UIA Team

Abigail Urban

Founder and Principal

Abbie Urban is the Founder and Managing Director of Urban Investment Advisors, Inc. (“UIA”). She oversees the firm’s investment strategy and portfolio construction and is a member of the firm’s Investment Committee. She has over 30 years of experience in real estate, including 14 years of development and asset management experience and 20 years in the investment advisory business. 

Abbie started her real estate career in 1989 in retail shopping center development. In 1994, she joined Metropolitan Asset Advisors (“MAA”) and for the next 10 years was directly responsible for the asset management of diverse commercial real estate portfolios totaling over $1 billion.

In 1999, Abbie and the MAA team began creating diversified, institutional-style real estate portfolios for two Northern California family offices. In 2005, Abbie co-founded Metropolitan Real Estate Advisors with two other individuals to engage exclusively in this strategy. In 2014, Abbie formed Urban Investment Advisors (a registered investment advisor) in order to provide services directly to her clients.

Between 1999 and 2025, Abbie placed over $1.9 billion in real estate investments on behalf of UIA and predecessor firm clients.

Abbie graduated from Stanford University, earning a BA with distinction in Political Science and Quantitative Economics. While away from her desk, Abbie enjoys paddle boarding on Lake Tahoe and backcountry skiing.

Rachel Urban

Director of Investments

Rachel is responsible for sourcing, underwriting, and portfolio management of investments. Since joining UIA in 2021, she has been involved in over $900 million of transactions and has served on the firm’s Investment Committee since 2023.

Prior to joining UIA, Rachel was a commercial real estate appraiser at the largest private appraisal firm in the Pacific Northwest, where she performed complex valuations across all major property types for use in loan underwriting, eminent domain acquisitions, transaction support, and litigation. She also interned with UIA (then Metropolitan Real Estate Advisors) in 2014.

Rachel graduated from the University of Washington with degrees in Economics and Political Science and was the Captain of the Alpine Ski Team.

Currently, Rachel lives in Seattle, Washington. She served as the Executive Director of the Northwest Collegiate Ski Conference (NWCSC) from 2020 to 2026 and is currently a Category 1 competitive cyclist.

Jennifer Harries-Jones

Administrative and Operations Manager

Jennifer joined UIA in 2019, and is responsible for operations and administration.

Prior to joining UIA, Jennifer managed operations at an energy investment fund and an insurance brokerage firm, and was EA to the CEO of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group.

Jennifer has a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Indiana University. She lives and works in Marin County in California.