Three Pillars Capital Group, a vertically integrated private equity firm specializing in Class B and C multifamily, has appointed co-founder and managing principal Gautam “George” Goyal as president and CEO. Three Pillars co-founder Josh Welch, who had previously served as CEO, will transition from the role to serve as COO.
As CEO, Goyal will oversee high-level investment strategy and operations for the Houston-based firm and its portfolio of approximately 3,000 units, as well as the firm’s property management arm, Greenline Apartment Management.
Prior to founding Three Pillars, Goyal worked at a hedge fund as an energy trader, focusing on natural gas and crude oil.
In his new role as COO, Welch will focus more squarely on investor relations and capital raising to further drive Three Pillars’ growth. He has previously held multiple positions managing institutional portfolios across the U.S., including CEO of Wolverine Realty and senior portfolio manager and lead quantitative developer for Tesseract Asset Management.
“It has been a tremendous honor to serve as CEO of Three Pillars since its founding, and I look forward to working more closely with our board to refine and execute our investment strategy in my new role as Chief Operating Officer,” said Welch. “Gautam’s unmatched skills and knowledge of both our business and the broader multifamily market make him the perfect choice to build on Three Pillars’ momentum to date, and continue to expand our platform to meet the growing demand for high-quality, affordable rental housing. My role as COO will help us solidify and expand our investment base and allow us to close more deals at a faster rate.”
The company has completed more than $500 million in transactions since its founding in 2017, spanning both the Texas and Oklahoma markets. Despite volatility in the capital markets, Three Pillars remains active.
“Texas is a different market where you've still got population growth,” Goyal told Multifamily Dive. “You're going to have some of the impact of higher interest rates, but, generally speaking, you will be OK.”
Three Pillars is being more careful in underwriting, however. “You have to give yourself more room for things to move — interest rates, supply chain pains, higher property taxes and all of that,” Goyal said.
