Recently he became one of the first to file a Reg. A+ with the SEC & create a fund that solicits publicly to the broadest base of accredited & non-accredited qualified investors offered by a private fund. www.UGFInc.com 


He continues to expand & plans to go public (over-the-counter), which will turbo his methods to raise capital & deploy it in valuable real estate assets. He’s developed www.CrowdfundExpress.com, a fundraising strategy for his funds & outside Developers’. The portal automates the investing experience & allows Sponsors to raise capital for deals & large projects. CrowdfundExpress is currently taking Investor & Sponsor applications.

In 1999, Cherif founded www.CMREI.com, an education company. He teaches people how to invest in various asset types, how to syndicate, & how to use crowdfunding to grow both as an Investor and/or Developer.

He authored several best selling books on real estate investing, how to set up the ultimate asset protection structure, www.KMAGB.com, & how to reduce taxes to 15% per year using the most powerful yet least known tax incentives offered by Congress. www.GBACorp.com

He is primarily responsible for all aspects of the origination and underwriting process including sourcing, evaluating, structuring, and negotiating investment and finance opportunities for all property types throughout the United States with a focus on New York City. Over the past decade he has closed approximately 135 transactions for over $8 billion across the country.

Prior to joining CBRE, Shawn was a Principal of the Ackman-Ziff Real Estate Group where he worked from 2000-2013. In 1997-2000, he practiced real estate law at Thacher Proffitt and Wood, a large New York City-based law firm, which worked on a broad range of real estate finance and corporate transactions. Prior to law school, he worked at KPMG for two years as both an auditor and tax associate. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting and Economics from Queens College, a CPA degree, and Juris Doctorate from New York University School of Law.

Shawn is an expert in the mezzanine debt markets and spends significant time on joint venture equity transactions, often speaking on panels at industry conferences. He has authored several articles on these topics and recently completed a chapter in a Real Estate Capital Markets Handbook, a text utilized in European business schools.

Industry awards and achievements include: Winner of 2008 Edward S. Gordon Memorial Award by REBNY for arranging $700M of debt and equity financing for the acquisition of 650 Madison Avenue. 2010 Forty under 40 - Real Estate Forum magazine. 2009 Stars are Rising – Real Estate New York. 2006 Rising Star in the Industry – New York Real Estate Weekly.

Ms. Frankel previously held various positions in the commercial real estate industry including that of Senior Manager at the Ernst & Young Real Estate Group; a Director in the Financial Services Group at Cushman & Wakefield, Inc.; an Officer who played a key role in establishing the commercial mortgage group at J.P. Morgan Securities, LLC; and a real estate investment banker and senior tax attorney at Salomon Brothers Inc. In these positions, her experience encompassed initiating, negotiating, and executing equity and debt transactions for corporate and institutional clients, in addition to restructurings, workouts, M&A, and strategic advisory assignments. 

She is currently an adjunct professor at Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation and New York University's Schack Institute of Real Estate. She holds J.D. and M.B.A. degrees from Hofstra University and graduated with a B.A. in English from the University of Pennsylvania with numerous honors. Among her industry affiliations, Merrie is a board member and treasurer of the Women Executives in Real Estate (WX) Charitable Fund; has served as a Trustee, been an executive committee member of the Women’s Leadership Initiative, and chaired the New York District Council for the Urban Land Institute (ULI); and chaired the nominating committee and other committees for the Financial Women's Association of New York (FWA). She was one of the 2008 Real Estate New York’s “Women of Influence” and has published and been quoted by various real estate journals, the Wall Street Journal and NPR radio, as well as written a chapter for The Handbook of Inflation Hedging Investments. 

At Iron Hound, he is responsible for the loan restructuring platform along with the debt and equity advisory business. In addition, Mr. Herron sources new origination and acquisition opportunities for Iron Hound.

Before coming on board at Iron Hound, Christopher was a Director in Wachovia’s Real Estate Group, where he worked in the Securitization, CMBS, Large Loan and Structured Finance Groups.

His responsibilities included loan origination, structuring, execution and disposition of these loans in the secondary market. In his eight years at Wachovia, Christopher originated and sold over $7 billion in loans for the CMBS and Large Loan Groups, and over $500 million for the Structured Finance balance sheet.

Christopher holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Bucknell University.