Philip Okun

Grabbing the bull by the horns

Philip Okun has been a significant figure in the commercial real estate industry since 1978, when he co-founded Merrill Lynch Realty’s Commercial Division. Between 1986 and 2012, Phil was affiliated with the Polimeni Organization in Garden City, New York, growing the company through new construction and acquisitions, gaining extensive experience in finance, management and development, as well as navigating extensive loan workouts during the early 1990s.

President, CEO, partner

Among his roles at the Polimeni Organization was serving as President of Skyline Management, the property management division of the company, overseeing a team of 15 property managers responsible for a portfolio of 3 million square feet of office buildings and shopping centers throughout the northeast.

Concurrently, as CEO of Polimeni International, Philip partnered with Ron Epstein in planning and executing Polimeni’s bold and pioneering international development program. Together they launched management, leasing and construction offices in Warsaw and Gdynia, and organized the team that saw the development of six major shopping centers.

Founder, director, chairman

During the first decade of the new millennium, Philip was a founding director of Hanover Bank, established amid the headwinds of the 2008 financial crisis. He was instrumental in keeping the bank stable and operating during those challenging early years, helping to grow it into a publicly traded institution with a market capitalization of nearly $150 million. Philip chairs Hanover’s Loan Committee and CRA Fair Lending Committee, and serves on the Compensation and Audit Committees.

Author, broker, dog walker

Phil is the author of two books on real estate, Make Money on Main Street and, most recently, The Back of the Napkin, available in print and digital formats. Licensed to practice real estate in New York and Florida, Phil splits his time between the two.