Executive Advisory Committee

Our leadership team has reached out to leading industry experts to form an Executive Advisory Committee who collectively strategize on addressing the current and future real estate challenges that we all face. 
 

 Jerry Baack:  Mr. Baack is the lead Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of Bridgewater Bank. A Denovo bank committed to serving the unique financial needs of seasoned real estate and small business entrepreneurs in the Twin Cities.  His experience includes over 20 years of commercial banking and regulatory experience.   As the President of the Bank, Mr. Baack overseas all functions of the Bank and is still very much involved in managing an extensive loan portfolio. As the Chairman of the Board, Mr. Baack employs his experience with risk management, investment analysis and asset-liability management to strategically position the Bank for continued profitability and success. 

Joe Holmberg:  Mr. Holmberg is the President of Affordable Homes for All (AHFA), a nonprofit affordable housing developer based in Minneapolis. Their mission is simple and concise "Build and Preserve".   Before forming AHFA, Mr. Holmberg was the president of CommonBond Housing and Investment Corp, and the COO and CFO of CommonBond Communities for 17 years.   Joe was the moving force behind the growth of their portfolio and the driving force in the preservation and rehabilitation of over 2,000 units.  His success in creating  a new partnership for 17 HUD 202's bringing in millions of equity from Enterprise Social Investment Corporation (ESIC) was and remains unprecedented to this day.   It earned him the designation of 2006 CFO All Star from LISC.  Joe is a CPA and earned his MBA at the University of Minnesota.

 Marv Kotek:  President of Frerichs Construction, St. Paul, MN. With over 40 years of experience in the construction industry, starting as a carpenter and for the past 16 years as president and principal of a regional construction firm, Mr. Kotek brings a big picture view that ensures the highest level of success for his clients. He has overseen the construction or rehab of thousands of units and has created a reputation for quality in new construction, occupied unit-to-unit rehabilitation and historic preservation.Mr. Kotek believes in giving back and is active in several area non-profits as well as being highly involved in other real estate-related organizations. On an annual basis, more than 1% of pre-tax income is donated to charity.

Marjean Pountain:  Marjean K. Pountain CPM®, COS is the principal of Pountain Partners LLC, specializing in training, recruiting, consulting, and expert witness assignments.  With over 25 years of real estate, finance and property management experience, Marjean was formerly Senior Vice President of the largest full service real estate company in southeastern Wisconsin.  Marjean is active in national committee and governance work for the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM®) and is currently the Chair of the Ethics and Discipline Committee.   She also teaches numerous property management courses and seminars, including the Real Estate Continuing Education required by the State of Wisconsin and Professional Real Estate Ethics for IREM®.

                                  Ruth Theobold-Probst:  President of Theopro Compliance, Milwaukee, WI

Ruth L. Theobald Probst, CPM, HCCP, SHCM is CEO/President of The TheoPRO Group (TheoPRO).  TheoPRO is a Milwaukee-based company specializing in the Section 42 program.  A nationally recognized consultant and trainer, Ms. Theobald Probst has over 26 years of property management experience and 19 years with Section 42.

Published in industry magazines and a recognized speaker at industry conferences, Ruth's focus is the successful development and management of tax credit housing. 

Ms. Theobald Probst is also President of the LifeMark Institue for Greatness and a published author.