Harrison Street builds a fundraising bench for infrastructure and credit

Harrison Street, the $110 billion manager best known for student housing, senior housing and medical office properties, has sold about $6 billion in real estate over the past 12 months—more than 5% of assets under management, according to Commercial Observer—while adding three executives to its Investor Solutions Group. The hires create a capital-raising bench anchored by two co-heads and a dedicated infrastructure specialist, pointing the firm toward fundraising beyond its traditional property strategies. Dan Fanelli, whose resume includes PGIM, Brookfield Asset Management and Innovo Property Group, joins as a New York-based managing director and co-head, according to Commercial Observer. James Choi, previously the firm’s head of Asia in Tokyo, is being promoted to co-head and will relocate to the West Coast to focus on North American institutional clients; Dan Kim joins the Chicago office as a managing director for infrastructure, coming from EQT Partners, where he led consultant relations.

The sale program of that size reads as rotation, not withdrawal. The firm has been moving out of property even as its new hires pitch infrastructure and credit, indicating an intent to redeploy the $6 billion into the next fund. Geoff Regnery, co-president of the Investor Solutions Group, said in a statement that the hires reflect a commitment to strengthening the platform as the firm scales globally; co-head Jenna Sheehan cited complementary expertise in real estate, infrastructure and credit.

PRED’s earlier coverage noted that the PGIM departure leaves a gap in Southern U.S. coverage, one that Fanelli may now fill from the Harrison Street side. But Fanelli’s hire also extends product reach: Harrison Street, built on student housing and medical office buildings, is now positioning itself to raise capital for infrastructure and credit. Kim’s background is a tell—leading consultant relations at EQT Partners means he knows how to navigate the gatekeepers that decide whether an institution places money with an unfamiliar strategy. Fanelli’s Brookfield tenure exposed him to an asset manager that blends real estate and infrastructure, the same blend Harrison Street’s recent commentary implies.

The three hires give Harrison Street a fundraising team pointed at the next fund, and the test will be whether the firm can persuade existing property LPs and new institutional investors to underwrite skills beyond its traditional franchise. If infrastructure and credit perform, these hires will look like the early steps of a successful diversification; if they do not, the co-head structure becomes an expensive footnote. Look for the firm’s first infrastructure or credit fundraising filing in the coming months—that document will show whether the new bench is turning relationships into commitments.