about us

18 Years of Leadership in Extended-Stay Investments

Who we are

Since 2007, Sandpiper, LLC has sponsored ten successful hospitality-focused investment vehicles, delivering quarterly dividends and long-term capital gains—even during volatile periods like the COVID-19 pandemic. Our extended-stay hotel strategy thrives because it offers our customers compelling value while addressing their specific guest needs: mandatory work-related travel, alternatives to traditional housing, and value-driven choices during challenging economic times. This resilience has been a cornerstone of our continued performance and investor satisfaction.

Our extended-stay portfolio spans 13 states and includes leading brands like WoodSpring Suites and Echo Suites by Wyndham, ESA, Residence Inn. Highlights include the new Echo Suites in Richmond, VA, the WoodSpring Suites Tampa, FL, the freshly renovated Residence Inn in Gainesville, FL, and the recently opened ESA Premier Suites in Reno, NV. Looking ahead, we have ECHO Suites hotels under construction in Virginia, Arizona and Nevada to meet rising demand in these growing markets. Discover how our properties deliver value and align with market needs.

Sandpiper Investment Vehicles

Since 2011, Sandpiper, LLC has sponsored ten successful hospitality-focused investment vehicles, consistently delivering quarterly dividends—even during volatile periods like the COVID-19 pandemic. Our extended-stay hotel strategy thrives because it addresses specific guest needs: mandatory work-related travel, alternatives to traditional housing, and value-driven choices during challenging economic times. This resilience has been a cornerstone of our continued performance and investor satisfaction.

Our extended-stay portfolio spans across 13 states, including leading brands like WoodSpring Suites and Residence Inn. Highlights include WoodSpring Suites Tampa, and the recently opened ESA Premier in Sparks, NV. Looking ahead, we're developing ECHO Suites in Virginia, Nevada and Arizona to meet rising demand. Discover how our properties deliver value and align with market needs.

Investment Thesis

Our focus on the extended-stay hotel market is driven by its unmatched investment potential. This segment stands out for its strong guest value, limited competition, and a positive balance between demand and supply. Proven resilient during economic downturns, extended-stay hotels cater to work-related travelers, long-term guests, and value-conscious customers.

By prioritizing this niche, we deliver consistent cash flow, attractive shareholder returns, and long-term capital appreciation, ensuring sustainable growth and differentiation in the hospitality sector.

MEET OUR TEAM

The key to our success continues to be our talented and deeply experienced team.  Our diverse and seasoned team has decades of experience in all aspects of hotel acquisition, development and management.  Our senior leaders are supported by a very deep pool of hospitality professionals whose experience broadly covers all major brands, franchise families and geographic regions.
Carter Rise
Carter Rise
Founder and Chairman, The Sandpiper Group of Companies
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Carter Rise has served as President, CEO, and Chairman of the Board of Sandpiper since its inception. Mr. Rise is the founder and sole member of Sandpiper, LLC, the Manager’s majority owner and controlling member, and the sole common shareholder and a significant preferred shareholder in each of the Sandpiper funds. Mr. Rise also is the majority owner of Sandpiper Hospitality, a hotel management company. Since 2012, Mr. Rise has served on WoodSpring Suites Franchise Advisory Council, and is currently serving his fourth term as its Chairman.

From 2001 to 2008, Mr. Rise was a Founder and Managing Partner of Scura, Rise & Partners, LLC, an investment banking boutique based in New York, NY. Prior to 2001, Mr. Rise was an investment banker for 13 years with Prudential Securities, Inc. and its predecessor company, Prudential-Bache, Inc., where he served as Managing Director and Group Head of the Financial Services Group.

Mr. Rise has an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a B.S. from the McIntire School of Commerce at the University of Virginia.

John Austin
John Austin
Chief Financial Officer
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John Austin has served as the Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer, and Secretary of Sandpiper since its inception in June 2018 after serving as a consultant of Sandpiper. Mr. Austin is responsible for managing all financial functions for the Sandpiper affiliates.

Prior to Sandpiper, Mr. Austin was the Chief Financial Officer of The Chef’s Warehouse, Inc., a publicly traded foodservice distributor, from 2012 to 2017, after having served on the Board of Directors from 2011 to 2012. From 2009 to 2012, Mr. Austin was a founder and former Chief Financial Officer of the HILB Group, LLC, an insurance broker in Richmond, Virginia. Mr. Austin worked at Performance Food Group Company (“PFG”), a Richmond-based publicly traded foodservice distributor, for over 14 years, serving a portion of his time as their CFO. Mr. Austin was integrally involved in leading the company through the process of going private and the divestiture of a major business segment that created significant shareholder value.

Mr. Austin holds a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Delaware.

Andy Anderson
Andy Anderson
Chief Acquisition Officer
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Andy Anderson joined Sandpiper in June 2018 as Chief Acquisitions Officer, after serving as a consultant to the company. Mr. Anderson focuses on identifying and completing strategic hotel acquisitions for Sandpiper and assists with legal and capital market requirements.

