Fireside Financial
Fireside Financial is a private equity real estate firm founded in 2008 in Edwardsville, IL, that invests in value-add and development multifamily, self-storage, industrial, office, and mixed-use properties across the Midwest and Southeast US, serving high net worth and institutional investors through commingled funds.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersEdwardsville, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Fireside Financial does
Fireside Financial is a private equity real estate firm founded in 2008 by Michael Bailey and headquartered in Edwardsville, Illinois. The firm invests in value-add and ground-up development properties across five asset classes — multifamily, self-storage, industrial, office, and mixed-use — primarily in Midwest and Southeast US markets spanning 15+ states. It targets individual investment equity requirements between $2 million and $15 million per transaction and operates through commingled funds including Fireside Real Estate Partners II ($100M target, 2011), Fireside Real Estate Partners III ($500M target, initial $75M close in 2016), and FREP Debt I ($25M, 2016, for CMBS purchases). Michael Bailey is reported to have placed approximately $1 billion in real estate transactions since the firm's founding.
The firm's portfolio spans more than 25 named assets including large multifamily complexes (Cedar Lakes, Madison at Aspen Woods, Chez Paree, Expo at Forest Park), a multi-property self-storage portfolio across Illinois, Indiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Texas, single-tenant net-lease assets (EMC Insurance, Famous Dave's, Orscheln Farm & Home, Pearle Vision), industrial (FedEx Ground), and ground-up mixed-use developments (Whispering Heights in Edwardsville, IL and the 96-acre Olia Village in Creve Coeur, MO, groundbreaking November 2024). The firm partners with capital markets intermediaries (Berkadia), co-investors (Gannon Realty Group), and construction/architecture firms (Holland Construction, Gray Design, Hearth Construction Management, the last co-founded by Kristie Bailey).
Fireside Financial generates revenue through real estate fund management (management fees and carried interest from limited partners) and property investment returns (appreciation and income from owned and developed real estate). The company operates as a sales-led private placement model reaching investors via direct relationships, an investor relations portal, industry events, and earned media in regional outlets. It has no proprietary technology platform and no disclosed AI/ML capabilities, operating instead as a traditional relationship-driven Midwest/Southeast real estate private equity firm with 11-50 employees.
Fireside Financial firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Fireside Financial
- Legal name
- Fireside Financial LLC
- Website
- https://firesidefinancial.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Fireside Financial is a private equity real estate firm founded in 2008 in Edwardsville, IL, that invests in value-add and development multifamily, self-storage, industrial, office, and mixed-use properties across the Midwest and Southeast US, serving high net worth and institutional investors through commingled funds.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Fireside Financial industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Private Equity Real Estate
- NAICS
- Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525), Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259)
- SIC
- Real Estate Dealers (For Their Own Account) (6532)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Real Assets — Real Asset Fund Platforms / Multi-Asset Real Assets (Diversified Real Assets Funds) (FSAHAIAM)
Keywords
Where Fireside Financial is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Edwardsville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Fireside Financial business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Real Estate Fund Management: Fireside Financial generates revenue through managing private equity real estate funds, collecting management fees and carried interest from investors. The firm has launched multiple funds including Fireside Real Estate Partners III targeting $500 million in equity commitments, with prior funds targeting $100 million.
- Property Investment Returns: The firm generates returns through appreciation and income from value-add and development real estate properties including multifamily, self-storage, industrial, office, and mixed-use assets across the Midwest.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Fireside Financial product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Fireside Financial is a private equity real estate firm that raises and manages investment funds and deploys capital into value-add and development real estate properties. Its core products are private equity real estate funds (Fireside Real Estate Partners series and FREP Debt I) that acquire multifamily, self-storage, industrial, office, and mixed-use assets in the Midwest and Southeast, targeting equity checks of $2–$15 million. The firm also holds a proprietary portfolio of directly owned commercial properties across those same asset classes.
Product overview
Fireside Financial is a private equity real estate investment firm offering a diversified portfolio of commercial real estate products and investment funds. The core offering consists of investment funds including Fireside Real Estate Partners III (targeting $500 million in equity commitments) and FREP Debt I (targeting CMBS investments). Their real estate portfolio spans multiple property categories: Multi-Family (Enclave Student Housing, The Groves Townhomes, Chez Paree, Cedar Lakes, Soulard Portfolio), Self-Storage (Center Grove, Paramount, Chamberlain, Plano, Washington, Variety, Hickory Hill, Accomack), Mixed-Use Developments (Whispering Heights, Mill Creek Flats, Steelcote Lofts, Steelcote Crossing, The Edwin, Expo at Forest Park, The Flatts at Dorsett Ridge, E'ville/Good Portfolio, Olia Village), Industrial (FedEx Ground), and Net-Lease/Office (Famous Dave's, Orscheln Farm & Home, Pearle Vision, Regency Park, EMC Insurance, Creve Coeur Center, Grandview Office Complex). The company targets properties in the Midwest and Southeast regions with equity requirements between $2-15 million, focusing on value-add and ground-up opportunities.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Fireside Real Estate Partners III Third real estate investment fund from Fireside Financial, targeting $500 million in equity commitments and focused on value-added investments in multifamily and self-storage properties primarily in the Midwest. Offered to investment partners for capital commitment.
- FREP Debt I Limited liability company venture fund that raised $25 million to purchase commercial mortgage backed securities (CMBS) tied to multifamily housing development commercial loans. Designed for investors seeking debt-oriented exposure to multifamily housing development.
