his expertise in real estate investment, he will play an integral role in the propelling of our company's growth, as well as assisting our current partners to attain their investment and financial goals. I feel that our current scale and size warrants a seasoned industry leader with the investment experience and sophistication to better service our clients and the company.”
He continued, "Having Joseph join our group is doubly rewarding for me. We are adding a difference maker and an industry opinion leader who will help us elevate our company to new heights, while also onboarding a seasoned veteran who can be of a tremendous resource to continuously improve the level of services we offer our clients."
Yi brings more than 14 years of extensive real estate investment knowledge and experience spanning all major sectors. According to RHG, he is particularly adept in the acquisition, financing, and structuring of investments in hotels, office, multi-family and mixed-use properties. The breadth of Yi's expertise has developed through various leadership roles, in which he spearheaded more than $5 billion worth of real estate transactions, including more than $2 billion in the lodging sector. Yi's extensive real estate finance background includes bridge, permanent and construction financing, including EB-5 financing in excess of $300 million in four development projects.
Prior to joining RHG, Yi was a managing director of a luxury residential developer in New York and, prior to that, the VP of investments and general counsel for a prominent real estate and hotel developer.