About Us At the BAY AREA MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION

The Bay Area Mortgage Association “BAMA” was founded in 1953 by a small group of commercial real estate professionals and over its 65+ year history has grown to nearly 300 members. BAMA is one of the most active, locally focused, commercial real estate industry organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area. Members include commercial real estate brokers, lenders, developers, and investors in all stages of their career, ranging from new analysts to seasoned industry veterans. Guests include lawyers, appraisers, engineers, title professionals, tech workers, consultants, and beyond.

BAMA hosts monthly events that are a mix of social events with networking opportunities along with informational panels about relevant topics in the commercial real estate industry, with an emphasis on mortgage and finance. BAMA is a welcoming organization with members and guests who work in companies ranging from small or private companies to large, institutional firms.

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Longest Running Real Estate Finance Group

BAMA was founded in 1953 by three East Bay commercial real estate professionals: John J Peters, Joseph Duffel, and Donald W. Mitchel. They subsequently reached out to several industry contacts and the first BAMA meeting was held at Emil Villa Restaurant in Oakland where John Peters was elected the first President. The first speaker was Wilbur Warner of Western Mortgage and the following meeting’s speaker was Milt Owens of Owens Financial.

Over its history, BAMA has had 65 Past Presidents who are recognized further below. One of the strengths of BAMA is the involvement of the Past Presidents with the organization and Executive Board. The BAMA Past Presidents make themselves available for guidance related to the BAMA organization and also available for career mentorship and helping make connections within the industry.

BAMA Executive Board

BAMA is non-profit organization that is ran by a volunteer-based Executive Board, shown below. The board consults annually with the BAMA Past Presidents to discuss topics of the organization’s event planning, membership trends, and growth goals. The BAMA Executive Board is a progressive tenure where board members commit to a 5-year investment and conclude their term as President. The goal of the board is to maintain the standards of the organization set by Past Presidents, plan stimulating events that are relevant to the commercial real estate industry, and actively engage with BAMA members and guests to keep the organization thriving. The board adds a new member every spring; if you are interested in joining, feel free to reach out to any of the board members to have a conversation.

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Cesar Peña

PRESIDENT

Rubicon Mortgage Fund

925 · 283 · 8919

president@sfbama.com

With Rubicon Mortgage Fund, LLC since 2013, Cesar Peña specializes in securing short-term financing for commercial and residential properties for real estate investors including foreign nationals. He is inspired by providing financing solutions to help investors grow their investment portfolios. Cesar is an active member of BAMA, and CCIM. He was honored to be invited to serve on the board of Bay Area Mortgage Association (BAMA) in San Francisco. He has a degree in Finance and Real Estate Management from Cal State East Bay. Cesar lives with his wife Fabiola in Walnut Creek.
CA DRE #01984871

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Sarah Bernhisel

VP OF PROGRAMS

Slatt Capital

415 · 872 · 0905 

vp_programs@sfbama.com

Sarah is currently a Vice President, Debt Originator at Slatt Capital in San Francisco. She rejoined Slatt in 2018 after spending the previous 3.5 years serving as Vice President on the Capital Markets team at JLL where she focused on debt origination and structured finance for institutional borrowers on all major property types. Prior to joining JLL, Sarah served as a Senior Analyst for Slatt Capital in the Los Angeles, California office. Sarah is teamed with CEO Dan Friedeberg and Vice President Andrew MacLeod. During her 8+ years in the commercial real estate industry, Ms. Bernhisel has executed over $2.5B in loans on all property types while utilizing a full range of funding sources. She is originally from Salt Lake City, Utah and has a B.A. in Economics from Scripps College in Claremont, California.

