Ryan Lee.
Ryan Lee, 28
First Vice President of Investments at RXR Realty
Ryan Lee’s deal sheet is an impressive one, to say the least. Since joining RXR in 2015, he has been involved in over $15 billion of transactions. You read that right.
Every RXR deal is one of note, but to name one of Lee’s most notable closed transactions, he played a key role in RXR’s acquisition of Worldwide Plaza — a 2 million-square-foot office building in Manhattan — along with the $1.2 billion financing of the asset in 2017.
Lee is responsible for executing on equity and debt investments in all asset classes across the risk-reward spectrum, including sourcing, underwriting, structuring, negotiating, and closing transactions. He also participates in fundraising initiatives, including joint ventures and co-investments.
He earned his business administration degree with high distinction from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, and kick-started his career in CBRE’s Boston office the summer after his junior year of college. Although he received an offer to return from CBRE, he knew he wanted to be in New York — and on the investment side of the business.
Along came RXR.
“When I received the offer to join RXR, I loved the fact that it was a New York-based, very active real estate investment firm. Plus, I had read a lot about Scott Rechler,” Lee said. “One thing that appealed was the amount of exposure that the investment team gets to Scott, and how in the weeds he is as a CEO and leader. To have the opportunity as an analyst, right out of school, to meet with him on a daily basis, hear how he looks at the deals, how he goes through his thought process, and how he goes about the negotiations and structuring, was an extremely unique opportunity.”
Lee was similarly drawn to the ability to work on all asset classes. “At the time I joined, we were a very large office landlord, but I knew we were looking to rapidly expand our residential platform. Fast forward, we’re also in retail, industrial/logistics, we have looked at a number of hospitality opportunities and are also very active in alternative asset classes such as self-storage.”
Today, Lee sits on the board of governors of the Young Men’s/Women’s Real Estate Association of New York and the Young Leaders Group Programming Committee of the Urban Land Institute. Phew! —C.C.