Mr. Anderson most recently served as the Executive Vice President of Corporate Development for WoodSpring Suites Hotels, where he was responsible for the activities of the brand’s large-scale developers nationwide and internal and external acquisitions. Mr. Anderson has more than 30 years of real estate transactional experience derived from his roles as a partner at Sandman and Savrann, a national law firm specializing in the hospitality industry, General Counsel of Mid America Real Estate Companies, Granite Golf, and his years in private practice. He also leverages over 20 years of business development in the hospitality industry and has been a critical part of business development teams for GE Capital Solutions – Hospitality Finance, Citi Hospitality Finance, Troon Golf and WoodSpring Suite Hotels.

Mr. Anderson graduated with honors from the University of Tulsa College of Law and graduated Cum Laude from Northern Illinois University.

Ned Sinnott
Ned Sinnott
Managing Director, Equity & Investor Relations
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Ned Sinnott joined Sandpiper in September 2012 as Managing Director. Mr. Sinnott oversees investor relations and equity investments for the Company. Mr. Sinnott is a key member of our management team and has been responsible for overseeing capital raising efforts that have resulted in $215 million in equity investments for the Company and other Sandpiper entities. Further, he was responsible for identifying and securing the real estate sites for Sandpiper Hospitality IV, LLC and Sandpiper Hospitality V, LLC.

Mr. Sinnott has held several sales and management positions over his 25-year career. Most recently, from 2006 to 2012, he was a Senior Vice President in Institutional Equity Sales with Davenport & Company and Wunderlich Securities, covering major institutional accounts in New York, Connecticut, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

Mr. Sinnott has a B.A. in History from the University of Virginia.

Peter Burke
Peter Burke
Senior Vice President of Construction & Capital Expenditures
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Pete joined Sandpiper in May 2023 and is responsible for all new hotel construction projects along with coordinating all Capital Expenditures and PIP’s /Renovations for existing hotels. Prior to Sandpiper, Pete most recently spent 17 years as the Director of Facilities and Engineering for Gold Key/ PHR Hotels and Resorts based in Virginia Beach, VA and was instrumental in the completion of the Cavalier Resort Complex on the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. Throughout those 17 years, Pete was involved in the construction and renovations to multiple hotels and timeshare properties as well as several mixed-use retail locations, apartments, warehouse, central laundry facility, and IT Data Centers, along with multiple restaurants.

Pete is a US military veteran, having served as a Naval Officer on several Amphibious Ships, a member of Naval Special Warfare and a did a tour of duty in the Pentagon. When not working, Pete spends time with his wife of 30 years, two sons, and his “girl”, a Fox Red Labrador named Rosie. Pete is the former President of the International Facility Management Association in SE Virginia as well as the former Prior for the Knights Templar (SMOTJ) in SE Virginia.‍

Carter rise jr.
Carter rise jr.
Vice President of Development
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Carter Rise Jr. joined Sandpiper in February 2022 as Vice President of Development. Mr. Rise is responsible for identifying and managing the development of new hotel opportunities for the company on a national basis.

Prior to Sandpiper, Mr. Rise served as a Managing Consultant within IBM Global Business Services. During his 5 years at IBM, Mr. Rise focused primarily on providing data analytics, process automation, and asset management work to clients in the Federal Government and Healthcare sectors, including the DOD and DOJ.

Mr. Rise holds a B.A. in Political Economy with a minor in Business Administration from Georgetown University.

Walker rise
Walker rise
Vice President of Corporate Finance
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Nick Anders
Nick Anders
Vice President of Acquisitions
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Nick Anders joined Sandpiper in July 2021 as a Financial Analyst. His responsibilities include providing analytical support for the acquisition, development, and financing activities of the company’s portfolio.

Nick started his career in commercial real estate at the CoStar Group here in Richmond, VA, serving as a market researcher for the CRE information provider. From there, he moved to Atlantic Union Bank where he served on the credit side, helping underwrite prospective loans and providing maintenance and due diligence on existing facilities.

Nick graduated from Washington & Lee University with a B.A. in Economics in 2019.

Ashley sheridan
Ashley sheridan
Executive Administrative Assistant
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Our Current Portfolio

Woods Spring
1 Hotel
Candelwood
1 Hotel
Residence Inn
1 Hotel
Suburban Studios
1 Hotel
Stay America
1 Hotel
Court Yard
1 Hotel
RiseWell Kitchen
1 Hotel
ECHO Suites
1 Hotel

Coming Soon / Under contract

Woods Spring
1 Hotel
Candelwood
1 Hotel
Residence Inn
1 Hotel
Suburban Studios
1 Hotel
Stay America
1 Hotel
Court Yard
1 Hotel
RiseWell Kitchen
1 Hotel
ECHO Suites
1 Hotel