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Award-Winning Residential Real Estate Developer / Planner (20+ years)
Since 2003, RJ Hernandez has established himself as a leader in the residential real estate development and construction industry. Over the past 15 years, RJ has worked with Fortune 500 real estate investment firms, managing projects with assets exceeding $1.1 Billion. In this career, he has outperformed industry entitlement timelines by 38.7% and consistently got Building Approvals in 2-3 plan checks, faster than industry average. He is the Best Selling Author of the Land Planner's & Developers Guidebook and several other books.
A Southern California native, RJ has lived and worked throughout Southern California. This firsthand experience provides him with an in-depth understanding of the region's diverse real estate markets. Passionate about real estate as an art and a science, RJ is driven by a competitive spirit and a sharp eye for detail, allowing him to anticipate and adapt to evolving market conditions.
Today, when not negotiating deals or designing homes, he dedicates time to mentoring youth and advocating for education reform. His vision is a better world for everyone, made up of self-empowerment, kindness and respect. He enjoys mentorship, salsa dancing, travel, reading non-fiction, writing, and spending quality time with his two daughters. He lives in Newport Beach, CA.
Award-winning, results-driven expert in residential real estate developments with 20+ years mastering land acquisition, investment, land planning, entitlements, design, regulatory compliance (CEQA), and construction. Experience & technical knowledge spans entitlements, acquisitions, land development & building construction for thousands of residential units, subdivisions, & amenities (Single Family & Multi-Family Homes). Through the years, has consistently secured Planning/Engineering/Building Dept. approvals within 2–3 review cycles through own direct, methodical quality control review of plans/comments, efficient budget stewardship of budgets ranging from $4MM–$20MM, and effectual critical path scheduling for up to approx. 20 complex projects at a time. The track record is proven in building agency trust, de risking projects, establishing standards & project trackers, and AI-integrations to drive cadence, speed, communication, strategy, & management toward business plan metrics.
Career built on intentional cross training, seeking mentors, & developing a greater understanding of the perspectives of co-stakeholders. This has been key toward broadening capability and value creation. Enjoyment of solving entitlement puzzles, standardizing product, & aligning stakeholders to move deals and projects forward. Operating philosophy: adopt best practices, solidify & outwork expectations, and build positive working relationships. Learned directly from leaders at Centex, K. Hov, KB, Richmond American, LGI, Century, from some of the industry's best operators.
Author of Land Planner’s & Developer’s Guidebook.
Forward Planning & Entitlements: CEQA compliance; tentative maps; specific plans; conditions of approval; plan check coordination; final map approval; plotting; public hearing presentations
Land Development & Construction: Oversight of horizontal improvements & offsite improvements; dry/wet utility coordination; points of connection verification; inspector coordination; bond exoneration
Acquisitions & Due Diligence: Site feasibility; entitlements risk identification/mitigation; underwriting inputs; schedule & budget creation; municipal & seller engagement; corporate investment presentations
Project Operations: Multi‑project portfolio management of up to 20 at a time; Project sizes have ranged from 55-1045 lots (avg. 250 lots); Established & enforced Standard Operating Procedures, including architectural, landscape & improvement plan standards, toward consistency & efficiency
Project Controls: Created project/priority tracking systems managing toward business plan metrics & communicative reporting; Management of regular Division staff meetings; Utilization of MS Excel & Outlook workflows (email/calendar/notes, categories/flags)
Product & Site Design Leadership: Site planning, comprehensive reviews of architectural designs, civil engineering improvement plans & landscape architecture to value engineer, constructability review, conflict avoidance, & align elements with the market & the City
Special Districts & Financing: CFD formation & annexations; SCIP coordination; agency negotiations
Procurement & Vendor Management: Scopes of work; RFPs/solicitation; bid analysis; contracting/award; scheduling/managing: civil & soils engineers, landscape architects, LD subcontractors, vendors
Government, Stakeholder & Community Relations: City/county/state/federal agency coordination; school districts & utilities; HOA interactions & property management
Regulatory & Legal Documentation: DRE & FHA approvals; public report & disclosure packages; CC&Rs development; conditions tracking from start to project closeout
Leadership & Teaming: Department leadership of 6 at a time; hiring & coaching incl. underperformers
Relationships: Established trusted relationships with governing agencies and municipalities, including the Cities of Menifee, Riverside, Wildomar, Jurupa Valley, San Jacinto and more.
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE
2003
BACHELORS OF ARTS, SOCIOLOGY
Commencement Speaker
Accepted to Honors Program
Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society
Golden Key International Honor Society
UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX, ENGLAND
2001-2002
STUDY ABROAD PROGRAM
FOCUS ON BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
Limited‑availability consulting for owners/operators to move faster on plan check QC, governmental affairs, document generation/review, value engineering, and entitlements.