Brian Hirsh.
Brian Hirsh, 33
Vice President of Originations at Mesa West Capital
Brian Hirsh is approaching his ninth year as part of Los Angeles-based private bridge lender Mesa West Capital, a firm that has developed a reputation for a defensive debt investment thesis that has helped propel it through market downturns.
A similar theme has played out for Mesa West in the COVID-19 era. The firm is on track for a strong 2021, helped by Hirsh, who’s overseen the origination of more than $500 million in new debt through the first nine months of 2021.
Based out of Mesa West’s Chicago office, Hirsh mostly spearheads originations in Texas and the broader Southwest, and is responsible for seeing loans through from inception to closing; he also manages broker and sponsor relationships. But, he’s not just confined to the West. In July, Hirsh led a $137 million multifamily loan placement on an asset in Washington, D.C.
“We’re on track to have a great year, and we’ve been super busy, growing the business out of Texas and the Sun Belt,” he said. “We’re focused on multifamily in the Sun Belt, Texas, Florida and the Carolinas, while following Texas borrowers to different regions where they’re buying. A few years ago, most of the core capital was sticking to core markets, but that’s changed, with the Austins, Nashvilles and Raleighs [of the world].”
He added that as the “equity markets have evolved, we’ve evolved with them. We’ve been following the institutions, and money and capital is heading towards these markets.”
Hirsh joined Mesa West in February 2013, after spending about three years as an associate at Oro Capital Advisors in his first industry job out of the University of Colorado, where he earned a bachelor’s in economics. So far, his career origination volume sits at around $2 billion.
In what was a robust year for Mesa West in 2019, Hirsh’s work represented about 10 percent of the firm’s $4 billion in originations, as it set company records for its work in Texas — $350 million in commercial real estate debt. Some of his deals in 2019 included acquisition financings ranging from $45 million to $122 million.—M.B.
