Every single one of us has a story, history—and something that really makes us unique from the next person. All of us have goals and ambitions to do what we have wanted from a very young age—and any of us can reach those goals with some determination and dedication. Raanan Katz is someone who had ambitions to become professional basketball player. He achieved that dream when he came to the United States in the 1960’s. He was chosen to train with the Boston Celtics, but then ended up playing with the U.S. All Star team, instead, for a year. He achieved his dream, so it was time to move on to other opportunities. After playing with the All Stars, Mr. Katz decided to reside in the Boston area. With the money he earned from playing basketball he made his first real estate purchase and shortly thereafter he ended up having more than 2,000 apartment units in the greater Boston area.

 

Raanan Katz RK Centers:

In 1979, Raanan Katz decided to expand his operations to Miami—where he had a home since 1974—and make the switch to commercial real estate. He purchased a block of retail stores basically as a hobby investment, but soon enough, he had such a great portfolio in commercial real estate in the South Florida area. He already had an office in the Boston area, but decided that—in 1991—that he would like to open a Miami office and manage his local properties more effectively. While Mr. Katz was pushing forward in the commercial real estate industry, he was also re-establishing his professional relationship with basketball. In fact, in 1986 he became a partner in the Miami Heat expansion. He has also been a Limited Partner of the Heat since 1988 with a goal to continuously develop the team. So he has continued to stay true to his roots in basketball, supporting the sport in every way possible—all while growing his company. Today RK Associates or RK Centers is one of the top commercial real estate companies in the industry, with over 6 million square feet of acquired commercial real estate properties. Not only that, the company is strong and continues to grow because of its conservative borrowing practices, borrowing practices that have ensured that RK Associates remain one of the more stable shopping center operators in the industry. As of January of 2012 RK Associates changed their names to RK Centers because it captures the true vision of what the company does best—acquiring, developing and redeveloping commercial real estate centers.