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MWest Holdings is a growth-oriented CRE investment and development firm formed by Jeffrey Lay and Joshua Baniak and is dedicated to increasing returns and reducing risk while outperforming traditional investment vehicles for our partners. This is accomplished, in part, by emphasizing the following:
By following these guiding principles—combined with experience, innovative strategies, and hard work—MWest endeavors to deliver the highest returns possible while maintaining excellence in business operations.
Jeffrey is the majority partner of MWest Holdings and serves as Chief Executive Officer, focusing on the company’s long-term strategy.
With a background in the medical field, Jeff has successfully started, led, and exited two multinational companies in the medical device manufacturing and service spaces. The transactions were in excess of $100 million and were sold to strategic and institutional investors. The organizations had sales to over 60 countries with plants and distribution centers in the USA, Costa Rica, and Japan. He continues to lead the manufacturing company post exit as a member of the board.
Over the past decade, Jeff has immersed himself in the CRE industry as a large investor in a multitude of multifamily properties. Through his experience as both a successful businessman and an investor, Jeff brings a unique understanding of leadership, operations, and the metrics most impactful from an investor standpoint. The resulting perspectives and business acumen provide an irreplaceable asset to MWest’s strategy and direction.
Jeff and his wife Sharon have three children together; Cameron and Griffen at Arizona State University, and Maddie who recently graduated from TCU and currently resides in North Carolina. Jeff and Sharon split their time between St. Louis, MO, Scottsdale, AZ and Park City, UT. He is an alumnus of the University of Missouri School of Business.
Joshua is a founding partner of MWest Holdings and serves as the company’s President. He is responsible for selection, analysis, strategy implementation, and business operations.
Josh has over a decade of direct real estate and development experience, coupled with a comprehensive understanding of business processes that spread across functions and industries. He has held various leadership roles in both corporate environments and private equity ranging from business operations and scaling, to analysis and execution. During his experience, he has underwritten, approved, and developed more than 30 retail sites equating to roughly $50m in total costs, as well as oversaw multiple residential projects from luxury condominiums to master plan projects ranging in costs of $80-$300m.
Most recently, Josh served as Vice President of Operations and Development for a private equity real estate firm with projects in the Mountain West and developed an intimate knowledge of the targeted market and landscape of opportunities within. The experience and relationships Josh has developed will have a vital role in the success of MWest and investor partners.
Josh has two young girls, Adelyn and Emersyn, and resides in St. Louis with his wife, Heather. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Management and Business Organization from the University of Miami, FL, and an MBA from the University of Missouri-Columbia.
James is the founder of Sage Consulting, a real estate consulting firm specializing in appraisal, brokerage, market analysis and strategy across Montana, servicing local and national investors and lending institutions.
Prior to founding Sage, James built, managed, and sold several businesses in the Flathead Valley area. From his experience and relationships made along the way, he formed Sage Strategy to offer a blend of knowledge, connections, and resources for investors and lending institutions throughout the state.
James’ reputation and deep understanding of the industry has attracted the attention of local and state institutional committees within the sector. James sits on the advisory board for the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce, the Steering Committee for Montana West Economic Development, Governor Gianforte’s Housing Task Force – a special committee formed in 2022 to address the lack of housing supply across the State of Montana. James regularly engages in meetings and speaks publicly on a variety of real estate related issues. The expertise that James brings to the MWest team is invaluable.
James lives in Kalispell, MT with his four children and wife and enjoys exploring the outdoors of the Northwest. He holds a Business Finance degree from Black Hills State University.
Harrison Kazlauskas leads the investments team at MWest Holdings, where he is responsible for sourcing equity, underwriting and analysis, evaluating capital markets and transaction execution. Harrison aids in defining the ongoing investment strategy, the evaluation of development opportunities, and capital organization & structuring. Additionally, he supports the MWest growth strategy by placing special emphasis upon expansion into the Southeast.
Harrison brings experience across acquisitions and asset management from institutional and real estate private equity firms. Earlier in his career, he worked with a Blackstone-owned industrial real estate firm in a financial planning and analysis role supporting portfolio management and underwriting. He later joined a real estate private equity firm, where he oversaw a $500 million portfolio of open-air shopping centers throughout the Southeast and played an active role in the acquisition and disposition of large retail assets. Through these roles, he developed a strong foundation in valuation, underwriting, capital structuring, and asset-level strategy.
In parallel with his institutional experience, Harrison founded Irving Ridge Properties, an independent real estate investment platform focused on sourcing and underwriting off-market opportunities across the Southeast. Through Irving Ridge, he’s led direct owner outreach, negotiations, and conducted advanced underwriting and due diligence across stabilized and development-stage assets.
Originally from Connecticut, Harrison resides in Charlotte, North Carolina with his fiancée, Madison. He holds a BBA in Finance with an emphasis in Real Estate from Texas Christian University.
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