WELCOME TO MASTER DEVELOPMENT

Steve Master

Steve Master began his investing and development career in January of 1994, developing hundreds of acres of high-end residential estate lots.  Mr. Master’s success in this effort derived in large part from in-depth research into county building files dating back into the 1800s.  He discovered that many of the lots he was investing in could have their boundaries realigned, in lieu of formal subdividing, because of their arcane legal status.  This allowed Mr. Master to overcome zoning changes and other lengthy governmental restrictions to subdividing, and thus made the venture significantly more profitable.

In 2000, Mr. Master created Master Towers which quickly became the largest cell-tower owner and manager in the Pacific Northwest.  Mr. Master entered this sector after originally being approached by an international telecom provider about building a tower on a property he owned.  In response, Mr. Master saw a prime opportunity for vertical real estate investment and instead built and leased out the tower himself.  Through contracts, lease option properties, and a strategic acquisition of towers owned by Portland General Electric, Mr. Master grew Master Towers into a 40-tower operation that sold in 2003 for millions more than it was acquired for.  Despite the high barriers to entry in this field, Mr. Master established and grew the venture by navigating the zoning requirements, securing long-term leases, and orchestrating profitable exits.

After selling Master Towers, Mr. Master continued investing by branching off into commercial, office, and mixed-use real estate, focusing on the redevelopment of properties in proven commercial areas.  Mr. Master and his affiliates own two completed projects consisting of over hundreds of thousands of square feet of retail and mixed-use space.  Ground broke for these projects at the height of the real estate boom in 2006. 

As commercial real estate continues to rebound, Mr. Master has turned his focus to luxury apartments and student housing developments on and near college campuses that are experiencing year after year enrollment growth and commercial developments.  This focus is evident in The Orbit and MW2, completed student housing project near the University of Oregon campus and the Portland MW8 near Portland State University which was completed Spring of 2014.  Other recent projects include multi-family and luxury living First on Broadway, Park Place Apartments and commercial developments known as 110 Broadway, Valley River Station and Woodburn Station. Steve and his team were able to obtain multi-family tax exemption on property in Vancouver, WA, entitle and later sell The Brooklyn a tract of land consisting of five lots across the street from the Nike Headquarters in Beaverton, OR, and most recently have taken Woodland Crossing in Woodburn, OR and turn it into entitled land for a 300 unit multi-family apartment community.

Since 1994, Mr. Master has executed extensive and complicated real estate deals worth approximately hundreds of millions in gross transaction value.  Mr. Master continues to innovate by seeking to unlock hidden value from development with clear discipline and sound exit strategies.  He has years of experience and contacts with brokers, appraisers, real estate professionals, and other industry players, and therefore he is often the beneficiary of detailed information about possible properties – both on the market and off the market. 

Steve Master lives in Portland, Oregon.