Lima One Capital Leadership Team
John Warren
Founder & Chairman
John Warren is the founder and Chairman of Lima One Capital, a specialty mortgage finance company. Currently lending in over forty states, the company has grown into one of the largest lenders for residential real estate investors and homebuilders. In 2014, Lima One was recognized as the Fastest Growing Company in SC. The company has raised over $1 billion in capital from institutional investors and has over 80 full-time employees. In addition to his duties at Lima One Capital, John recently participated as a principal in the largest bulk sale of single-family homes in U.S. history, selling over 1,400 rental properties in Atlanta to Blackstone Group LP (BX) for over $100M.
Prior to founding Lima One Capital, John served four years on active duty as an infantry officer in the United States Marine Corps. In March of 2006, he deployed with 3rd Battalion, 8th Marines to Ramadi, Iraq where he spent seven months conducting combat operations against insurgent forces. While deployed, he was decorated for “valor” and “heroic achievement” as he “led a counterattack against insurgents attacking Observation Post Virginia.” In total, he led over 300 combat missions and left the Marine Corps with the Rank of Captain. He speaks regularly on U.S. foreign policy, leadership, and entrepreneurship.
John earned a B.A. from Washington and Lee University and an M.B.A. from New York University’s Stern School of Business. He lives in Greenville with his wife and son. He is an active member of Business Executives for National Security (BENS), Young President’s Organization (YPO), and Downtown Presbyterian. Most recently, he was named to Greenville Business Magazine’s “50 Most Influential” and the Upstate Business Journal’s “The Closer,” for its annual Who’s Who Awards.
Jeffrey G. Tennyson
Chief Executive Officer
Jeff Tennyson joined Lima One Capital as CEO in January 2018. As CEO, Jeff is responsible for the company’s overall business strategy and day-to-day operations. Tennyson brings more than 30 years of financial services leadership, operating and executive experience to the company and has held C-level executive roles at both single-family rental and residential mortgage lenders.
Prior to Lima One, Tennyson served as the President of Clayton Holdings, LLC (a wholly owned subsidiary of Radian Group (NYSE:RDN)) where he served on Radian’s Executive Committee and oversaw the global Mortgage Services business units.
Prior to Radian, Tennyson served as founding Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer for B2R Finance (a Blackstone sponsored company). He also previously held C-level positions at Strategic Growth Bank, EquiFirst Mortgage Corp (a Barclays Bank subsidiary), and Anchor Glass Container Corporation. Tennyson is a Certified Public Accountant and holds a BBA degree from Harding University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
John Thompson
Chief Operating Officer
John Thompson oversees Lima One Capital’s daily operations.
John joined Lima One Capital in 2012 as the Director of Operations where he supervised and directed the underwriting staff and was responsible for all loan closings, construction escrow management, and loan servicing. By 2014 he had assumed his current role where he is responsible for the daily operations of the company which includes over 60 employees. He played a crucial role in the nationwide expansion of the company and the design and implementation of new loan programs.
Prior to joining Lima One Capital, John worked as an operations manager for a defense contracting company. He retired from the United States Marine Corps with 21 years of active duty service, where he was decorated for valor in combat.
Josh Woodward
Chief Financial Officer
As CFO, Josh manages all aspects of the firm’s cash flow, liquidity, and financial reporting. Josh is responsible for the company’s loan servicing and secondary markets activities. He played an integral role in the design and implementation of the Rental30 investor loan program and continues to drive product and capital strategy across the firm.
Prior to joining Lima One Capital, Josh worked for Bank of America’s Enterprise Capital Management Group, where he evaluated and advised on capital investments across the franchise. He was the lead analyst covering the bank’s Home Loans portfolio, representing over $50 Billion in combined assets. He held additional corporate finance roles at Bank of America including positions in Retail Distribution and Supply Chain Management. Prior to that, he worked at Georgia Bank & Trust Company out of Augusta, Georgia.
Josh earned his M.B.A from University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler School of Business, specializing in Corporate Finance, and his B.S. from Clemson University.
