Team

Mr. Cooper directs PEFA’s business strategy and vision and also serves as President and CEO of WNC, PEFA’s affiliate that specializes in LIHTC syndication and property redevelopment using tax credits. He is President and co-founder of the Cooper Housing Institute, a family foundation with a mission of making housing a priority in the United States.

Prior to joining WNC in 1988, Mr. Cooper worked in government and legislative affairs in the Washington D.C. office of Honda North America. He is Chairman and trustee of BUILD-PAC, the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) Political Action Committee. Mr. Cooper is a National Delegate and National Area Chair for NAHB and is a member of Federal Government Affairs Committee.  He is a member of the board of directors of the California Building Industry Association (CBIA) and is co-chair of the Affordable Housing Subcommittee of the CBIA. He is also a member of the advisory board and Political Action Committee of the National Multifamily Housing Council. Mr. Cooper earned a bachelor of arts from the School of International Service of the American University in Washington, D.C.

Ms. Caruana joined PEFA in 2018 and has over 20 years of multifamily housing experience, including 12 years in the affordable housing sector. She is responsible for PEFA’s overall business operations and investment decisions.

Prior to joining PEFA, she worked for four years with a private real estate equity firm where she specialized in the acquisition of affordable rental apartments generating economic returns, last serving as senior vice president of acquisitions. Prior to that, Ms. Caruana spent nine years with a publicly traded multifamily REIT where she served in various research and investment roles, including senior director of market research, senior investment analyst and investment manager. Ms. Caruana is a former member of the Emerging Leaders Committee of the National Multifamily Housing Council, last serving as Co-Vice Chair, and is a member of the Affordable Housing Committee and the Urban Land Institute affordable housing committee. She holds an MBA from the University of Miami, Florida and a bachelor’s degree in statistics and marketing from Miami University, Ohio.

Ms. Longino serves as the Chief Financial Officer of PEF Advisors and is a member of the PEF Advisors Investment Committee.

Prior to joining PEF Advisors in 2020, Ms. Longino served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer with a private real estate equity firm that invested in affordable rental housing for economic returns. Prior to that, she spent eleven years with a diversified real estate investment firm, where she was involved in the firm’s fund management services and served in various financial reporting, investor reporting and asset management roles. She has previously worked in the financial accounting and reporting leadership role with a variety of commercial real estate companies, ranging from private start-ups to large publicly held companies. Ms. Longino began her career as a CPA with an international accounting firm. She earned a Bachelor of Science in accounting from Florida State University’s College of Business.

Mr. Campbell oversees the legal affairs and compliance related matters for PEF Advisors. He has over 15 years of experience in the affordable housing industry representing lenders, investors, developers, and government agencies.

Prior to joining WNC in 2022, he was a Partner at an AM Law 100 firm in the affordable housing and real estate practice group. Prior to that he served as in-house counsel for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Mr. Campbell serves on the board of directors of the Affordable Housing Tax Credit Coalition and is a member of the American Bar Association’s Forum on Affordable Housing and Community Development Law. He received the 40 under 40 Award from the National LGBT Bar Association in 2016 and the Young Leader Award from Affordable Housing Finance in 2017. Mr. Campbell earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of California, San Diego and a juris doctor from Pepperdine University, School of Law.

Mr. Arango leads PEFA’s asset management group and is responsible for all aspects of asset management with respect to PEFA’s investment portfolio. He has 15 years of experience in the multifamily sector in asset management, including eight years specializing in affordable housing.

Prior to joining PEFA in 2019, he worked in multifamily asset management, last serving as Investment and Asset Manager overseeing a 5-state multifamily and LIHTC property portfolio. Prior to that Mr. Arango worked for the financial advisory arm of a big-four accounting firm overseeing real estate valuations and performing commercial lease audits for Fortune 500 companies. Arango graduated from the University of Southern California with a bachelor of science degree in business administration and a concentration in real estate finance and international business.

Ms. Philis oversees investor relations and capital raising efforts at PEF Advisors.  She has over 20 years of experience in investor relations and real estate capital markets, including debt and equity.

