LEADERSHIP

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Rhett Trees is the Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Compliance Officer at Seneca Capital Partners and its affiliates.  In 2026, Seneca launched SCIRE Fund IV, LP, its 4th Fund in less than 10 years.

From 2013-2017, Rhett was an Equity Partner at Caddis Capital Investments, the sponsor of Trico Fund III, an over-subscribed equity vehicle levered to $75 million, that sold most of the Fund assets to Blackstone in 2019. Trico III qualified as one of the Top 70 Largest Mobile Home Community Owners in the US.  Caddis Capital Investments is a diversified private equity firm with a charter to own and operate income-oriented assets spanning multiple sectors including: mobile home communities, self-storage, student housing and parking assets.  

During 2012, Rhett was a Principal at The True Life Companies, a diversified group of real estate companies whose primary mission was to be the premier provider of lots and land to America’s homebuilders. When he departed, the firm had $100 million invested across 15 projects.  

As the COO at THE PGA TOUR CLUB from 2010-2012, he was responsible for their portfolio of luxury homes, golf courses, resorts and golf academies.  

Spanning 2008-2010, Rhett was a Vice President at 1-800-PACK-RAT, the nation’s 2nd largest mobile self-storage company, where he was actively involved as an investor and a member of the senior management team that orchestrated the multi-million-dollar franchise consolidation and corresponding $92 million strategic sale to Waste Management.  

From 2003-2008, Rhett was one of the first 20 employees at Exclusive Resorts where he was an instrumental sales executive as the company grew from seed-capital to a disposition event with Steve Case, the Founder of AOL. During his tenure, Rhett closed over $100 million in deals and the company grew to $1.4 billion in assets under management.  

Rhett graduated from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University with a double major in Marketing and Entrepreneurial Management. He completed the Real Estate Executive Program at Harvard Business School, the YPO Executive Program at the University of Chicago Booth Business School and finished his overseas studies at the University of London in England. Rhett sits on several for-profit and not-for-profit boards including the Indiana University Real Estate School Advisory Board and Levitt Pavilion. When he’s not working, Rhett is a proud member of YPO and he enjoys fly fishing, scuba diving, cycling, golf and spending time with his wife, Lindsey, and their 2 children.  


 

Paul Luber currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer for Seneca Capital Partners.  His profitable accomplishments span the entire commercial real estate investment cycle including: acquisitions & capital raising; ground-up development & redevelopment of existing properties, leasing & portfolio operations optimization and dispositions across multiple product types including office, retail, industrial, multifamily, senior housing, land, self-storage and mobile home communities. Growing up, Paul worked in the family land development and construction business.  

Spanning from 1981-1993 at Clark Construction, Development Resources Inc. and Radnor Corp. in Washington, DC, Paul managed the development and construction (including field supervision) of large-scale complex, mixed-use urban projects with costs in excess of $200 million. Projects included hotels, office buildings and embassies.  

From 1993-1998 as AVP of Real Estate Investments and Corporate Real Estate at PMA Insurance, Paul repositioned a $70 million portfolio & relocated two headquarters buildings.  

At Ernst & Young from 1998-2001 and Ascent Capital Partners from 2008-2013, Paul successfully organized and led highly effective acquisition due diligence teams for millions of square feet of office & retail and thousands of doors of multifamily units on behalf of private equity and pension funds.  

While a member of NorthMarq Capital and Ascent Capital Partners from 2013-2016, Paul sourced in excess of $100 million of private placement and joint venture equity and originating debt.  

Between 2007 and 2008, as President of Starr Realty, an affiliate of AIG, Paul drove portfolio value optimization efforts which increased the value of a 1.4 million square feet Colorado office and retail portfolio from $110 million to $170 million.  

Paul grew up in Syracuse, NY and he was recognized for academic achievements while earning Bachelor degrees in Architecture, Structural Engineering and a Masters in Commercial Real Estate. His professional credentials have included registered Professional Engineer (Structural), licensed Real Estate Broker and FINRA securities licenses for real estate private placements (expired). In his free time, Paul enjoys alpine & backcountry skiing, hiking and spending time in the high country with his wife April and his son Daniel, a professional based in Europe.

