Meet our team

Michael Gershenson is the Founder and Managing Partner of Ridge Real Estate Partners. Mr. Gershenson has more than 25 years of real estate investment experience across property types including an extensive track record in the multifamily, industrial and life science sectors.

Prior to forming Ridge, Mr. Gershenson was a Global Partner/Managing Director in Carlyle’s US Real Estate group, where he was responsible for all aspects of real estate investments. During Mr. Gershenson’s 20 years at Carlyle he executed over $6 billion in transactions. Previously, Mr. Gershenson was with Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown’s mergers, acquisitions and corporate advisory group in New York where he specialized in real estate transactions.

Mr. Gershenson received a B.S.B.A. from the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University and currently serves on the Steering Committee of the Steers Center for Global Real Estate at Georgetown University. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the PRECEDE Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Pancreatic Cancer Early Detection (PRECEDE) Consortium. Mr. Gershenson resides in New York City with his wife and two daughters.

Skylar Hochberg is a Partner of Ridge Real Estate Partners and has fifteen years of real estate investment experience. Prior to Ridge, Mr. Hochberg worked with Mr. Gershenson and Mr. Roberts at the Carlyle Group as well as at Atalaya Capital Management where he helped launch the firm’s dedicated real estate platform and executed over $4 billion of transactions. He has experience investing in both debt and equity across property types and geographies including extensive experience in the housing, industrial and life science sectors, particularly in the northeast and the sunbelt.

Mr. Hochberg focuses on sourcing new Ridge investment opportunities, formulating investment business plans (including securing attractive capital structures), and managing the transaction process through acquisition closing.

Mr. Hochberg received a BS in Policy Analysis and Management from Cornell University and resides in New York City with his wife, son, and daughter.

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Brian Roberts is a Partner of Ridge Real Estate Partners. Mr. Roberts has over 17 years of real estate investment experience across multiple property sectors, including multifamily, industrial, life science, office, and for sale residential. Prior to Ridge, Mr. Roberts was a Principal in Carlyle’s US Real Estate Group where he led the asset management of Carlyle’s real estate investments in the Northeast region. During Mr. Robert’s 12 years at Carlyle, he managed over $8 billion in real estate, overseeing the development, financing, leasing, financial reporting, and disposition processes.

Mr. Roberts focuses on the asset management of Ridge’s underlying investments, fund management responsibilities, and managing the management company operations and finances.

Mr. Roberts received a BBA in Finance, Investment, and Banking and Real Estate/Urban Land Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and resides in New York City with his partner.

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Lauren Kossman joined Ridge Real Estate Partners in 2023. Prior to Ridge, Ms. Kossman was an Associate at JLL Capital Markets (formerly HFF) where she was a member of the DC office investment sales team. During her tenure, Ms. Kossman was involved in the underwriting of over $4 billion of assets and played an integral role in the team’s marketing, due diligence, and closing processes.

Ms. Kossman received a B.A. in Economics with a concentration in Finance and Real Estate from Bucknell University, from which she graduated Magna Cum Laude.

Sam Kleinick joined Ridge Real Estate Partners in 2025. Prior to Ridge, Mr. Kleinick was an Associate at Cerberus Capital Management, where he was responsible for acquisitions and asset management across multiple asset classes. He began his career as an Investment Sales Analyst at Eastdil Secured. In his prior roles, Mr. Kleinick has been involved in the execution of over $6 billion of closed transactions.

Mr. Kleinick received a B.S.B.A. with a concentration in Finance and Operations & Information Management from the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University.

Aidan Williams joined Ridge Real Estate Partners in 2025. Prior to Ridge, Mr. Williams was an Analyst at Barclays Capital where he was a member of the Real Estate, Gaming and Lodging group. During his tenure, Mr. Williams was a member of a team responsible for advising companies on mergers and acquisitions in transaction volume over $10 billion.

Mr. Williams received a B.S.B.A. with a concentration in Finance and Entrepreneurship from the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University.