# Cottonwood Group

> Cottonwood Group is a Los Angeles-based real estate private equity firm that invests across debt and equity, then uses an in-house development and operating bench to manage difficult assets when a financing problem becomes a construction, leasing or ownership problem. Founded by Alexander Shing in 2012, the firm serves institutional investors while financing sponsors and projects across U.S. property types. Its $1 billion Real Estate Special Situations Strategy targets credit and event-driven equity with downside protection and selective upside participation.

- **Founded:** 2012
- **Headquarters:** Los Angeles, United States
- **Founders:** Alexander Shing (Founder, Chairman and CEO)
- **Team size:** Approximately 51 employees in supplied company data; LinkedIn publicly lists an 11-50 employee band.
- **Products:** Cottonwood Real Estate Special Situations Strategy, Real Estate Credit, Opportunistic Equity, Platform Investments, Development and Asset Operations
- **Notable:** Transacted or advised on more than $7.6 billion in assets since inception, according to the firm., Closed $1 billion in commitments for its Real Estate Special Situations Strategy, twice the original $500 million target., Developed EchelonSeaport, a roughly $900 million, 717-residence mixed-use project in Boston’s Seaport.

## Products & services

- **Cottonwood Real Estate Special Situations Strategy** — A closed-end strategy for real estate credit and event-driven equity, including non-performing loans, rescue lending, recapitalizations and development rescue equity.
- **Real Estate Credit** — Senior transitional and bridge loans, loan participations, construction financing and other structured credit across U.S. property sectors.
- **Opportunistic Equity** — Direct and structured equity investments, including development, preferred equity, recapitalizations and post-foreclosure acquisitions.
- **Platform Investments** — Corporate or asset-specific investments in operating platforms such as data centers, hospitality, property management, multifamily, student housing, life sciences and industrial properties.
- **Development and Asset Operations** — In-house capability spanning acquisition, entitlement, permitting, design, construction management, leasing, sales and exit.

## Achievements

- Transacted or advised on more than $7.6 billion in assets since inception, according to the firm.
- Closed $1 billion in commitments for its Real Estate Special Situations Strategy, twice the original $500 million target.
- Developed EchelonSeaport, a roughly $900 million, 717-residence mixed-use project in Boston’s Seaport.
- Completed $56 million of financing across three data-center development situations in Arizona, Ohio and Virginia in 2024.
- Provided a $284 million senior bridge loan for Austin’s EastVillage and a later $105 million construction loan for a life-science facility there.
- Founder Alexander Shing was named to the Los Angeles Business Journal LA500 in 2025 and 2026.

## Latest updates

- **2026-06** — Industry reporting detailed a $172 million Bunker Hill redevelopment financing package, including Cottonwood’s $122 million construction loan and $50 million of City of Boston Housing Accelerator Fund equity.
- **2026-03** — Cottonwood recorded an $81 million non-performing-loan acquisition in Miami and a $102 million hospitality construction credit investment in Salt Lake City.
- **2026-03** — Cottonwood and the St. Regis Residences Boston team relaunched sales after restructuring the project’s construction loan.
- **2026-01** — CIO Mark Green argued that improving liquidity does not equal an easy recovery and emphasized selective, operations-led underwriting.
- **2025-11** — The firm recorded a $28 million credit investment in data-center entitlement land in Columbus, Ohio.
- **2025-09** — The Real Estate Special Situations Strategy reached a $1 billion final close, combining pooled-fund commitments and separate-account capital.
- **2025-08** — Cottonwood closed a $105 million construction loan for an EastVillage life-science facility in Austin.

## Links

- Website: https://cottonwoodmgmt.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cottonwoodgroup/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/cottonwood-group
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-16