Neil Freeman

Neil Freeman is the Founder, Chairman and CEO of Aries Capital, LLC; President of Urban Development Fund (UDF); and a lifelong entrepreneur. Throughout his 40-year career in finance and commercial real estate, he has closed over $8 billion in debt, equity, mezzanine and tax credit financing for hotel, multifamily and commercial properties across the United States and in the Caribbean. Neil’s entities also hold equity interests in over $250 million of real estate, including apartments, hotels, shopping centers and land developments such as the 1000-acre Three Oaks mixed-use development in Ft. Myers, Florida, and the beachfront residences at Tranquility Beach on Anguilla’s Meads Bay in the British West Indies.

As one of the most successful New Markets Tax Credit Community Development Entities with the United States Treasury, UDF has received over $620 million in federal and state New Markets Tax Credits allocations, translating to $1 billion in transactions. UDF focuses on the rehabilitation of hotels, mixed-use properties, retail developments, theaters and medical facilities in highly-distressed census tracts nationwide.

Formerly a licensed CPA, Neil earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree in Accounting from the University of Florida, and a Master of Business Administration degree from Stanford University. He is an adjunct Real Estate professor at DePaul University in Chicago and also serves on the Advisory Board of the University of Florida’s Kelley A. Bergstrom Real Estate Center. Neil is a member the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), the Self-Storage Association (SSA), the Lincoln Park Builders Club (LPBC) and a founding board member of Chicago’s Real Estate Investment Association (REIA).