Mr. Riggs is a founding partner of Baron Properties and is responsible for corporate strategy, equity and debt sponsorship and relations. Mr. Riggs has also been active in the commercial mortgage banking business for 31 years as President of Essex Financial Group and its predecessor companies. Mr. Riggs is also a principal in Mountain West Industrial Properties. Mountain West owns and manages 15 industrial properties in the Denver, Texas and Phoenix area. Previously, Mr. Riggs was a founding partner of Metropolitan Homes from 1992 to 1999 where he constructed and sold over 500 homes in the Denver area. Mr. Riggs received his MBA from the University of Connecticut and has held several board positions with profit and non-profit organizations.

Mr. Stern is a founding partner of Baron Properties and is responsible for business development, investment strategy, acquisitions and institutional relationships. With Baron, Mr. Stern has acquired over $400 million of properties and has experience in property repositions, tax credit acquisitions, development, condo conversions and note purchases. Prior thereto, Mr. Stern was responsible for acquisitions, due diligence and asset management and property management oversight with ProLogis, a global industrial property REIT. Previous experience includes mortgage banking and construction. Mr. Stern received his MBA from the University of Denver with an emphasis in Real Estate and Construction Management and his B.S. in Finance from the University of Colorado. Mr. Stern is a member of the Young Presidents Organization and is a member of several industry associations.

Ms. Knoll is the Chief Financial Officer of Baron Property Services, responsible for all financial reporting, accounting, tax, cash management, and financial planning.   Prior to joining Baron Properties, Mary was Executive Director of Operations Support for Comcast’s National Communications Engineering and Operations Group.   She also managed the Denver Financial Service Center for the Resolution Trust Corporation and has multiple years experience in public accounting. Mary is a licensed certified public accountant and a member of the AICPA and Colorado Society of CPAs.

Mr. Powell is the Senior Vice President of Baron Property Services, with oversight responsibilities including property acquisition and asset management. Since joining Baron Properties in 1998, Mr. Powell has played an integral role in managing the company’s operations and capital deployment, including 32 acquisitions totaling more than $350 million, community renovation projects totaling more than $20 million, $23 million in condominium conversion sales, as well as multifamily development, tax credit syndication and management. As a result, Baron’s current management portfolio totals over 4,500 units, including both owned and fee-managed communities, in Denver, Colorado Springs, Phoenix and Austin.

 

Prior to joining Baron Properties, Mr. Powell held District and Area Management positions at Lincoln Property Company and Equity Residential. He started his career as a Financial Analyst at Equity Group Investments. Married with two children, Mr. Powell is a Colorado native and holds a BA degree from Colorado College. Mr. Powell is currently the Past President of the Apartment Association of Metro Denver and is a Colorado licensed real estate broker.

Sharon Kraft has been a Regional Property Director with Baron Property Services for over 10 years.  She has been instrumental in the merger process of newly acquired properties ensuring smooth transitions, and her willingness to work alongside her on-site employees has developed loyal, service oriented teams. Mrs. Kraft has been in the multi-family management industry for 19 years and previously worked for several institutional REITS, including Equity Residential and AIMCO.  Sharon received her Certified Property Manager (CPM) designation as awarded by the Institute of Real Estate Management in 2002 and also holds a B.S. degree from Kansas State University.

Mr. Saunders serves as Regional Property Manager and is responsible for the financial success and management of twelve apartment communities.  Joe is a motivating team builder with greater than twenty years of business experience.  He has been involved with lease-up, repositioning, asset management and supervising capital improvement projects of more than 12,000 apartment homes.  As a trusted leader in the residential management community, Joe has received the Certified Property Manager (CPM®) designation as awarded by the Institute of Real Estate Management, is a Colorado licensed real estate broker and received his Bachelor of Art degree from Saint Ambrose University. 

Mr. LaMora is Regional Property Manager overseeing Baron’s properties in Arizona and Texas. Mr. LaMora’s career in the property management industry began in 1995. His greatest success has been building strong on-site teams that are recognized for their excellent customer service and maximizing the asset’s financial potential. Prior to joining Baron Properties, Mr. LaMora was Regional Vice President for Sares-Regis Group overseeing its Arizona portfolio.  Eric also has experience in Southern California, where he was a Senior Manager for AvalonBay.  Mr. LaMora is active with the Arizona Multi-housing Association and the Arizona Department of Real Estate. He received a BA in Business Administration from California State University at Fullerton.

In her role as Education Director, Mrs. DiFiore is responsible for all phases of training for on-site team members.  Her 20+ years experience in property management, training and education, have had an enormous impact on the quality and efficiency of our organization.  With an extensive background in property management software, Debbie also coordinates the efficient training of Yardi software, software report customization and the management of the Baron website and internet marketing strategies.  Prior to her current position, Mrs. DiFiore held markeing, training and auditing coordinator roles with Greystar, Maxx Properties, as well as on-site management positions at Archstone Communities and Vantex Realty Services.