Rankin Blair
Managing Director of Operations
Rankin Blair oversees Lima One Capital’s loan production and technology infrastructure.
Rankin joined Lima One Capital in 2013 as an underwriter where he significantly increased the company’s origination volume. By 2014 he had assumed his current role where he is responsible for the entire analyst team. He also played a pivotal role in implementing institutional grade policies and procedures to support Lima One Capital’s continued growth. Additionally, he is responsible for the design and installation of the company’s’ loan origination software, as well as a custom inspection management platform.
Rankin earned a B.S. in financial management from Clemson University. Prior to joining Lima One Capital, he worked as a commercial credit analyst for a global specialty electronics distributor. He also currently serves as a member of the United States Army Reserve.
Trez Moore
Managing Director of Capital Markets
Trez is responsible for positioning Lima One Capital for strong long-term growth through a strategic capital market strategy, oversight of the Company’s mortgage-backed securitization activity and ensuring ongoing liquidity for the Company’s mortgage lending. Moore has over 40 years of experience in capital markets, origination, and risk in both residential and commercial real estate.
He has in-depth knowledge of the primary and secondary mortgage markets, including credit risk and portfolio management, finance, servicing and securitization. He has held positions with Freddie Mac, Cerberus, RBS and Promontory. Moore holds a BA and MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Andrew Shook
Head of Commercial Real Estate Lending
Andrew Shook serves as the Head of Commercial Real Estate Lending. In this new role, Shook is charged with managing large, institutional scale accounts. His product focus will include multifamily properties and single-family portfolios for Lima One. Additionally, Shook will focus on expanding and optimizing Lima One’s national partnerships and strategic relationships across the Company’s lending network.
Shook joins Lima One with a strong industry network and experience in the real estate finance sector, with an emphasis on strategic lending programs. During his 20+ year career he has worked in a variety of markets including New York, London and San Francisco. Shook held positions at Hyperion Capital Management, Bank of America, HSBC Bank USA and Resource America / Resource Capital Corporation. Shook was on the founding management team of Resource Capital Corporation which enjoyed a successful IPO. Most recently, he served as Managing Partner at Bright Light Commercial Real Estate where he focused on a wide variety of commercial real estate financing.
Brian Cauthen
Director of Multifamily Financing
Brian Cauthen serves as the Director of Multifamily Financing. In this role Brian is responsible for developing and maintaining a commercial loan program that fits the needs of real estate investors. Brian is engaged in the day to day management of underwriting and financial analysis of loan submissions, along with looking for macro solutions for growth within a constantly changing lending market.
Brian graduated from Florida State University with a degree in Finance. He started his career as a Commercial Real Estate Underwriting Analyst, followed by positions in equities trading and residential mortgage banking. Prior to Lima One Capital, Brian worked as a Financial Analyst for a conventional and SBA commercial loan portfolio servicer.
Chris Wilhoit
Director of Long Term Financing
Chris Wilhoit is Director of Long Term Finance for Lima One Capital, LLC. In this role, Chris manages daily operations and loan production, designs and implements processes and underwriting procedures, and coordinates with senior management on product development and best practices for the Rental30 loan product. He is also responsible for overseeing quality control and monitoring loan origination trends and productions levels.
Within Lima One Capital, he also assists with hiring, training and development of new employees, company policy and procedure development, and the development and implementation of new loan origination software. He has served in his current role since the launch of the Rental30 loan product in May of 2015. Chris joined Lima One Capital in 2013, and previously held the position of Senior Operations Analyst.
Prior to joining Lima One Capital, Chris graduated from Clemson University in May 2013 with a degree in English Literature and a minor in Economics.
Justin Thompson
Chief Marketing Officer & Director of Inside Sales
Justin Thompson serves as Chief Marketing Officer for Lima One Capital. In his role, Justin oversees the company’s marketing strategy, brand management, creative development, advertising campaigns, and event sponsorships.
Since joining Lima One Capital in 2012, Justin has assisted in the branding of several new investor programs as well as a successful nationwide expansion for the company.
Justin Thompson graduated from The University of Mary Washington with a degree in Political Science.