Leadership.
Experience across acquisitions, capital, transaction execution, and property operations.
Leadership team
Orlando Patrick
Managing Principal
Orlando Patrick serves as Managing Principal of Palmara Group LLC, a real estate private equity firm focused on urban infill acquisitions and development across major metropolitan markets. With over 27 years of real estate experience, Palmara maintains an active investment presence in Atlanta, Chicago, and Jamaica, with experience across multifamily, mixed use, hospitality, and residential assets.
Orlando leads the firm’s investment strategy, capital structuring, major strategic relationships, and long term growth initiatives. His focus includes identifying new investment opportunities, developing capital and joint venture relationships, establishing portfolio strategy, and guiding the continued expansion of the Palmara platform across its target markets.
Before entering real estate, Orlando built a distinguished career in competitive athletics. He attended the North Dakota School of Math and Science, where he was an All American basketball player and was later inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 2017. He continued his athletic career at Western Illinois University as an All Conference NCAA Division I basketball player, where he majored in Business Administration with a concentration in real estate finance.
Following college, Orlando received NBA tryout opportunities with the Milwaukee Bucks and Atlanta Hawks before playing professional basketball in Madrid, Spain and the Dominican Republic.
Following athletics, Orlando transitioned into real estate investment and private capital, applying the discipline, preparation, and execution mindset developed through high level sports to building and scaling the Palmara platform. He later completed a certificate in Hospitality Management from Florida Atlantic University, further expanding his expertise in boutique hotel and resort investment.
Michael Ricketts
Managing Principal
Michael Ricketts serves as Managing Principal of Palmara Group LLC, where he leads day to day acquisition execution, transaction leadership, broker and seller relationships, due diligence coordination, and operating strategy across the firm’s target markets.
Active in real estate since 2000, Michael brings more than two decades of experience across commercial brokerage, multifamily development, property operations, adaptive reuse, and boutique hospitality. He plays a central role in evaluating opportunities, negotiating transactions, coordinating property level execution, and advancing acquisitions from initial sourcing through closing.
Michael’s background includes a tenure with Related Companies, one of the world’s premier real estate development organizations, where he worked across multifamily communities with a focus on leasing strategy, operational performance, and property management leadership. His responsibilities also included training and supporting property management teams across the platform.
He later served as a commercial broker with @properties, specializing in acquisitions and lease up, further developing his experience in transaction execution, owner relationships, and commercial real estate strategy.
Michael’s direct ownership and development experience spans affordable housing, adaptive reuse, ground up multifamily development, midsized apartment buildings, and boutique hotel ownership in Jamaica. His market experience includes Chicago, Atlanta, St. Louis, and the Caribbean.
As Managing Principal, Michael works closely with Palmara’s acquisition, capital, and operating teams while representing the firm with property owners, brokers, lenders, capital partners, and other transaction counterparties.
Bennett Hayes
Managing Director
Bennett Hayes serves as Managing Director of Palmara Group. He directs daily execution across acquisitions, capital relationships, and portfolio operations, carrying decisions from commitment through close. He is the firm’s point of coordination for lenders, brokers, and operating partners, overseeing the flow of deals, documents, and follow through that keeps the platform moving.
Bishop Grant
Chief Investment Officer
Bishop Grant serves as Chief Investment Officer of Palmara Group LLC, where he leads the firm’s investment strategy, capital structuring, and portfolio underwriting across all target markets. He brings 25 years of real estate and private equity experience spanning both the United Kingdom and the United States.
A Cambridge University graduate, Bishop built his career at several prominent private equity firms in London before relocating to the United States to expand his investment focus into the American real estate market. His background spans acquisitions, capital markets, and investment analysis across multifamily, mixed use, and commercial asset classes.
At Palmara Group, Bishop is responsible for evaluating acquisition opportunities, structuring capital partnerships, and overseeing the investment underwriting process that drives the firm’s disciplined growth strategy.
Sage Foster
Head of Asset Management
Sage Foster serves as Head of Asset Management at Palmara Living LLC, the asset management and property operations division of Palmara Group. She oversees the day to day performance of Palmara’s residential and mixed use portfolio, with direct responsibility for leasing operations, tenant relations, maintenance oversight, and NOI optimization.
Sage manages the firm’s property management pipeline from tenant screening and intake through lease execution and ongoing portfolio operations. Her focus on operational efficiency and tenant experience ensures that each asset in Palmara’s portfolio performs at its highest potential from acquisition through stabilization and long term hold.