Property expert Sascha Witt joins PLUTA team as Head of Real Estate

Mr Sascha Witt joined PLUTA Management GmbH on 1 April 2024. An expert in residential and commercial property, he will expand PLUTA’s offering in the real estate segment across Germany. The 53-year-old is based in the Hamburg branch office.

In the changed market environment, several real estate companies and project developers have already been thrown into crisis, particularly due to sudden and sharp increases in interest rates, considerably higher construction costs and falling transaction volumes. The number of insolvencies has therefore risen significantly with the PLUTA team supporting several real estate proceedings at this time.

By welcoming Mr Sascha Witt to the team, PLUTA has gained a real estate expert that will further develop the company’s consulting services in its restructuring business in particular. His expertise will help property companies to restructure at an early stage, including dealing with real estate non-performing loans (NPLs).

More than 25 years of real estate experience

As a qualified banker, business management graduate, real estate economist (ebs) and chartered surveyor, Mr Sascha Witt has over 25 years of interdisciplinary expertise in the property sector. Early in his career, he worked at auditing and management consultancy firm Arthur Andersen (subsequently EY), where his tasks included supporting the valuation of property and non-performing loan portfolios and conducting due diligence on real estate transactions. Mr Sascha Witt was at Commerz Real AG prior to joining PLUTA, initially as Head of Real Estate Markets Germany and most recently as Head of Real Estate Asset Management Institutional.

Over the course of his career, Mr Sascha Witt has held numerous senior positions at private equity property owners and investors, open-end and close-end real estate funds, special funds and family offices – always with a focus on asset/portfolio management and transactions. During the financial crisis, he worked for a private equity investor and also assumed a long-term mandate for the restructuring business at the Royal Bank of Scotland. Mr Sascha Witt has been engaged in matters of non-performing loans and restructuring of commercial real estate for many years and been able to gather wide-ranging practical experience. He is therefore well positioned to address the challenges in the property sector currently impacting financing banks, mezzanine lenders and project developers in particular.

Managing director Dr Maximilian Pluta said, “The real estate sector is important for PLUTA. Through Mr Sascha Witt’s expertise and network, we will further expand our consulting business in this industry. We can expect a number of interesting advisory mandates in this area over the coming years.”

With this new addition to its ranks, PLUTA is further pursuing its growth strategy so that it can advise companies with an extensive range of services. Mr Sascha Witt said, “My move to PLUTA is an exciting challenge and I look forward to putting our joint efforts into providing comprehensive advice to real estate companies in crisis. The brand is very well known in the restructuring business and I want to do my part to help shape PLUTA’s expansion.”