Our Team

Mark Sanders

Founder & Principal

Ian Sanders

Founder & Principal

Teresa Bowens

Controller

Beth Cohn

Accounting

James Duke

Vice President, Construction and Development

Nickolas Gates

Vice President, Asset Management

Meghan Gilmore

Personal Assistant to the Founders

Pawel Jankowski

Vice President, Investments

Rogelio Navar

Strategic Advisor for California Region

Carolina Salazar

Program Manager - Accounts Payable

Bennett Sanders

Associate

David Schneider

Managing Director, Investments

Benjamen Shehata

Senior Accountant

MARK SANDERS is Founder and Principal of Fifteen Group. While Mark and his brother Ian are the entrepreneurial spirit behind Fifteen Group which they founded in 1992, Mark’s primary role is evaluating potential new opportunities and overseeing the transaction side of the business. Mark’s responsibilities also include raising capital from investors and lenders and overseeing Fifteen Group’s West Coast operations. Under Mark’s leadership, Fifteen Group has completed more than 75 unique real estate transactions with an investment performance that is extraordinary by any measure. After assembling a portfolio of 20,000 apartment units nationwide, Fifteen Group monetized most of its portfolio between 2005 and 2007. During the subsequent downturn Fifteen Group strategically deployed its capital in South Florida and Southern California across multiple property types and continues to be an early mover in emerging neighborhoods. Fifteen Group's transactions range from simple property acquisitions to acquisitions of distressed debt, complex land entitlements, land development and vertical development. Mark received a Bachelor of Science in Finance and Real Estate from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He currently serves on the Board of Councilors of the USC Price School of Public Policy. He is active in a number of local and national philanthropies, and he leads the Fifteen Group Foundation with his brother Ian.

IAN SANDERS is Founder and Principal. Since Fifteen Group’s inception he has focused on the overall strategic direction and operation of the organization. From its distinguished roots as an astute aggregator in the working-class multifamily sector, where Fifteen Group was a pioneer in bringing institutional capital on a national level, Fifteen Group has emerged as a best in breed opportunistic real estate investor across multiple property types, geographic markets, and investment cycles. Fifteen Group's current transactions range from simple property acquisitions to acquisitions of distressed debt, complex land entitlements, land development and vertical development, and include investment in multifamily, for-sale housing, retail, urban infill development, office and industrial properties and raw land. Ian currently focuses on new real estate and private equity investment opportunities. He also serves as a member of the Kellogg Real Estate Advisory Council; President and Director of The Fifteen Group Foundation, a philanthropic organization that focuses on empowering youth through the arts, athletics, and education; and a Trustee of IS15 Foundation, which focuses on educational endeavors. Along with his brother Mark, Ian founded Fifteen Group in 1992, shortly after graduating from Northwestern University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in History.

TERESA BOWENS currently serves as Controller and oversees the Accounting, Compliance, and Treasury operations and supports Information Technology and Human Resources. Prior to joining Fifteen Group, she served as the Investment Controller at Elion Partners, a vertically integrated investment management firm specializing in industrial fund assets. As Investment Controller, she was responsible for the property accounting, reporting, budgeting, and annual recovery activities for industrial portfolios in South Florida, California, Washington, and residential assets in New York and Maryland. Prior to joining Elion, Teresa served as the Controller for Hallmark Management Inc, a full-service real estate company, which owned and managed more than 14,000 residential units including HUD affordable housing, and state income credit properties. During her time at Hallmark, managed a team of 24 Accounting Managers, Accountants, and Financial Analysts. She also negotiated and managed the successful, company-wide software conversion from Microsoft Dynamics GP to Yardi Voyager. Teresa is adept at multi-entity management and excels at building and developing cross-functional accounting teams. Teresa earned her Bachelor of Science in Accounting from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

BETH COHN, CPA is a strategic Finance and Accounting Executive with over 25 years’ experience in the real estate industry. Prior to joining Fifteen Group, Beth served as the Vice President of Accounting at CGI Merchant Group where she had oversight of all aspects of the accounting department including property and fund audits and tax returns and worked closely with the fund administrator to ensure timely reporting for investors. Prior to CGI Merchant Group, Beth was Vice President of Accounting for Meyers Group where she led all areas of the accounting and finance functions including treasury, cash flow forecasting, development project budgets, tax return preparations, audit support, and financial statement preparation. Beth is a Certified Public Accountant in Florida and received her Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration and Master of Science in Taxation from Florida International University.

JAMES DUKE currently serves as a Vice President of Development and Construction. James has a long history of construction and project management across all property types. Prior to joining Fifteen Group, James most recently was Vice President of Development and Construction for Jesta Group, overseeing prime real estate assets in the commercial, residential, retail and hospitality sectors in South Florida. James received a Bachelor of Science in Construction Management from Everglades University, Master of Construction Management from Everglades University, and a Master of Science in Real Estate Development from the Terry W. Stiles School of Real Estate Development at Nova University.

