Steve Master
Owner, Master Development
Eugene, OR 97402
Phone (541) 743-8111
Property Types
Land, Retail, Multi-Family
Markets
Portland
Bio
Steve Master began his investing and development career in January of 1994, developing hundreds of acres of high-end residential estate lots. Mr. Master’s success in this effort derived in large part from in-depth research into county building files dating back into the 1800s. He discovered that many of the lots he was investing in could have their boundaries realigned , in lieu of formal subdividing, because of their arcane legal status. This allowed Mr. Master to overcome zoning changes and other lengthy governmental restrictions to subdividing, and thus made the venture significantly more profitable.
In 2000, Mr. Master created Master Towers which quickly became the largest cell-tower owner and manager in the Pacific Northwest. Mr. Master entered this sector after originally being approached by an international telecom provider about building a tower on a property he owned. In response, Mr. Master saw a prime opportunity for vertical real estate investment and instead built and leased out the tower himself. Through contracts, lease option properties, and a strategic acquisition of towers owned by Portland General Electric, Mr. Master grew Master Towers into a 40-tower operation that sold for more than $10 million in 2003. Despite the high barriers to entry in this field, Mr. Master established and grew the venture by navigating the zoning requirements, securing long-term leases, and orchestrating profitable exits.
After selling Master Towers, Mr. Master continued investing by branching off into commercial, office, and mixed-use real estate, focusing on the redevelopment of properties in proven commercial areas. Mr. Master and his affiliates own two recently completed projects consisting of over 46,000 square feet of retail space. Ground broke for these projects at the height of the real estate boom in 2006. Despite the downward spiral of the economy and the challenges it posed, one location is 100 percent leased and the other is over 85 percent leased. This serves as a strong indication of the desirability of Mr. Master’s retail locations and the resilience of recent development efforts in the face of a challenging economic environment. Over the years, these national and local tenants have flourished under MCM’s hands-on, locally focused management strategy. As commercial real estate continues to suffer, Mr. Master has turned his focus to student housing developments on and near college campuses that are experiencing year after year enrollment growth. This focus is evident in The Orbit, a recently completed boutique student housing project near the University of Oregon campus. Phase one of The Orbit’s construction was completed in August of 2010 and in September 2010 The Orbit was 100 percent leased.
Steve Master lives in Eugene, Oregon with his wife Eliza and two sons. He enjoys the outdoors and is an avid snowboarder. His hobbies also include bike riding and long distance running.
