Who We Are
Universal is a Boston area based privately–held company dedicated to value-added real estate transactions. By focusing on underperforming and undercapitalized assets, Universal’s team can leverage its acquisition, finance, ownership, condo conversion/sales and operational expertise to improve cash on cash returns, below market occupancies, below market rents and operating inefficiencies. With rehab expertise we convert and sell apartments as condominiums, or alternatively, renovate for sustainability, reduced operating costs and overall property repositioning.
As part of Universal's hands on and smart management practices approach in repositioning our resident communities, we added capital improvements to retrofit units or systems to effect substantial water/utility efficiencies and cost savings throughout our portfolio.
In addition to multifamily, Universal owns and operates a significant commercial real estate portfolio consisting of office, and industrial properties.
Stuart R. Levey, President and Chief Executive Officer
President and CEO, Stuart R. Levey founded Universal Properties and its affiliates to act as principal in acquiring underperforming, undervalued apartments and commercial properties and actively manage them to maximize operating cash flow and opportunistically refinance or sell them. Mr. Levey has close to 30 years of real estate experience in all facets of real estate development- property management, bridge lending, financing, producing excellent returns for his private equity investors. Mr. Levey formed a series of partnerships and joint ventures to successfully acquire, reposition, operate and sell over 2,000 apartment units as well as 700,000 sq. ft. of commercial space throughout the United States.
Currently Universal owns and manages nearly 1000 residential units in 7 Markets throughout southern New England. Since 2008, the firm has acquired 577 value added apartments and has constructed 18-units of luxury apartments.
Mr. Levey holds real estate brokerage licenses in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and serves on the boards of directors of several New England based non-profit organizations, including the Tufts-New England Medical Center.
Mr. Levey graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from Northeastern University.
Barbara Tyrrell, Chief Operating Officer
As Chief Operating Officer, Ms. Tyrrell oversees day to day operations of the property management company and 1000 residential units located in 7 markets in southern New England. Since joining Universal in 2008, she has brought innovation and upgraded accounting and property management software operations to support and streamline management, reporting and enhance resident services. As COO, Ms. Tyrrell reports operating and financial data to our lenders, refinances our portfolio and underwrites perspective acquisitions as principals either for value added acquisitions or condo conversions.
Prior to joining Universal, Ms. Tyrrell was Managing Director of a nationally-based real estate investment company. She has extensive experience originating and structuring over 30,000 multifamily apartments in 29 states investing over $2.5B of institutional equity. Most of the equity investors utilized low income, historic, and/or solar energy tax credits
Ms. Tyrrell is a member of the firm's Investment Committee and a member of the Institute of Real Estate Management and received her M.B.A from Simmons Graduate School of Management and a B.S. from Boston University.