Bloomfield, CT The Fairfield/Westchester Chapter of the Real Estate Finance Association of Connecticut (REFA-CT) has elected its president, Craig Way and vice president, Dan Hartman.

Way, VP, director of leasing & acquisitions for The HB Nitkin Group, a regional commercial real estate owner and developer based in Greenwich, is responsible for all portfolio leasing activities and is involved in all major company decisions. Other direct responsibilities include sourcing acquisitions, dispositions, refinancing mortgages, supervising tenant improvement work and attaining permits and approvals for pad site developments.

The HB Nitkin Group, founded in 1986, has owned and managed over 2 million s/f of commercial real estate throughout Connecticut and Westchester County, N.Y. 

Way has completed leasing transactions with over 300 tenants in his career for a total of over 3 million s/f leased as well as sourced the acquisition and management of commercial property valued at over $300 million. Much of Way’s leasing efforts have been concentrated on specialty, suburban and downtown projects which HB Nitkin owns.

Prior to joining HB Nitkin in 1995, Way spent 10 years at GE Capital working in all facets of the commercial real estate business including new loan and portfolio originations, structured finance, asset management and workouts.

He received a B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley and is an active member of REFA and ICSC. 

Prior to being named president of REFA, CT, he served as the chapter vice president, as well as a member of the program committee and golf committee.

Hartman is managing director of Terra Capital Partners where he is responsible for nationwide transaction origination focusing on mezzanine and preferred equity on virtually all property types. He has over 25 years of commercial real estate experience investing throughout the capital stack. His most recent previous position was the Eastern U.S. region head at Ares Management, a successor to Wrightwood Capital, a position he held for ten years investing first mortgage, mezzanine debt and equity. He has also held positions at GE Capital, Mercedes Benz Capital, ORIX and JP Morgan Chase. Prior to being named vice president, Hartman served on the board as a director and also as a member of REFA’s program committee. He has served as a speaker on numerous occasions. Hartman is a graduate of Cornell University, Fordham Graduate School of Business and New York University Real Estate Institute. 

Mark Schuman, executive director of REFA in commenting about the new leadership said, “Craig and Dan bring a ton of real estate finance experience and leadership to the Fairfield/Westchester chapter. They will continue in the fine footsteps of the many committed leaders before them to ensure that REFA is the premier
association for real estate finance professionals.”

REFA CT is managed by S&S Management Services, a company that specializes in the management and administration of professional and trade association.