Advisory Team

Current Responsibility: Ryan Davis serves as Chief Executive Officer at Witten Advisors. In this role, Ryan provides fact-based research, analysis and discussion to help clients formulate their apartment market strategies. This insight informs investment decisions for multifamily development and buy/sell opportunities.

Experience: After completing his Ph.D. program, Ryan joined Witten Advisors as a Senior Economist. Previously, Ryan was Vice President of Royal Bank of Canada’s Capital Markets division where he was responsible for originating, underwriting and closing multifamily and commercial mortgages for inclusion in CMBS pools and for sale to Fannie and Freddie. Before RBC, Ryan was a Director at BMC Capital, a multifamily and commercial mortgage-banking firm.

Industry Involvement: Ryan has been a keynote speaker at industry conferences presents all client updates. He is a member of Urban Land Institute’s (ULI) Multifamily Gold Council, ULI North Texas’ Multifamily Council, ULI North Texas’ Center for Leadership Program, and the National Multifamily Housing Council. Ryan previously served as President of the DFW Association for Business Economics.

Educational Background: Ryan received a Ph.D. degree in Economics from The University of Texas at Dallas and graduated summa cum laude from Sewanee: The University of the South.

Current Responsibility: Ron Witten is Founder of Witten Advisors, a market advisory firm serving apartment developers, investors and lenders nationwide. Since 2001, Witten Advisors has provided quarterly market forecasts and commentary to help owners, investors, developers and lenders make informed decisions on development, acquisitions and dispositions across the nation’s major apartment markets.

Experience: Ron began his career at M/PF Research and served as its president for over 20 years. In that role, Witten led M/PF as the firm became a national leader in apartment market data and market analysis. Ron has been a frequent speaker at the industry’s leading conferences, addressing market conditions and trends as well as emerging demographic forces shaping the apartment markets.

Industry Involvement: Witten has been particularly active in the Urban Land Institute and the National Multifamily Housing Council. He is a past Chairman of ULI’s Multifamily Silver and Gold Councils and is now a member of the Multifamily Green Council at ULI as well as NMHC’s Research Committee. He has also served on the board of Apartment Life, a non-profit that creates a sense of community among residents and staff in apartment properties, and TIER REIT, a NYSE-listed office building REIT.

Educational Background: Ron received a BBA degree in Marketing from Texas Tech University and has completed graduate classes in Statistics and Economics at Southern Methodist University.

Current Responsibility: Erin Phillips, an Associate for Witten Advisors, oversees the database design and report production across the major apartment markets. Her quarterly responsibilities include updating and refining economic, demographic, housing, and apartment metrics for each metro area, ensuring the firm maintains accurate and relevant insights for clients.

Experience: Erin began her career in commercial architecture, accumulating eight years of experience on the design side. She then transitioned to a nine-year career in preconstruction at Hill & Wilkinson General Contractors before joining Witten Advisors in her current role.

Industry Involvement: Erin has been involved in several professional organizations including the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and TEXO, The Construction Association. In 2020, she successfully completed TEXO’s Women Executive Leadership Program. During her time at Hill & Wilkinson, Erin played a key role in establishing and running the Women Break Ground Group (WBG), which is an internal organization of women who are committed to providing support and advocacy for one another. Her exceptional contributions were acknowledged in 2021 when she was recognized by the RHCA as an Outstanding Professional.

Educational Background: Erin received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Texas at Arlington, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Houston.