Team

George Bunch, Acquisitions Analyst

George is an Acquisitions Analyst at Cohen Investment Group (CIG). His responsibilities consist of underwriting and evaluating new commercial real estate investment opportunities.

Prior to joining CIG, George owned and operated a general contracting residential remodeling company for 6 years. Before owning his own business, he spent 8 years as a commercial loan analyst/portfolio manager at Gateway Bank.

In addition to his professional experience, George majored in accounting at James Madison University. He was also born and raised in Hampton Roads, VA.

Tinalea Hamilton, Office Manager

Tinalea joins Cohen Investment Group with years of administrative and office management experience. Prior to joining CIG, Tinalea worked for an international luxury yacht brokerage firm and managed their Newport, RI office where she oversaw every purchase and sale from start to finish. Tinalea will manage the corporate office and assist in day-to-day activities. She is a graduate of the College of Charleston’s business school. In her free time, Tinalea enjoys spending time with her family and playing tennis.

Anne B. Vincelette, Investor Relations & Marketing Associate

Anne is an Investor Relations and Marketing Associate at Cohen Investment Group (CIG). She assists in communications with the investor clientele, marketing and public relations initiatives, and administrative tasks.

Before joining CIG, Anne worked as a real estate paralegal, where she oversaw settlements from start to finish. She also interned at Atlantic Bay Mortgage Group in the Business Development department, aiding in market outreach. Anne graduated from the University of Virginia in May of 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in English literature. She is excited to foster a career in commercial real estate finance at CIG.

Anne was born and raised in Virginia Beach, VA. She is an avid equestrian and spends her free time caring for the animals on her family’s farm in the Pungo neighborhood of Virginia Beach.

Hugh D. Cohen, President

Cohen Investment Group was formed in December 2013 by Hugh D. Cohen, CCIM, SIOR, creating a commercial real estate investment, acquisition, mezzanine lending and real estate services company headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia. While his interests involve all facets of the business, his primary role is directing investor relations along with debt, equity initiatives and procurement.

Prior to launching Cohen Investment Group, Mr. Cohen served as Vice President of Commercial Leasing & Sales at Harbor Group International from February 2001 through August 2013, where he assisted in helping the company grow its commercial portfolio from $750 million to over $4 billion in market cap value. Mr. Cohen completed over $500 million in leasehold and sale transactions for Harbor Group International. He also invested in various company sponsored real estate including: office, office flex, and multi-family investments throughout North America and the United Kingdom.

Mr. Cohen takes the time to sit on various community boards, committees and associations, including but not limited to: Hampton Roads Association of Commercial Real Estate (HRACRE), United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, Greater Norfolk Corporation, and the Downtown Norfolk Council.
Mr. Cohen has also earned dual designation of Certified Commercial Investment Manager (CCIM) and Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR). Approximately ten (10) commercial brokers currently hold both designations in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Mr. Cohen also holds a Bachelor of Science in Education from Old Dominion University.

Brian E. Boehmcke, Chief Operating Officer

CIG‘s Chief Operating Officer Brian E. Boehmcke came to CIG with a background in asset management, transactions, analysis, financial reporting, operational performance and architecture. Prior to joining forces with Cohen Investment Group in March 2014, Mr. Boehmcke was with Harbor Group International since 2004, where he was responsible for the profitability and return on investment for a significant portion of Harbor Group’s portfolio of commercial real estate that grew to over $4 billion cap value during his tenure. He led teams of property management personnel responsible for over $100 million in annual revenue and over $50 million in net operating income in achieving the investment objectives. Mr. Boehmcke directed third party leasing agents and was actively involved in negotiating all leases at the properties resulting in over 3 million square feet of leasing with an aggregate value of over $300 million. Prior to joining Harbor Group, Mr. Boehmcke was with Cushman & Wakefield in New York City for 12 years.

Mr. Boehmcke serves as a member of the Board of Directors and Chair of its Building Committee for The Hurrah Players, Virginia’s leading family theater company. He also has served as Committee Chair for a local Boy Scout Troop.

