Preserving Capital Through Disciplined Investment
A privately owned proprietary capital firm focused on real estate and special situations across Florida. We invest our own balance-sheet capital alongside aligned high-net-worth families and family offices.
Investment Mandate
Our philosophy is grounded in capital preservation and cycle resilience. Every project begins with downside analysis — ensuring yield and liquidity optionality even under stressed conditions.
Core Markets
Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Tampa, Orlando, Naples, Jacksonville
Ticket Size
USD $1–25 million per transaction
Target IRR
12–18% unlevered or low leverage
Strategy Profile
Core-Plus and Value-Add
Hold Period
2–7 years with flexibility
Asset Focus
Single-family homes, lots, infill developments
Single-Family Homes
Build-to-rent and fix-to-core strategies in high-growth Florida submarkets with strong demographic tailwinds.
Residential Lots
Finished and paper lots with entitlement optionality, staged releases, and builder relationships.
Special Situations
Distressed sellers, note purchases, partner recapitalizations, and asset-level restructuring.
Services for Family Offices
We provide comprehensive investment and asset management services tailored to the unique needs of high-net-worth families and family offices.
Co-Investment & Club Deals
Joint ventures where Florida Trust Group originates, underwrites, and operates projects; families invest alongside the firm with full transparency.
Separate Accounts
Customized mandates for families seeking direct exposure to Florida real estate with defined return and liquidity goals.
Land & Lot Aggregation
Acquisition and management of entitled land with staged releases to builders or developers.
Special Situations
Asset-level or capital-structure restructuring for underperforming projects, note purchases, and workouts.
Asset Management
MOR-style reporting, disciplined accounting, and integrated data for tax, legal, and estate planning coordination.
Family Office Partnerships
Seamless integration with existing family office infrastructure — custodians, attorneys, and advisors.
Heritage & History
Florida Trust Group traces its brand lineage to a century of private land syndicates, real-estate trusts, and family investment offices that helped shape Florida's property markets.
Though modernized for today's proprietary capital structure, the Group's heritage draws from the disciplined ethos of early Florida land investors and banking families whose prudence and stewardship endured through multiple cycles.
Early Foundations
Atlantic & Gulf Land Trust Company
The story begins with Atlantic & Gulf Land Trust Company, a private syndicate established in 1905 in Jacksonville by a consortium of railroad financiers and citrus investors. The trust focused on high-ground acreage near rail lines and port corridors, emphasizing cash-flowing groves and residential plats rather than speculative swampland.
By the 1920s, the partnership evolved into Gulf-Atlantic Development Corporation. When the Great Miami Hurricane of 1926 struck, the syndicate's conservative underwriting—favoring elevation and proximity to transport routes—proved decisive for survival.
Mid-Century Resilience
Southern Realty & Trust Estate Company
Through the post-war boom, the company operated quietly under the Southern Realty & Trust Estate Company banner, financing subdivisions and providing land loans to returning veterans. In the 1950s, it partnered with regional banks to deliver small-lot developments across Broward and Lee County, anticipating the suburban expansion that defined modern Florida.
By the 1970s, its holdings were rolled into Peninsula Land & Finance Company, maintaining an emphasis on debt discipline and inter-generational asset preservation.
Modernization & Institutional Transition
Peninsula Land & Finance Company
The group shifted toward single-family rental portfolios, build-to-core projects, and early master-planned communities near Orlando and Tampa. Its low-leverage approach allowed it to weather the real-estate recessions of 1987 and 1991 without distress.
Reorganization under Proprietary Capital
Florida Trust Group LLC
In 2006, amid Florida's housing-cycle inflection, a group led by Rafael Benavente, together with Salomon Special Situations Group and a consortium of distressed-asset investors, acquired the legacy structure. The transaction recapitalized the company as Florida Trust Group LLC, preserving its historic name while instituting a modern proprietary-capital model.
The new ownership injected analytical rigor drawn from institutional credit and special-situations backgrounds, blending private-equity discipline with family-office discretion. This reorganization positioned the firm to capitalize on post-2008 opportunities, purchasing undervalued assets below replacement cost and restoring the heritage focus on prudence, stewardship, and value creation.
Today
Florida Trust Group operates as a privately owned proprietary capital platform, investing across single-family homes, property lots, infill developments, and real-estate special situations throughout Florida. The company continues its century-old mission:
"Stewarding Florida Land and Family Capital Since 1905."
Governance & Alignment
Florida Trust Group maintains strict governance principles to ensure alignment with our partners and the preservation of capital.
Invests proprietary capital first in every transaction
Conducts third-party underwriting and valuation before commitment
Avoids high leverage and maintains liquidity coverage
Provides quarterly reporting and full transparency to co-investors
Organizational Culture
Florida Trust Group combines old-world discretion with modern analytics.
Our team brings backgrounds in real estate development, capital markets, and private banking — blending the prudence of private ownership with institutional-grade process.
The culture is quiet, analytical, and partnership-driven, focusing on outcomes rather than promotion.
Mission Statement
"To preserve and grow family capital through disciplined real estate investment in Florida — where prudence, patience, and partnership define performance."
Partner With Us
We work with a select group of aligned family offices and high-net-worth individuals. If you're interested in learning more about our investment approach, we'd be pleased to connect.
General Inquiries
info@floridatrustgroup.comInvestment Partnerships
partnerships@floridatrustgroup.comFlorida Trust Group operates on a confidential basis. All inquiries are handled with discretion.