- Whispering Heights $28 million luxury mixed-use community in Edwardsville, IL featuring 18,000 square feet of first-floor retail space and 153 multi-family apartment units across two six-story buildings; serves as an investment vehicle within the Fireside portfolio.
- Olia Village 96-acre transformative mixed-use development in Creve Coeur, MO featuring residential units, retail, restaurants, commercial and office spaces, green areas, and community facilities; serves as a long-duration Fireside investment project.
- FedEx Ground Industrial Property (Effingham, IL) 38,777 SF industrial property located at the intersection of I-70 and I-57 in Effingham, IL, leased to FedEx Ground as a strategic logistics hub serving the Central Illinois market; held within the Fireside portfolio.
- Creve Coeur Center (Office Property) Approximately 600,000 square feet of office space in Creve Coeur, MO, one of St. Louis' most affluent communities; held within the Fireside portfolio for institutional and investment-partner exposure to Class A office.
Quantifiable outcome
- Disciplined four-phase investment process: Establish, Evaluate, Execute, Exit
Companies that use Fireside Financial
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Fireside Financial technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Fireside Financial partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Gannon Realty GroupcoreGannon Realty Group and Fireside Financial partnered to buy the Charter Place Apartments in Creve Coeur for $22 million. This was among the area's largest multi-family sales in the past 18 months.
- Holland ConstructioncoreHolland Construction served as General Contractor for the Whispering Heights development project, a $28 million mixed-use community in Edwardsville, IL.
- Gray DesigncoreGray Design served as Architect for the Whispering Heights development project.
- Hearth Construction ManagementcoreHearth Construction Management served as Owner Representative for the Whispering Heights development. Co-founder of Hearth Construction along with Kristie Bailey.
- Alper AudiminorAlper Audi provided engineering services for the Whispering Heights development project.
- Solutions AECminorSolutions AEC provided MEP Engineering services for the Whispering Heights development project.
- Oates AssociatesminorOates Associates provided structural engineering services for the Whispering Heights development project.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Fireside Financial competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Crawford Hoying: Midwest-based real estate developer and investor focused on multifamily and mixed-use communities, with a portfolio of large-scale developments overlapping Fireside's Whispering Heights and Olia Village type projects.
- Cardinal Capital Partners: Real estate investment manager focused on multifamily value-add opportunities in select U.S. markets, with comparable fund structures and target asset profile to Fireside's apartment-focused funds.
- RangeWater Real Estate: Multifamily-focused private equity real estate firm acquiring and developing multifamily assets across the Sun Belt and Midwest, with similar value-add strategy and equity check sizes comparable to Fireside's $2-15 million range.
- BlueRock Real Estate: Private equity real estate firm focused on multifamily investments across the U.S., pursuing value-add and development strategies similar to Fireside's multifamily-heavy portfolio.
- Catalyst Capital Partners: Real estate private equity firm focused on value-add and opportunistic investments across multiple U.S. property types, comparable to Fireside's diversified multifamily, self-storage, and mixed-use approach.
- Hamilton Point Investments: Private equity real estate investment manager deploying value-add capital across multifamily and other commercial property types in secondary and tertiary U.S. markets similar to Fireside's Midwest focus.
- L&L Real Estate Partners: Mid-sized private equity real estate investor pursuing value-add multifamily and mixed-use opportunities, comparable in scale and strategy to Fireside's fund-driven approach.
- Krumholz Property Group: St. Louis-based commercial real estate investment and management firm operating in the same Midwest geography as Fireside, with overlapping multifamily and mixed-value-add strategies.
Broad incumbents
- Inland Real Estate Group: Diversified real estate investment and management firm with a much larger multi-strategy platform (multifamily, net-lease, self-storage, retail) operating broadly in the same property types Fireside targets.
Regional players
- Gannon Realty Group: St. Louis-based real estate firm that has co-invested with Fireside on Charter Place Apartments; operates in the same regional Midwest market with overlapping multifamily acquisition activity.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Fireside Financial social profiles
Digital presenceFireside Financial financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Fireside Financial leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Fireside Financial funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Fireside Financial M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Fireside Financial
What does Fireside Financial do?
Fireside Financial is a private equity real estate firm that raises and manages investment funds and deploys capital into value-add and development real estate properties. Its core products are private equity real estate funds (Fireside Real Estate Partners series and FREP Debt I) that acquire multifamily, self-storage, industrial, office, and mixed-use assets in the Midwest and Southeast, targeting equity checks of $2–$15 million. The firm also holds a proprietary portfolio of directly owned commercial properties across those same asset classes.
Is Fireside Financial a public or private company?
Fireside Financial is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Fireside Financial founded?
Fireside Financial was founded in 2008. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Fireside Financial based?
Fireside Financial is headquartered in Edwardsville, United States, in the North America region.
How does Fireside Financial make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Real Estate Fund Management is the primary driver. The others are property Investment Returns.
Who are Fireside Financial's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Crawford Hoying, Cardinal Capital Partners, RangeWater Real Estate, BlueRock Real Estate, Catalyst Capital Partners, Hamilton Point Investments, L&L Real Estate Partners and Krumholz Property Group. Inland Real Estate Group is listed as a broad incumbent. Gannon Realty Group is listed as a regional player.
Does Fireside Financial have an API?
No public API is recorded for Fireside Financial.
What industry is Fireside Financial in?
Fireside Financial's product category is Private Equity Real Estate. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAHAIAM, Real Assets — Real Asset Fund Platforms / Multi-Asset Real Assets (Diversified Real Assets Funds). Its NAICS code is 525 and its SIC code is 6532.