From an early age, Hans Buder was imbued with a deep appreciation for small town charm and the beauty of the natural environment, and for the inherent fragility of both. Born and raised on Martha’s Vineyard, where his parents ran a bed and breakfast, Hans’ hometown has many similarities to Carmel, with no traffic lights, no chain stores, historic architecture, and traditions dating back to its founding in 1671. Hans attended the local public schools, graduating as the valedictorian of his high school class, and quarterbacking the football team to a state championship in his senior year.

While in college, Hans gained national recognition for leading a relief effort in which he helped to ferry seven New Orleans residents to safety in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The following year, Hans met his future wife, Meghan, in a history seminar while studying abroad at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. After graduating, Hans returned to New Orleans, where he and Meghan spent two years as teachers in inner-city public schools as members of Teach for America.

Hans went on to make his career at the intersection of real estate and social impact, gaining experience in real estate private equity, affordable housing, and impact investing. After attending graduate school, Hans joined Long Wharf Capital, a leading Boston-based real estate private equity firm (and the former private real estate arm of Fidelity Investments), where he closed on commercial real estate acquisitions with a total capitalization in excess of $350 million. Subsequently, Hans and Meghan moved back to California, and Hans joined the west coast office of McCormack Baron Salazar, a social impact real estate development firm that specializes in the revitalization of distressed urban neighborhoods. But Hans grew disillusioned by the traditional affordable housing model of developing large, exclusively low-income properties in high poverty areas. Inspired to pursue a different approach, Hans went on to found an impact investing fund called the MTO Fund and an affiliated nonprofit called Partners in Opportunity, that aim to break the cycle of poverty for the kinds of kids he used to teach by providing their families with access to housing in mixed-income, predominantly market rate properties, along with comprehensive wraparound support. 

Hans and Meghan have lived in Carmel-by-the-Sea for the past ten years, and are raising their three children here—Scout, Ainsley, and Hudson. Meghan’s family has deep local roots: Meghan and her three siblings all attended Carmel schools, and her mother taught at Carmel High for almost 20 years.

Hans has a long track record of giving back to the community. He is a member of the City Council, he previously served on the Boards of the Carmel Residents Association and the Big Sur Land Trust, and he is a former Chair of the Board of Commissioners of the Monterey County Housing Authority. Hans holds a Master’s in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business (where he graduated in the top 5% of his class as an Arjay Miller Scholar), and a Bachelor of Arts from Duke University (where he graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa).