UIA Team

Abigail Urban

Founder and Principal

Ms. Urban is the Founder and Managing Director of Urban Investment Advisors, Inc. (“UIA”). She is responsible for sourcing and evaluating investment opportunities, developing and managing client portfolios, and directing UIA’s overall strategy. 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.

Ms. Urban 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 2000, Ms. Urban and the MAA team began creating diversified, institutional-style real estate portfolios for two Northern California high net worth families. In 2005, Ms. Urban co-founded Metropolitan Real Estate Advisors with two other individuals to engage exclusively in this strategy. In 2014, Ms. Urban formed Urban Investment Advisors (a registered investment advisor) in order to provide services directly to her clients.

Between 2010 and 2019, Ms. Urban placed over $520 million in real estate investments through 256 individual transactions on behalf of current UIA clients. She has provided consulting or other advisory services on an additional $2.5 billion in real estate assets during that same period.

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

Rachel Urban

Director of Investments

Rachel joined UIA in 2021, and is responsible for investment due diligence, overseeing valuations, and manager relations. Rachel has been a member of the investment committee since 2023.

Prior to joining UIA, Rachel was a commercial real estate appraiser at McKee Appraisal, the largest private CRE appraisal firm in the Pacific Northwest. At McKee, Rachel solved complex appraisal problems across a variety of real estate sectors. These valuations were used for loan underwriting, eminent domain, deal facilitation, and litigation.

Rachel graduated from the University of Washington in 2017 with majors in Economics and Political Science, and was the Captain of the UW Ski Team. She previously interned with UIA (then Metropolitan Real Estate Advisors) in 2014.

Currently, Rachel lives and works in Seattle, WA. She is a competitive cyclist ranked Category 1 at the national level, and serves as the executive director of the Northwest Collegiate Ski Conference (NWCSC).

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.