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The Praedium Group
The Praedium Group is a real estate investment firm founded in 1991 by Russell Galbut, operating as a multi-family office with over $10B deployed.
The Praedium Group
The Praedium Group was founded in 1991 by Russell Galbut and Michael Swerdlow, both of whom brought deep real estate and legal backgrounds from prior ventures in South Florida and New York. The firm structured itself as a vehicle for family and institutional capital rather than a traditional fund manager. The firm invests across opportunistic and value-add real estate strategies, including office, multifamily, retail, and industrial assets primarily in major US markets such as New York, Los Angeles, and the Sun Belt. Praedium also operates a private credit arm that originates bridge loans and structured debt for acquisition and development. The firm has completed over 200 transactions and deployed roughly $10B since inception (per public record). Praedium maintains offices in New York, Los Angeles, and London. The team includes over two dozen professionals across acquisitions, asset management, and legal. In 2023, the firm was active in recapitalizing existing portfolio assets while selectively acquiring distressed office properties in urban cores. The firm does not disclose total AUM. A structural differentiator is Praedium's hybrid profile — it sources capital from its family office base while also co-investing with institutional partners such as pensions and endowments. The firm does not run a blind pool fund, instead committing capital deal-by-deal, which gives it flexibility and alignment with member families.
General information
Firm type
Multi Family Office
Year founded
1991
AUM
$10B+ (Altss estimate)
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
New York
Corporate office
New York, NY, United States
Additional offices
Los Angeles · London
Principals
Russell L. Galbut
Founder & CEO
Michael Swerdlow
Co-Founder
Samuel A. Sutton
Managing Director
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at The Praedium Group?
Russell Galbut serves as Founder and CEO, with Michael Swerdlow as Co-Founder. The firm's investment committee, which includes senior managing directors, approves all deals on a deal-by-deal basis (per public record).
How does The Praedium Group source proprietary deal flow?
The firm sources deals through its network of family office principals, long-standing relationships with institutional partners, and direct outreach to owners of off-market assets. It does not rely on auctions or broker-led processes.
Is The Praedium Group structured as a single family office or does it operate more like a real estate firm?
It is a multi-family office with a core real estate operating platform. The firm deploys capital from the founding families and select co-investors, but its team functions as an active asset manager rather than a passive allocator.
Does The Praedium Group participate in fund commitments or only direct deals?
The firm primarily does direct deals, including joint ventures and co-investments. It does not operate commingled blind pool funds, though it has raised capital for specific projects from institutional partners (per public record).
What investment stages does The Praedium Group typically target?
The firm focuses on opportunistic and value-add strategies, including distressed acquisitions, repositioning, and bridge financing. It targets properties with operational or capital-improvement upside.
Where does the underlying wealth come from?
The firm's capital base comes from the Galbut and Swerdlow families, built through prior real estate development and legal practice in Florida and New York (per public record).
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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