Nicholas Hollenkamp, New RPBG Director
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- Category: Latest News
- Nicholas Hollenkamp, New RPBG Director
- Winter, 2019
Rogers Park Builders Group brought in four new Directors at the end of 2018 representing a cross-section of the real estate industry and bringing with them new energy and ideas about what the organization is and can be.
One of these new Directors is Nick Hollenkamp. Nick is the Director of Asset Management and Acquisitions at Pioneer Acquisitions LLC, a New York-based investor in multifamily real estate with a large portfolio of apartment properties in Chicago. Although Pioneer has its largest concentration of real estate assets on the South Side, particularly Hyde Park, the company has also invested heavily in Rogers Park. Pioneer currently owns twelve properties in Rogers Park with 390 units.
Nick grew up in Columbus, Indiana and is the oldest of four siblings. He graduated from the University of Chicago in 2015 with a degree in economics, and began working for Pioneer right out of school. Nick started off as a financial analyst, but quickly rose up the ranks to his current position. Nick has been involved in $150 million of acquisitions and $175 million in refinancing during his time at Pioneer and has seen the company’s portfolio increase to 60 buildings with approximately 2,000 units.
Pioneer has only been in the Chicago market for the past several years and continues to invest in neighborhoods across the city. This gives Nick a unique perspective about the wider Chicago region, a perspective he is happy to share with other members of the group who may be more focused on the Rogers Park community. Nick has experience in acquisitions, construction, and finance, and has worked with high net worth individuals, family offices and larger private equity groups. Nick is able to draw on all of this experience and is happy to share this knowledge with others.
Nick’s interest in Rogers Park extends beyond his work with Pioneer. Nick has also been looking to grow his own real estate portfolio and has been trying to buy small apartment properties (three to six units) in Rogers Park. Clearly, Nick is bullish on the Rogers Park community, both as an employee of Pioneer, but also as an independent investor.
Nick first got active with the Rogers Park Builders Group right around the end of 2016 and was impressed with the Trends Workshop in January 2017. Nick found RPBG to be a close-knit but also welcoming group of property owners and real estate professionals and was immediately drawn to the group for its networking opportunities.
Nick appreciates the wide range of people RPBG brings to its meetings, especially the strong relationships the organization has forged with local politicians. Nick believes these relationships are important and provide a rare opportunity for real estate professionals to share their insights and views on a range of important topics with other community stake-holders.
Nick sees a bright future for RPBG and believes that recent efforts to be more active on Facebook and LinkedIn will bring greater visibility to the group and more impact to the community. Nick would like to see RPBG make a greater effort to involve students at Loyola in the activities of the organization, particularly those students who have an interest in real estate and want some real world experience. Nick speaks from first-hand experience since Pioneer already employs two Loyola University alums. Nick believes there are additional opportunities for professional interactions and mentoring between RPBG members and Loyola students.
When Nick is not working at Pioneer or scouting out his own real estate investments, he is an avid outdoorsman and traveler. In 2018 alone, Nick visited ten National Parks! He loves to travel and lists hiking as a favorite hobby. Nick played soccer in college and loves sports, both as a participant and as a fan. We are glad to have Nick join RPBG as a Director and look forward to the contributions and insights we know he will bring to the group.
