Sargent joins Bailard as head of RE

The industry veteran will serve as president and chief executive officer of the Foster City, California-based investment firm. 

Industry veteran Preston Sargent has joined Foster City, California-based investment firm Bailard as president and chief executive officer of real estate and head of the firm’s private equity real estate vehicle. Sargent is replacing Michelle Foss, who resigned in June to join Invesco Real Estate as director of portfolio management.

Sargent will run the Bailard Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), an open-ended fund structured as a private REIT. The vehicle has been pursuing a core-plus investment strategy since its inception in 1990.

“I am delighted to be a member of the Bailard team,” said Sargent in a statement. “I continue to be impressed with the firm’s unyielding commitment to client service, fiduciary best practices and innovative investment strategies and products. It is a distinct privilege to join the investment professionals at Bailard and have an opportunity to contribute to the growth and success of Bailard and its clients.”

Sargent brings more than 30 years of experience in the real estate investment and advisory business to Bailard. He is the founder of real estate investment management and advisory firm Trail Creek Capital and previously was executive vice president and principal at Kennedy Associates (now Bentall Kennedy), serving as a member of the firm’s executive and investment committees and as the portfolio manager for its $8 billion Open End Diversified Core Equity fund. Before Kennedy, Sargent was a vice president and regional team leader at GE Investments, where he bought, financed and sold or managed approximately $2 billion in assets across property types. Earlier in his career, he held positions in acquisitions, asset management and debt workout at Aetna Realty Investors, William Blair Realty and LaSalle Partners.

“It was a godsend to find somebody with so much experience and, for the culture of the company, Preston is a great fit as well,” Bailard executive vice president and director of business development Diana Dessonville said in an interview with PERE. Sargent started in his new role on August 5.