John Nelson
Founder and CEO
John Nelson founded Paragon Realty Group LLC in 1986. He serves as Chief Executive Officer and has nearly 40 years of experience in commercial real estate. In the years before Paragon, John practiced law in the real estate department of New York law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton and Garrison.
John received his BA and BS in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania in 1978, followed by a JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and MBA in Finance from the Wharton School, both in 1982. He has also taught accounting at Wharton.
John now resides in Bridgehampton, NY, after 30 years with his family in Westport, where Paragon is based.
David Wright, CPM
President
David Wright has 35 years of experience in real estate management, brokerage, and development. His broad background extends beyond leasing and property management to include construction, financing, and business management.
Prior to joining the Paragon team in 1999, David was based in Columbus, Ohio, where he was a senior manager at two full-service real estate firms. He oversaw operations and managed accounts for clients such as Mutual of New York, Equitable Real Estate Investment Management, and private equity portfolios both large and small.
David received a BS in Business and Marketing from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He has held the designation of Certified Property Manager® since 1997, is a licensed real estate broker, and is an active member of the International Council of Shopping Centers and Institute of Real Estate Management.
Daniel Weinreb
Managing Principal
Daniel Weinreb brings 32 years of acquisition, development, financing, and leasing experience to Paragon. Prior to joining the team in 1999, Danny was instrumental in the assembly and redevelopment of nearly one million square feet of retail properties for his former firm, where he was Senior Vice President. He has worked as a real estate broker in New York and has been responsible for the redevelopment, leasing, and management of another two-million-square-foot portfolio.
Danny graduated summa cum laude from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a past chairman of the Real Estate Executives Division of the UJA-Federation and served for three years on the Board of Governors of the Young Men’s/Women’s Real Estate Association of New York. He is currently a member of Beta Gamma Sigma, the International Business Honor Society.
Benjamin Snead, CPA
Chief Financial Officer
Benjamin Snead is a certified public accountant with over 30 years of experience in real estate and accounting. Before joining Paragon, Ben worked in lease-auditing and represented major corporations in complicated lease negotiations, primarily regarding disputes over monetary matters.
Ben has lectured on several occasions about lease clauses, both at in-house corporate seminars and accounting conferences. He also served three years on the Real Estate Committee of the New York State Society of CPAs, where he was co-chair of the annual Real Estate Accounting and Taxation Conference.
Ben received his BS in Accounting from the State University of New York at Binghamton. He later earned his CPA certificate while practicing accounting in Manhattan, and is a longstanding member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
Adam Nelson
Vice President, Acquisitions
Adam Nelson joined Paragon in 2020. As Vice President, he is primarily responsible for sourcing and underwriting acquisition opportunities, and leasing properties across the portfolio. He also plays an integral role in asset dispositions and financing efforts.
Previously, Adam spent 8 years as a broker at Cushman & Wakefield, where he leased office, retail and industrial properties in New York City. He represented both tenants and landlords, completing over 2 million square feet of transactions in his tenure.
Adam received his BA from the University of Michigan and has a master’s degree in Real Estate Finance from the Schack Institute of Real Estate at New York University. He is an active member of ICSC.