Prior to joining PEF Advisors, she participated in over $3 billion of capital raised for projects including comingled funds, programmatic joint ventures and individual joint ventures with firms including Westbrook, Lend Lease and Tishman Speyer. Institutional investors have included public and private pension funds, insurance companies, endowments, foundations and sovereign wealth funds. Previously, she worked in mortgage banking with Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, placing ~$1 billion in debt, and as a commercial real estate attorney with CIGNA.

Ms. Philis earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of Connecticut, a juris doctor from the University of Connecticut School of Law and an MBA in finance from New York University’s Stern School of Business.

Mr. Medeiros is responsible for sourcing and closing PEF acquisitions. Prior to joining WNC in 2021, he worked at a national senior housing organization where he served as a director of business development focused on ground up development. Prior to that, Mr. Medeiros spent five years with the affordable housing group of a national real estate brokerage firm where he transacted Section 42 and Section 8 assets on a national basis and last served as vice president. Mr. Medeiros holds a Master of Professional Studies in Real Estate degree from Georgetown University and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Washington State University.

Mr. Drexl is responsible for PEF Advisors’ fund management services including capital call requests, distributions, quarterly reporting, investor reporting, compliance audits, financial statement audits and tax returns. He has eight years of affordable housing experience, specializing in accounting and fund management.

Prior to joining PEF Advisors in 2022, Drexl served as the director of fund accounting at a real estate investment firm that focuses on affordable housing where he oversaw financial accounting and investor reporting.

Drexl graduated from the California State University Dominguez Hills with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a concentration in accounting and is currently a licensed CPA in the state of California.

Ms. Nolander is responsible for all aspects of asset management with respect to PEFA west coast investment portfolio. A seasoned professional with over 15 years in the real estate industry, Ms. Nolander’s experience includes affordable housing, mixed-use projects, value-add acquisitions, dispositions and large-scale renovations. Prior to joining PEFA, Ms. Nolander led and developed portfolio management teams including the implementation of business plans, overseeing capital improvements, budgeting, lease analysis and compliance monitoring. Ms. Nolander is a member of Institute of Real Estate Management and holds her HCCP credential (Housing Credit Certified Professional) with the National Association of Home Builders.

Ms. Kincaid is responsible for all aspects of asset management with respect to PEFA’s east coast investment portfolio. She brings almost a decade of experience in the affordable housing sector, including leadership in asset and property management, regulatory compliance and capital planning. Prior to her current role, Ms. Kincaid served as a Regional Property Manager overseeing more than 2,000 units across California and Arizona, where she successfully led large teams and advanced internal talent. Her background includes experience with Project Based Section 8, PSH, LIHTC, HUD, HOME, bond and state housing programs. She has developed strong partnerships with local jurisdictions and service providers. Ms. Kincaid graduated from University of California, Riverside, where she majored in bioengineering.​

Mr. Newman is responsible for all construction projects in the PEFA portfolio including capital needs budgeting, construction management, green initiatives, REAC inspections, and reporting.

Prior to joining PEFA Mr. Newman worked for a commercial General Contractor and oversaw pre-construction, scheduling, and financial reporting as a Project Manager. As a Project Manager he was responsible for ground up and tenant improvement projects in their multifamily, medical, and industrial divisions.

Mr. Newman graduated from Arizona State University with a bachelor of science in civil construction.

Mr. Conley is responsible for coordinating due diligence for debt financing on acquisitions and driving transactions to close. Prior to joining PEFA, he worked at Freddie Mac in the production and sales department for conventional loans and later worked as an agency debt originator at an international lender.  Mr. Conley holds a bachelor of science degree in business administration from California State University at Long Beach.

Ms. Rodriguez is responsible for assisting the acquisitions team with underwriting and vetting potential PEFA acquisitions.

Prior to joining PEFA, she worked as an analyst at Wells Fargo’s Community Lending and Investments team, financing and investing in affordable housing construction deals across the U.S.

Ms. Rodriguez holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Florida.

Mr. Flores is responsible for assisting the Asset Management team with financial reporting, data entry and maintaining the data visualization tools. Mr. Flores interned with PEFA for three years before joining full time upon his graduation from the University of Southern California. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in economics. ​