MHE Real Estate

What MHE Real Estate does

MHE Real Estate is a privately held real estate investment and management company founded in 1968 by Myron Lieberman and headquartered in Marina del Rey, California. The company acquires, rehabilitates, and manages commercial and residential communities, with a primary focus on value-add student housing located adjacent to four-year universities and a secondary focus on conventional multifamily apartments in the Western United States. As of last disclosure, MHE and its operating brand Select Student Housing own over 5,000 student beds across 11 properties and more than 1,000 conventional apartments, having acquired, developed, and managed in excess of $500 million of real estate since inception.

The company's portfolio spans nine states (California, Washington, Utah, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, North Carolina, and Idaho) and is concentrated in campus-adjacent locations where zoning and supply constraints make new construction impractical. Properties are fully rehabilitated to new-construction finish standards with granite counters, wood-look floors, modern appliances, and high-speed internet. MHE generates revenue through three streams: recurring rental income from owned student and conventional housing, gains from property dispositions after stabilization (e.g., Trojan Palms sold in 2015 for $9.5M), and third-party asset management fees. A central strategic relationship is the joint venture with MJW Investments, which co-acquires student housing assets.

Day-to-day property operations are handled by third-party property management companies under MHE's asset management oversight. The go-to-market is relationship-driven and direct: acquisition outreach via deal memorandums to the Managing Director, supplemented by property-specific websites and the corporate site. Investor capital is sourced through joint venture programs with select funds, individuals, and institutional equity providers. Leadership consists of founder/CEO Myron Lieberman, Managing Director Nate Akiva (joined mid-2008, J.D. from UCLA, former Accenture and Pircher Nichols), Regional Portfolio Manager Tiffany Payton, and Property Manager Kriste Stone.

Name

MHE Real Estate

Legal name

MHE Real Estate

Website

https://mherealestate.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1968

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

MHE Real Estate is a private real estate investment and management firm founded in 1968 that acquires, rehabilitates, and manages value-add student housing adjacent to major universities and conventional multifamily apartments across the Western United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Multifamily and Student Housing Real Estate

NAICS

Residential Property Managers (531311), Lessors of Nonresidential Buildings (except Miniwarehouses) (531120), Rental and Leasing Services (532), Other Activities Related to Real Estate (531390)

SIC

Real Estate Dealers (For Their Own Account) (6532), Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531), Real Estate (6500)

akta.pro primary industry

Multifamily & Student Housing Asset Management (BPAJAMAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Real Estate M&A / Joint Venture Advisory (Platform Deals, Partnerships) (BPAJANAF)

Keywords

• Student housing
• Multifamily real estate
• Value-add investments
• Property rehabilitation
• Joint venture real estate

Headquarters

HQ city

Marina Del Rey

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Property Rental Income: MHE generates recurring rental income from owned apartment communities and student housing properties. The company owns over 5,000 beds in student housing and over 1,000 conventional apartments in the Western United States.
2. Property Sales and Dispositions: MHE creates value through acquisition, rehabilitation and management of properties, then sells them for profit after stabilization. Examples include Trojan Palms sold in 2015 for $9,500,000 (purchased for $5,500,000) and Rosemead Apartments sold for $5,620,000 (purchased for $4,120,000).
3. Third-Party Asset Management Fees: MHE offers third-party asset management services for a fee, specializing in multifamily housing. Approaches all asset management tasks with tenacious and meticulous attitude regardless of ownership interest.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

MHE Real Estate acquires, rehabilitates, and manages commercial and residential communities, primarily student housing (5,000+ beds) and conventional multifamily apartments (1,000+ units) in the Western United States. The company also makes opportunistic investments in retail, office, and land properties, and offers third-party asset management and joint venture programs to investors.

