Who We Are
Braden Cheek | Principal Co-Founder
Braden is an experienced professional in the Commercial Real Estate Industry overseeing the acquisition of over $265 million worth of assets over the past six years. Prior to Criterion he was the Director of Asset Management of a $100 million portfolio at another real estate firm. Braden also specializes in the strategic placement of capital in cash flowing commercial real estate raised from a large network of investors.
Brian Duck | Principal Co-Founder
Brian Duck has a strong business development background in which he has been instrumental in closing over $150 million in commercial transactions including private equity, multi-family housing, and multi-tenant retail. Prior to Criterion he was Global Business Leader at a major supplier to the energy industry and owned an internationally recognized emissions control company that he bought from Chicago, Bridge & Iron, developed, and then sold to Honeywell International.
Joel Thompson | Principal Strategic Partner
Joel is a seasoned commercial real estate professional with 20 years experience in the industry. He co-founded Precision Equity in 2003, a Tulsa based Real Estate Investment Firm with more than $130M in assets under management. Joel’s experience includes brokerage, raising equity, sourcing value add commercial real estate opportunities, sourcing debt and maximizing returns for the investors. Joel joined The Criterion Fund in 2021 as a strategic partner focusing on industry relationships and long term growth initiatives.
Andy Thelen | Principal Director of Capital markets
Andy is a skilled professional in the Commercial Real Estate Industry with a focus on debt and equity placement. Before joining Criterion, Andy led the capital markets department for a national development company; he closed over $200 million in project value for both his company and third-party clients. Andy specializes in sourcing development and acquisition investments across the country and maintaining banking and investor relationships. Andy is focused on building new relationships with developers, investors, and lenders. As well as finding acquisition opportunities for Criterion.
Brian, Braden and Joel are also the hosts of “How to Invest in Commercial Real Estate”, a podcast and YouTube show on how to get started investing into “CRE”.
