Tanya Pierson, MAI, Senior Managing Director of HVS and based in the Minneapolis office, has conducted market studies, feasibility analyses, and appraisals for over 2,000 hotels and resorts in nearly every U.S. state, as well as Canada and the Caribbean. A featured speaker and panelist at major hotel conferences, she has also lectured at the University of Denver on topical issues in the U.S. lodging market. Tanya graduated from the University of Denver with a degree in Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Management. She is a designated member of the Appraisal Institute (MAI). Contact Tanya at (303) 588-6558 or [email protected].

Justin Westad, a Vice President with HVS Minneapolis, has worked in hotels and hospitality real estate since 2010, having specialized in disposition and advisory services for hotels across 13 states. Prior to joining HVS in 2015, Justin worked for Marcus & Millichap’s National Hospitality Group as an Analyst, providing comprehensive market research, underwriting, and financial analyses for hotel real estate across the Midwest. Justin graduated magna cum laude from the School of Hospitality at DePaul University with a BS in Lodging and Revenue Management. He holds a Certification in Hotel Industry Analytics (CHIA). For more information, contact Justin at [email protected] or (612) 423-4544.

As President of HVS Americas, Rod oversees strategy execution for HVS throughout its 40 Americas locations. Rod’s tenure with HVS spans over 25 years, during which time he has played an important role in growing the company from a few locations across the Americas to 40. In a typical year, Rod’s group consults on over 2,500 existing or proposed hotels and resorts, and in 2021, he oversaw the 568-hotel Extended Stay America appraisal portfolio. In 2003, Rod founded the firm’s sister appraisal division, U.S. Hotel Appraisals, which completes roughly 1,000 hotel appraisals annually. Rod is a founding owner/partner of HVS Mexico-Latin America, and he re-launched the firm’s U.S. Brokerage and Capital Markets division in 2018. Rod is a Designated Member of the Appraisal Institute (MAI) and a licensed real estate broker. Furthermore, Rod is proudly Latino and gay, and his firm is welcoming of all races and colors, sexual orientations, ages, genders, and gender identities. Once associates join HVS, they tend to stay due to the extraordinary culture Rod has inspired, a culture defined by the ideals of balance, connectivity, efficiency, collaboration, honesty, integrity, kindness, and excellence, among others. Rod resides in northern Colorado where he and his husband Jeff are raising their daughter, Rory.