Home Wealth Specialists

The Barastone team understands the challenges and complexities of owning a home. While our homes may be our single largest asset, we can’t typically access the wealth tied up in them without incurring additional debt or selling. That leaves us with less cash to meet our needs or accomplish our goals.

But Barastone has taken on the challenge of better managing home wealth with a unique set of tools, solutions and strategies especially designed to help homeowners meet their short and long term financial goals. We take the time to understand each homeowner’s situation, offer programs for them to access liquidity without loans, and resources to improve their financial well-being. Our team is lead by founders Mark and Steve who have combined 50 years of experiences in finance, investments, brokerage and corporate management.

The story of Barastone began in 2005 when Mark Rogers and Steve Hotovec became partners as investors and entrepreneurs focused on increasing liquidity, reducing risk and instituting capital controls for investment portfolios. The company that grew out of those discussions developed the technology and strategy for family offices and institutional investors to provide a risk based, risk controlled approach to improving their investment performance.

Mark and Steve sold that company in 2013, and turned their attention to utilizing financial strategies that maximize household wealth, initially by taking aim at the two major challenges of homeownership, wealth concentration and illiquidity. These days, they work directly with homeowners, and financial advisors, to evaluate and customize effective home wealth management solutions and strategies.

Please visit the Testimonials and Case Studies pages to see how Barastone works with clients, and what possibilities exist when you open the door to optimizing your home wealth strategies.

• More than 30 years of experience as an entrepreneur and in financial management and operations, including work as a turnaround specialist, an active portfolio manager and an investor in growing companies.
• Managed the family office and portfolio of assets for NFT Ventures, which he cofounded with Ray Noorda, former chairman of Novell, Inc. For over 12 years he managed the portfolio, which was valued at over $1 billion.
• Served as interim CEO for several companies, and was responsible for turning them into profitable entities.
• Began his career at Ernst & Young in New York where he specialized in M&A transactions and was a member of the financial services firm's audit group.
• Received his B.B.A. from Pace University in New York, and has served as a member of the Board of Directors for several private and public companies.

• More than 20 years of experience in investing, managing and financial product development.
• Began professional financial career with Lehman Brothers in Menlo Park, Calif. actively managing investment portfolios, and specializing in 144 (restricted stock, transactions) for Silicon Valley founders and employees.
• Co-founded and grew one of the SF Bay Area’s first independent boutique technology, research and institutional trading firms.
• Developed an open architecture investment platform allowing institutions and family offices to link multiple managers and strategies to a single investor controlled account.
• Author and speaker on the subjects of risk—based (budget) investments and the importance of liquidity and capital controls within public and private investment portfolios.
• Received his B.S.B.A in finance from San Diego State University.

• More than 25 years of experience in real estate, mortgage lending and title insurance.
• Served as branch manager and head of underwriting and loan processing operations.
• Trained loan officers and office staff personnel.
• Recipient of sales excellence awards.
• Licensed CA Real Estate Broker, Salesperson and Mortgage Originator.
• Received his B.S. in Business from the University of San Francisco.