June 9, 2026
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How can a company make profit with purpose?
In this episode of Conversations with the Best Minds in Real Estate, Taylor Mammen, CEO of RCLCO Fund Advisors, sits down with Sean Burton, Co-Founder of Cityview, a vertically integrated real estate investment manager specializing in developing and acquiring multifamily projects across the risk spectrum.
“From an economic standpoint, our thesis was that there was going to be a generation of people who wanted to not live off the next freeway off ramp with their suburban home and spend an hour and a half commuting each way, which is what you really saw in Los Angeles and California and a lot of major cities. But there was going to be a generation of people who wanted to live closer into their jobs and culture and nightlife and restaurants and be around other folks in that kind of community.
So we designed a product to do what we used to call infill housing. That term’s fallen out of favor now, but really housing in cities and entering suburbs that were maybe not as fancy as a high-rise and not as small, and not as big as some of the big suburban homes—but was a place where this next generation could live.”
– Sean on the thesis behind Cityview’s founding
Sean discusses his career, from his start in politics and corporate law, to his time in entertainment, and his eventual pivot into real estate investing. The conversation ranges from a look into the inner workings of Cityview, to the regulatory challenges developers face in California, how Sean’s civic work and private-sector leadership influence each other, and his advice for industry leaders.
“I think it was the way I was raised. I was raised that we have these kind of God-given talents, that we’re blessed to have, and we should use them for good, right? And it doesn’t mean you can’t work in business, but there should be a purpose to what you do. And obviously I started my career in politics and looked for a career when I left entertainment where I could build a company and invest and do right by my investors and also do good for the communities that we’re in and for our residents.”
– Sean on why he prioritizes civic engagement
About Sean Burton
Co-founder & CEO of Cityview
Sean Burton co-founded Cityview, a vertically integrated real estate investment manager specializing in developing and acquiring multifamily projects across the risk spectrum, in 2003. Cityview has invested approximately $7 billion in more than 150 projects across the country and operated and developed nearly 20,000units spanning the United States. In 2027, Sean will chair the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce. Prior to joining Cityview, Sean was vice president of corporate business development and strategy at Warner Bros. Before that, he was an attorney in the real estate and corporate groups at O’Melveny & Myers, LLP and also served in the White House during the Clinton Administration.
About Taylor Mammen
CEO, RCLCO Fund Advisors (RFA)
Taylor Mammen is Chief Executive Officer of RCLCO Fund Advisors (RFA), which advises institutional investors on all aspects of their complex real estate investment portfolios, from strategy development to underwriting and asset management. Taylor helped pioneer this business beginning in the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis, when several prominent pension funds turned to RFA with the goal to construct better performing and more resilient real estate portfolios, and has grown it to become a highly respected institutional real estate advisor, working with some of the largest and most dynamic institutional investors in the world. In the process, Taylor and RFA have sourced, underwritten, and overseen investments on behalf of clients well in excess of $10 billion. Taylor leads the firm’s institutional investor client relationships and is responsible for the firm’s growth and development, in addition to serving on the boards of clients’ portfolio companies.
