Most real estate firms fall into one of two camps: They’re either investment platforms focused on spreadsheets and capital markets, or development companies built on job sites and execution.
JLAM doesn’t play that game.
JLAM is an investment firm shaped by real development experience, bringing together institutional underwriting discipline and operator-level insight. JLAM is all about the “and,” not “either/or,” which directly influences how they evaluate risk and structure capital.
That hybrid perspective is especially important in secondary and tertiary markets, where fundamentally sound projects regularly deal with similar issues: Institutional investors are too large, traditional lenders are too rigid, and the projects in between? They’re left with a capital problem.
JLAM’s private credit strategy is designed specifically for that gap. Through preferred equity, the team provides flexible capital to projects and sponsors that large institutions and banks typically ignore. And because they’ve developed and delivered similar assets themselves, they underwrite with real-world knowledge of cost, timing, design, and execution risk, not just assumptions.
JLAM is led by principals with strong ties to the Mid-Atlantic/Southeast regions and experience that spans development, operations, and institutional finance. Co-founders Doug Motley and Nick Hammonds started their careers at MBNA before choosing to learn real estate from the ground up. They worked on job sites, attended county hearings, managed budgets, and analyzed pro formas to fully understand how value is created—both through investment discipline and strong relationships.
The duo later teamed up with the Lingo family, one of the most respected names in Delaware real estate, with generational landholdings and deep local roots.
When Doug and Nick first launched JLAM, the platform was intentionally modest. The principals were closely involved in everything—sometimes quite literally, pushing a copier down the street, not out of necessity, but because they weren’t afraid to roll their sleeves up and get things done. That mentality wasn’t about doing things the hard way; it was about setting a higher standard and building the right culture from the very beginning.
That foundation is central to how JLAM operates today. The firm invests its own capital alongside partners, approaches every opportunity with an owner’s mindset, and prioritizes clear communication and long-term alignment. Sponsors aren’t just underwritten—they’re chosen carefully, based on shared standards and accountability.
At Havener Capital, we partner with boutique firms that bring a perspective others simply don’t. JLAM’s combination of development-informed underwriting, authentic alignment, and focused execution in overlooked markets is exactly that.
We’re excited to work with the JLAM team as they sharpen their story and connect with investors who value disciplined underwriting grounded in real development experience.
→ Learn more about JLAM and how they’re bringing development-informed discipline to private real estate’s overlooked opportunities.
→ Follow Doug Motley on LinkedIn, where he shares thought leadership.