This series goes deep with some of the most compelling figures in commercial real estate: the deal-makers, the game-changers, the city-shapers and the larger-than-life personalities who keep CRE interesting. Cappy Daume made a career switch during a major downturn when she joined Boston-based The Davis Cos. in 2009 and helped launch its first fund. As chief portfolio management officer, she has helped grow the company dramatically since then, raising roughly $1.9B across four funds with another soon to close. The company's portfolio has grown to over 35M SF of commercial space and over 12,000 residential units across 239 properties nationwide. As the office market faces escalating distress, Daume said the firm is "extremely optimistic" about the environment for new acquisitions. "We're back to distressed investing," Daume said. Davis invests across the capital stack, and Daume said distressed opportunities have helped the firm unlock ventures into new markets. In its fifth fund, the company has already begun investing in properties in Georgia, New York and Florida. The company also has 24 distressed or discounted commercial mortgage-backed securities bonds it bought between 2009 and 2013, totaling $374M at face value. The Davis Cos. also made a big splash in its hometown last month when it acquired one of the largest developable sites in the Greater Boston area for $73M. It plans to transform the 100-acre former ExxonMobil tank farm into a major mixed-use project with a focus on the emerging clean tech and tough tech industries. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Bisnow: Can you talk about what your role as chief portfolio management officer entails and what types of things you have been focused on the most in recent months? Daume: Chief portfolio management officer is, I guess, a way of trying to put me in the C-suite, if… Read Full Story | 