NICKOLAS GATES currently serves as Vice President, Asset Management. Nickolas is responsible for overseeing the management and operations of Fifteen Group's California multifamily portfolio. Prior to joining Fifteen Group, Nickolas served as Director of Asset Management at Red Tail Acquisitions, where he led the direct business plan oversight for the firm's portfolio of 11,000 multifamily units. Prior to Red Tail, Nickolas served as Portfolio Manager at Fowler Property Acquisitions, a vertically integrated real estate investment firm focused on value-add and core-plus funds. Nickolas received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Accounting from Chapman University.

MEGHAN GILMORE currently serves as a Personal Assistant to the Founders. Meghan is responsible for a broad range of duties and functions that help the team and company perform at the highest level through organization and task completion. Prior to joining Fifteen Group, Meghan worked in San Francisco and Aspen as a Personal Assistant maintaining responsibility for all event planning. Prior to her being a Personal Assistant in San Francisco and Aspen, Meghan worked as a Personal Assistant in Pacific Palisades where she managed a family’s private residence by organizing all personal and professional appointments and commitments. Meghan received a Bachelor of Arts in Broadcast Journalism from University of Georgia and Palm Beach Atlantic University where she played Soccer and ran Cross-Country.

PAWEL JANKOWSKI currently serves as Vice President, Investments. Pawel is responsible for a broad range of analytic, deal underwriting, and due diligence functions in the pursuit and execution of new investment opportunities, as well as for strategic asset management leadership and support. Prior to joining Fifteen Group, Pawel oversaw acquisitions and asset management for a private equity real estate investment vehicle at REEF Technology, in partnership with Oaktree Capital. Prior to REEF, Pawel managed acquisitions in the midsouth for Visca Capital, a vertically integrated real estate investment firm, and supported the investments team at Aria Development Group. Pawel received a Bachelor of Science in Business Finance from EU Business School and a Master of Science in Real Estate Development from Columbia University.

ROGELIO NAVAR is a Strategic Advisor for the California Region of the Fifteen Group portfolio. In that capacity, Rogelio advises on development, land use entitlements, permitting, government relations, and community affairs.

CAROLINA SALAZAR currently serves as a Program Manager- Accounts Payable. Carolina is responsible for overseeing the Accounts Payable function which includes ensuring timely and accurate processing and payment of vendor invoices, maintaining and updating the company’s vendor database, performing reconciliations of supplier statements and serving as a liaison between Fifteen Group and its vendors. Before joining Fifteen Group, Carolina worked at Royal Palm Companies where she was the Accounts Payable Manager, handling all AP, cash management and vendor relations. Prior to Royal Palm Companies, Carolina was with PK Management where she oversaw all Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable and vendor management initiatives.

BENNETT SANDERS currently serves as an Associate. Bennett is responsible for a broad range of analytic, deal underwriting, and due diligence functions in the pursuit and execution of new investment opportunities, as well as for strategic asset management support. Prior to joining Fifteen Group, Bennett was a turnaround and restructuring associate at Accordion Partners. Prior to Accordion, Bennett was an investment banking analyst with Duff & Phelps. Bennett received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California.

DAVID SCHNEIDER serves as Managing Director, Investments. David focuses on underwriting, execution, and asset management of real estate investments. David has experience underwriting real estate assets in all major product types. Prior to joining Fifteen Group, David managed acquisitions for ESJ Capital Partners, a real estate investment firm based in Miami. Previously, David led acquisitions in the Southeast region for New Boston Fund, a private equity real estate investment manager, and held analyst positions at LNR Property and Sterling Equities. David also served as Chief Operating Officer of a specialty finance company and worked in management consulting earlier in his career. David is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and holds an MBA with concentrations in real estate and finance from Columbia Business School, where he served as a real estate finance teaching assistant.

BENJAMEN SHETATA currently serves as a Senior Accountant. Benjamen is responsible for preparations and the general ledger, performing account reconciliations, preparing monthly Financial Statements, assisting with audit preparations, and performing other accounting duties. Before joining Fifteen Group, Benjamen worked in AECOM, a division of Tishman Construction Corporation as a project accountant for multiple projects in New York and Florida. Before joining Tishman, Benjamen was with Red Lobster Seafood Co. with the corporate reporting team where he served as a Staff Accountant on the financial reporting team, supporting the preparation of Red Lobster’s consolidated financial statements. Before Red Lobster, Benjamen spent six years working in Saudi Arabia, where he held various roles, including the Deputy Chief Accountant for a real estate company. Benjamen is a graduate of the University of Alexandria, Egypt, and is getting his CPA certification.