Stephanie Scherpenseel is the Chief Financial Officer for Seneca Capital Partners and its affiliates. With over 15 years industry experience, she actively leads all aspects of accounting and financial reporting for Seneca.  

Prior to joining Seneca, Stephanie was the COO/CFO for Caddis Capital Investments, a diversified, private equity firm focused on income producing investments, including the acquisition and management of manufactured housing communities. In addition to her finance and accounting responsibilities, Stephanie also managed investor relations and due diligence. In 2019, Stephanie actively participated in the sale of Caddis’ Trico Fund III assets to Blackstone.

Early in her career, Stephanie was the founder of a successful accounting practice serving clients in the private equity, energy and technology industries. During this time, Stephanie also worked with two regional CPA firms providing auditing services for not-for-profit and small businesses. 

Before starting her own business, Stephanie worked for Woodward Clyde Consultants, an environmental engineering firm. Stephanie led Woodward Clyde’s accounting department during a significant growth phase culminating in the successful sale of the company to URS, a worldwide environmental engineering company listed on the NYSE. 

Prior to Woodward Clyde, Stephanie worked for various oil and gas firms including Apache Corporation and Western Energy Development.

Stephanie is a licensed CPA in the State of Colorado and a fellow member of the Colorado Society of CPAs. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Colorado State University and a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Regis University where she graduated Magna Cum Laude. 

Stephanie supports various not-for-profit organizations and served on the board of The Gathering Place. She is married to Chris Scherpenseel and has two adult children. 

Matthew Kappler serves as Executive Vice President of Asset Management at Seneca Capital Partners and its affiliates.

Prior to joining Seneca, Matthew was Vice President of Asset Management at YES Communities, one of the largest Manufactured Housing operators in the United States. Matthew rebuilt and led the firm's finance, asset management, and data analytics functions, serving as the key driver of YES's data-driven site and home pricing strategies and overseeing the company's strategic investment into thousands of new homes annually. 

Matt is adept at collaborating with operations leaders to drive NOI growth and portfolio value through disciplined capital allocation and revenue-focused initiatives, with a proven ability to translate complex financial and operational performance into clear narratives for management teams, investors and boards alike.

Earlier in his career, Matthew advised clients on M&A and capital markets transactions as part of the KeyBanc Capital Markets Real Estate Investment Banking team, and prior to that served federal agency clients including the U.S. Treasury and Department of Agriculture as a management consultant at FI Consulting.

Matthew earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Kent State University, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude and at the top of his class in the College of Business. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation. When he's not working, Matthew enjoys spending time with his wife, Katie, and their young son.

Mike Askins serves as the Executive Vice President of Acquisitions and Capital Projects at Seneca Capital Partners and its affiliates. 

Mike brings over 15 years of institutional real estate experience spanning acquisitions, development, capital project management and asset management across the Manufactured Housing (“MH”) and multifamily sectors.

Prior to joining Seneca, Mike served as Vice President of Acquisitions and Capital Projects at YES Communities, one of the largest private owners of Manufactured Housing Communities in the United States. During his nine years there, he led the acquisition of over $2 billion in MH communities; built and led the development group which completed nearly 20 expansion projects totaling over 1,000 sites; and delivered two resort-style, ground-up developments in Florida and Texas. He also led the Capital Projects team which was responsible for budgeting and managing construction projects across the YES portfolio. 

Before entering the Manufactured Housing sector, Mike spent nearly a decade at AIMCO Apartment Homes, a publicly traded multifamily REIT, where he rose from Senior Financial Analyst to Director of Transactions. In that capacity, he led a $200M+ ground-up development in Boston and acquired over $1B in new communities.

Mike earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Corporate Finance and Investments from Colorado State University. He lives in Denver, Colorado, where he spends his time with family, getting outdoors and woodworking in his home shop.