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Jessica Carter

VP OF MEMBERSHIP

Archway Capital

310 · 893 · 7176 

vp_membership@sfbama.com

Jessica Carter is Vice President, Originations at Archway Capital, LLC. With several years of experience in Residential and Commercial Real Estate Lending, Jessica focuses on Business Development and Origination of short-term bridge debt and equity for sponsors nationwide. Jessica specializes in underwriting and originating loans in various asset types including Multifamily, SFR, Office, Industrial, Retail and more. Prior to joining Archway, Jessica previously served as Regional Account Manager and Loan Originator at Pender Capital and served as a Residential Mortgage Loan Processor at Banc of California. She prides herself on developing deep and robust broker relationships by focusing on customer service and providing value to her clients always. Born and raised in San Jose, CA, Jessica currently manages Archway Capital’s Bay Area office and is a member of the Bay Area Mortgage Association. During her free time, Jessica enjoys good music and a glass of wine while cooking dishes from different cuisines all over the globe.

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Briana Harney

TREASURER

Northmarq

415 · 433 · 8840

treasurer@sfbama.com

Briana Harney is a Vice President in NorthMarq’s San Francisco office. She is responsible for placing both debt and equity for her clients with a focus on Bay Area transactions. During her career at NorthMarq she has directly or with a team closed over $2.5 billion in debt and equity transactions covering the full spectrum of lender and product types. Briana leverages her knowledge of the market, a reliable out-to-market strategy, and strong relationships with lenders and investors to bring the best capital solutions to her clients.

 

Briana is an active member of NAIOP where she currently serves on the NAIOP SFBA Board and is co-chair of the Membership Committee. She has previously served as co-chair of the Young Professionals Group (YPG) Alumni Committee and was a member of the 5th class of the YPG program. She is also a past President of the Berkeley Real Estate Alumni Association (BREAA), a non-profit alumni organization affiliated with UC Berkeley, and has served on the board of BREAA since 2018. In addition to those roles, Briana is actively involved in Urban Land Institute San Francisco, the Bay Area Mortgage Association, the Mortgage Bankers Association, CREW, and The Women of Real Estate.

 

Briana earned her B.A. at UC Berkeley where, as an undergraduate she played on the Women's Division I Field Hockey team. She later earned her Masters in Business Administration at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. Continuing to pursue her passion for sports and team camaraderie, Briana is currently a member of the Olympic Club’s Women’s Field Hockey team and was a member of the Olympic Club team that won the USFHL Women’s Club National Championship in 2019.

 

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John Tilsch

SECRETARY

Greystone

415 · 483 · 4257

secretary@sfbama.com

John Tilsch is a Director at Greystone, and currently leads the San Francisco Production office, providing advisory and debt solutions for clients Nationwide.  John has worked with Greystone in a production capacity since 2012 where he and the San Francisco team have closed more than $1.5 Billion in debt transactions including Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, HUD, CMBS, Mezzanine and Bridge loans.  Since Greystone’s Joint Venture partnership with Cushman Wakefield in 2022, John now works closely with the local Cushman Wakefield team to offer the full suite of services for his clients, including Investment Sales, Property Management and Valuation, in addition to the debt offerings from Greystone. 

Prior to Greystone John was a Senior Asset Manager for Mid-America Real Estate in Chicago, IL.  He oversaw the Management, Leasing and Investment Analysis of over $1 Billion in flagship retail and office assets located on Chicago’s iconic Michigan Avenue and State Street.

John earned his B.A. in Economics and Managerial Studies at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN, and has since remained actively involved with his alma mater, serving on the Leadership Committee for Vanderbilt’s San Francisco Alumni Association, and as a past Chapter President.  In John’s free time he pursues his passion for baseball by serving as a Head Coach for Mill Valley Little League.

 

 

PAST BAMA PRESIDENTS

JOIN US AT AN EVENT!

For many years, the monthly dinner meetings were held at Castagnola’s Restaurant in the Fisherman’s Wharf area of San Francisco. After each dinner, a guest speaker or panel discusses various real estate financing topics. Information about upcoming meetings can be found on our Events page.

REGISTER TODAY!