Kathy Corton

Kathy Corton is the Co-Head of Saluda Grade Commercial Real Estate (CRE) with over 30 years of leadership experience in the commercial real estate credit industry.  Ms. Corton joined Saluda Grade in June 2025 following its acquisition of Hillcrest Finance, the firm she founded in 2013, where she served as Co-Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer. At Hillcrest, she helped shape investment strategy and oversaw sourcing, origination, underwriting, and debt asset management. In addition to her role at Saluda Grade, Ms. Corton also serves as the co-managing partner for the legacy Hillcrest Finance LLC business; in that role she shares responsibility for Hillcrest portfolios and separate accounts. Before founding Hillcrest, Ms. Corton was Co-Owner of Brickman, a New York City–based, vertically integrated real estate equity and debt investment management firm. She also served as Executive Managing Director and Head of U.S. Real Estate Loan Originations at Nomura Asset Capital Corporation, where she led a team that originated over $12 billion in loans and managed the firm’s national intermediary relationships.

Ms. Corton holds a B.A. in Economics and History from Georgetown University. She serves on the Board of Governors of the CRE Finance Council and chairs the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Private Credit Council.