Mr. Shaffer is Managing Director & Principal of George Smith Partners where he focuses on delivering solutions to address his clients’ real estate capital requirements. Mr. Shaffer works hard to arrange structured financings for multifamily and commercial properties, including acquisition, refinance, construction, bridge and permanent loans. Mr. Shaffer has successfully structured both debt and equity placements for private entrepreneurs and institutional clients. He has been able to utilize his prior vast and diverse experiences in owning, operating, developing commercial real estate to help him succeed in capital raising for multi-family, affordable, office, retail, industrial, hospitality, data centers, healthcare/medical and senior facilities sectors to provide the best options and structure for his clients.
In his career, Mr. Shaffer has been deeply involved in over $8.5 billion in real estate transactions, including the structuring or arranging over $3 billion of debt and equity placements and the repositioning and sale of $2 billion of properties for a Japanese institutional investor, Mitsui Real Estate Sales/Mitsui Fudosan. His focus is understanding the needs of clients large and small, so with his team, they can provide the best solution in the market. Mr. Shaffer closed transactions with every type of capital provider including Banks, Insurance Companies, Family Offices, Private Equity Firms, Bond Funds, CTL Lenders, Funds, Community Development Lenders, and Institutional Investors. He serves on the direct investment committee for Clearinghouse, CDFI and has advised two family offices.
Prior to serving as a Principal and Managing Director at George Smith Partners, Mr. Shaffer ran his own
global investment advisory company, led dispositions for the world’s largest real estate owner, created a
global trade association and operated projects for several development firms. He has served as a contractor
for the United States Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC), as an Expert Witness and California Superior Court Receiver.
Mr. Shaffer is a graduate of University of Arizona, Eller College of Management with a focus on Real Estate and Finance. He has been a guest lecturer at the USC Marshall School of Business on CMBS Lending and Commercial Real Estate Finance, a speaker at the Berkeley/Fisher Center Real Estate & Economics Symposium as well as a moderator and panelist at numerous industry conferences.