Mr. Boehmcke earned a Masters of Science in Real Estate Investment & Development from New York University and a Bachelors of Science in Architecture from the University of Virginia. He has also taught real estate asset management as an adjunct professor at New York University.

Joel T. Flax, Executive VP & CFO

Joel Flax is CIG’s Executive Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer with an extensive background in real estate. Prior to joining Cohen Investment Group in July 2016, Mr. Flax was a partner and the Virginia Real Estate Leader for Dixon Hughes Goodman, LLP (now known as FORVIS) as well as a firm-wide resource on matters related to real estate and associated tax consequences. Mr. Flax has a wealth of experience related to tax deferred exchanges, cost segregation studies, affordable housing tax credit, land conservation credits, cash flow analysis, financial projections, debt and equity financing, and entity formation. Mr. Flax has more than forty-five (45) years of accounting, tax, and management experience.

Active in both professional and civic organizations, Mr. Flax is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants, was the former Chairman of the AICPAC Real Estate Conference Committee, President of Beth El Temple Foundation, and retired board member of HRACRE. Mr. Flax was also twice recognized as a super CPA by Virginia Business Magazine and has also been nominated for the 2022 Virginia CFO Award.

Mr. Flax plays an integral role in analyzing properties, implementing cost segregation studies, working with third party property management on the day-to-day, quarterly, and annual accounting, as well as working with CIG’s accounting vendors on year-end accounting procedures and investor K1’s.

Mr. Flax is a graduate of the College of William and Mary.

Basil Hallberg, VP, Commercial & Multifamily Acquisitions

Basil Hallberg joins Cohen Investment Group (CIG) as Vice-President, Acquisitions (Commercial). Basil’s primary responsibilities will include sourcing new investment opportunities and growing CIG’s portfolio of self-storage, office/flex, and industrial assets throughout the Southeastern United States.

Prior to joining CIG, Basil was a Project Manager with Ryan Homes and was responsible for single family development and community building. Preceding his work at Ryan Homes, Basil was a Senior Financial Analyst with Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer’s Capital Markets Group, where he provided detailed financial analysis and underwriting of various asset types throughout the Carolinas and Virginia.

Before joining the Thalhimer team in Richmond, Basil worked as a Senior Associate at the Urban Land Institute (ULI), a nonprofit education and research institute that focuses on issues of land use, real estate and urban development. While with ULI, he worked on a number of vital projects, notably the Emerging Trends in Real Estate, the ULI/EY Real Estate Consensus Forecast, and the Mainland China Cities Survey. Prior to his work with ULI, Basil, who is a native of Richmond, was an essential member of the Thalhimer team in Virginia Beach. Basil holds Masters of Urban and Regional Planning and B.S. in Finance from Virginia Tech.

Susan E. Owens, Corporate Accounts Manager

Mrs. Owens brings over 20 years of property management and office management experience. Prior to coming on board with Cohen Investment Group, she managed the office of another Commercial Real Estate brokerage firm for over 17 years. She is also a paralegal and assists with entity formation, contract drafting along with investor correspondence. Her key responsibility is to manage the corporate office and to assist in its day-to-day activities.

Ian Brown, Asset Manager

Ian Brown joined CIG in 2022 as an Asset Manager with nearly a decade of varied experience in the real estate industry.

Prior to joining CIG, Ian served as the Acquisitions Director for Offerpad in Austin, TX, where he managed the valuation and acquisition process of residential assets in the Austin-metro. He was also a Property Tax Consultant with Texas Protax and managed a portfolio of over 1,000 commercial accounts including industrial, medical, multi-family, retail, and storage and in excess of 2,000 residential and land accounts. He prepared and defended property tax appeals as well as participating in arbitrations and litigation when traditional remedy was insufficient. He started in real estate as a Sales Associate with Patrick Brown, Real Estate Consultant Inc., his family’s once-boutique real estate consulting firm specializing in Appraisal, Sales and Property Tax dispute resolution.

Ian is a proud Baylor MBA, but will always cheer on the Texas Longhorns, his undergraduate alma mater.