BREAKOUT SESSION: Silver Linings - Combating Borrower Challenges with Winning Solutions

Laura Johnson

Asst. Director Commercial Loan Operations, Principal Real Estate

Laura is the Assistant Director – Commercial Servicing Loan Operations at Principal Real Estate Investors. She is responsible for leading the operations team which is responsible for the processing and oversight of insurance, taxes, inspections, UCCs and disaster reporting. She is also responsible for leading the real estate administrative team which provides daily support to all of real estate. Laura serves as a liaison between IT and servicing. Laura joined the firm in 1996. She received an MBA in Business Administration from University of Iowa and a bachelor's degree in Finance/Communications from University of Northern Iowa. Laura is a vice chair of the Operations Group, previous chair of the Insurance and Risk Management Committee and a member of the Enterprise! User Advisory Board.

Will Hasselmann

Vice President , Operations Manager, Grandbridge Real Estate Capital LLC

Will is a Vice President and Operations Manager at Grandbridge Real Estate Capital LLC. Will joined Grandbridge in April 2011 and has 20+ years of mortgage banking experience. He is currently responsible for managing the property tax payment, document administration and escrow transactions groups in the company’s Charlotte, N.C., office. Prior to his role in loan administration, Will worked in the asset management, new loan boarding and documents administration groups at Grandbridge, as well as a construction loan administrator for commercial and residential properties at Truist, PNC and Fifth Third Bank. Will earned his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Auburn University and was a participant in the MBA’s 2023 Future Leaders Program.

Chris Mason

Vice President, Asset Management, PGIM Real Estate

Chris Mason is a Vice President of Asset Management with PGIM Real Estate Loan Services (PGIM RELS), a business of PGIM Real Estate. Based in Dallas, Chris currently oversees PGIM RELS’s Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, CMBS, Third Party and Core General Account portfolios. He also serves as the Fannie Mae Chief Asset Manager and Freddie Mac Chief Servicing Officer delegate for PGIM RELS. In his role he is responsible for leading strategic plan initiatives, coaching and mentoring team members, reviewing and overseeing their work product, managing relationships with internal and external clients, and reviewing processes in order to recommend improvements to enhance productivity, efficiency and customer service. Chris also oversees the processing of various credit transactions, risk management issues, loan covenant compliance, property inspections, watchlist and certain vendor management functions. Chris has 21 years of experience in the commercial mortgage servicing industry, with considerable experience in asset management across a variety of capital sources which include Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, CMBS and balance sheet products. Prior to joining Prudential in 2006, Chris also held roles at KeyBank and ORIX Capital Markets. Chris earned his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in finance with an emphasis in real estate from Texas Tech University.

Jay Smith

Director, FHA/USDA Asset Management, Lument

Jay Smith is the Director of the FHA & USDA performing asset management team at Lument. His team’s primary responsibility is the oversight of all asset management responsibilities including monitoring property financial and physical performance, audit and post-closing transaction management. Jay has represented a number of servicers in the commercial mortgage industry over a 25 year career. Prior to Lument, Jay held servicing and asset management roles at Northmarq, Walker & Dunlop, Greystone and Prudential. Jay has formerly chaired the MBA’s FHA Servicer Subcommittee.