Product overview

MHE Real Estate is a real estate investment and management company founded in 1968, specializing in student housing and multi-family housing across the Western United States. The company operates through distinct product lines: a Student Housing Portfolio (11+ properties with 5,000+ beds adjacent to 4-year universities including UCSB, University of Oregon, BYU, WSU, and Chico State) and a Multi-Family Housing Portfolio (1,000+ conventional apartment units in California, Washington, and Utah). Additionally, MHE invests opportunistically in retail, office, and land properties. The company provides services including asset management, acquisition strategy, and joint venture programs for investors. MHE creates value by acquiring, rehabilitating, and managing commercial and residential communities, with emphasis on California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, and Utah.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Student Housing Portfolio A portfolio of 11 student housing properties with over 5,000 beds adjacent to 4-year universities across the West Coast (USC, UCSB, UO, UW, BYU, WSU, USU, BYUI, Chico State). Properties are fully rehabilitated to new-construction standard of finish with amenities such as gyms, study rooms, student lounges, granite counters, wood-look floors, new appliances, LCD TVs, and high-speed internet. Units are leased by the bed, with flagship properties achieving 100% occupancy.
• Multi-Family Housing Portfolio A portfolio of over 1,000 conventional apartment units across the Western United States, including renovated units with granite countertops, wood flooring, and modern amenities in California, Washington, Oregon, and Utah. Communities include Nova Seattle, The Edge, The Edge North, The Mercer Downtown, Seashore Apartments, Barrington Apartments, 3932 Sepulveda, Valley Ridge Apartments, 1527 11th Street, and Strata on California.
• Asset Management Services Professional asset management services for multifamily housing, overseeing daily, weekly, and monthly expenses of properties managed by third-party operators. Available to third parties for a fee, with a tenacious and meticulous approach regardless of ownership interest. Specializes in multifamily housing oversight.
• Joint Venture Programs Joint venture programs that expand acquisition opportunities and bridge gaps between available capital and deal-required equity. MHE works with select funds, individuals, and institutional equity providers to manage and maintain wealth for investors through syndicated property investments, with majority of transactions achieving stabilized cash flow of 8-10%+ and project-level IRR targets of 20%+.

Quantifiable outcome

• Acquisition and rehab of Capri Isla Vista: Purchased August 2007 for $11M, $1.5M capex invested, now valued at $20M (September 2016), NOI increased from $500K to over $1M, Cash Return on Equity: 11.5%
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• MJW InvestmentscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMJW Investments is MHE's primary joint venture partner on multiple student housing acquisitions. Together they have acquired and rehabilitated properties including Capri Eugene (Feb 2007, $13M purchase, 136 units/450 beds), Capri Isla Vista (Aug 2007, $11M purchase), Liberty Square (Nov 2013, 810 beds in Provo), Liberty on Freedom (Feb 2016, 525 beds), Liberty on Eighth (Mar 2016, 353 beds), and Campus Provo (Oct 2017, 486 beds). The partnership specializes in value-add student housing acquisitions near universities.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Greystar Real Estate Partners: The largest US multifamily and student housing operator and investment manager, with $300B+ in assets under management. Comparable across both conventional multifamily and student housing, though at meaningfully greater scale than MHE.
• American Campus Communities: One of the largest publicly-traded student housing REITs (acquired by Blackstone in 2022), operating ~100,000 beds across US universities. Directly comparable business model of acquiring, developing, and managing purpose-built student housing assets near major campuses.
• Education Realty Trust (EdR) / Bluerock Residential Growth REIT: Legacy student housing REIT (acquired by Greystar in 2018) that owned, developed, and managed collegiate housing near major US universities — directly comparable investment thesis to MHE's student housing portfolio.

Direct peers

• The Scion Group: Privately-held student housing owner, operator, and developer specializing in off-campus student housing near Tier 1 universities with value-add acquisition and third-party management services — a direct comparable to MHE's student housing thesis and JV-driven growth model.
• Hawthorne Residential Partners: Multifamily investment and management firm focused on value-add conventional apartment acquisitions across the US, with similar operational emphasis on rehabilitation, professional management, and disposition to institutional buyers.
• Asset Plus Companies: Boutique multifamily real estate investment and management firm focused on value-add conventional apartment acquisitions in the Western US, with a similar acquisition-rehab-manage-disposition model targeting institutional-quality returns.

Others

• JLL Multifamily (JLL): Global real estate services firm with dedicated multifamily investment sales, debt placement, and asset management services — comparable to MHE's asset management and acquisition strategy services offered to third parties.

Regional players

• CW Capital / The Connell Company: Privately-held real estate investment and management firm concentrated in the Northeast US multifamily market. Comparable portfolio strategy and private ownership structure, though regional focus differs from MHE's Western US concentration.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/select-student-housing

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about MHE Real Estate