UpClose With MetaProp’s Zachary Aarons
GlobeSt.com learns that Aarons aspires to tether the worlds of real estate and technology entrepreneurship together so tightly that his presence in the space is no longer necessary to serve as translation between the two parties.
MetaProp co-founder and partner Zachary Aarons has been working at the intersection of real estate and venture capital for the past decade. He has funded more than 60 startups in the space as an individual as well as 60 startups (and counting) through MetaProp NYC’s venture capital funds. In addition to early-stage investing, Zach has worked on large scale mixed-use development projects in cities like Boston and Los Angeles with Millennium Partners and has experience with real estate development, commercial asset management, property marketing, and commercial leasing.
Aarons has always been passionate about real estate. From a very early age, he was exposed to the ins and outs of the industry and was immediately captivated. Prior to joining Millennium and founding MetaProp NYC, he was a Senior Associate at ENIAC Ventures, a seed stage mobile technology fund and the founder of Travelgoat, an online and offline walking tour business. He began his career as an analyst at boutique investment bank Peter J. Solomon Company.
Outside of work, he currently serves on the Board of Trustees of The Tenement Museum and is an Assistant Adjunct Professor at the Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. He serves on the Technology Committee for the Real Estate Board of New York and the Technology and Real Estate Council for the Urban Land Institute. Previously, Zach was the Treasurer of the Board of Directors for The Lowline and Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana. He graduated Magna Cum Laude with an A.B. from Brown University in Ancient Studies and earned an MBA from Columbia Business School.
When asked about his short and long term goals, he tells GlobeSt.com that he ultimately aspires to tether the worlds of real estate and technology entrepreneurship together so tightly that his presence in the space is no longer necessary to serve as translation between the two parties.
When asked what new ideas or practices young professionals bring to CRE that weren’t there before, he says it is the willingness to try things that might fail, and experiment as well as the willingness to try new technologies with the promise of increased efficiency.
His final words of advice for those looking to start a career in CRE? “Find a power niche that’s narrow enough to be credible, but make sure it’s something you can obtain expertise in and something you enjoy doing intellectually.”
GlobeSt.com’s first ever “People to Watch” series is highlighting individuals across all disciplines of commercial real estate who have made and are continuing to make an impact on the industry. Stay tuned for many more profiles from tomorrow’s leaders.