Page 47 - BusinessWest April 27, 2026

Ted Hanna
Commercial and Residential Real Estate Agent:
Age 37
Ted Hanna didn’t start out in the real estate world, but he recalls how
that career took flight — literally and figuratively.
Specifically, he worked in corporate aviation. “I started at
Westfield-Barnes, and then I went out to Hanscom Field in Bedford. That
company had a bunch of bases around the state, but my main post
was a $25 million private jet facility, where I got hired on as a general
manager,” he explained, adding that, from there, he worked as
airport manager at Westover Metropolitan Airport.
A large portion of his work at Westover was
buying up residential property around the airport
through an FAA grant, relocating residents to nicer
properties and paying their moving expenses, and
converting the land to more airport-friendly uses.
During COVID, when people cut back on flying,
Hanna decided to pivot into real estate. Today,
working with Cohn & Company Real Estate, he’s a
five-time Platinum Sales Award recipient, and
as managing partner of Hanna Investment
Group, he has built and manages a growing
portfolio in Shelburne Falls that includes
three mixed-use properties supporting 31
tenants. He also co-owns, with his brother, 5
State CoWorking.
“When we bought the historic McCusker’s
building in 2023,” Hanna said of his foray
into investment in Shelburne Falls, “we
thought, ‘how cool would it be to renovate
this crown jewel, this building where we grew up,
going to market and getting pieces of cheese handed
over the counter by Mike McCusker? To invest in the
community where I live is so special.”
So is his service on the Shelburne Falls Community
Alliance, which promotes downtown revitalization;
his volunteerism in schools with the Shelburne Police
Department’s community outreach team, and his
work co-organizing, with two others, the West County
Community Meals Program — an initiative spearheaded
by his father for a quarter-century. Every Friday evening
at Trinity Church, a volunteer team serves meals to
anyone who shows up.
“It’s called the community meal because it’s for the
community,” Hanna said. “Whether you’re food-insecure
or you don’t feel like cooking that night, or you just want
some community engagement, some social time, and meet
new people, that’s what it’s all about.
“I was afforded a great childhood growing up here and a
lot of great opportunities, and it just feels right to give back to
that community,” he added. “My dad’s a career-long mental
health professional, and he said the key to happiness is
service to others. That’s something that’s always stuck with
me.”
—Joseph Bednar
UMass Downtown Retail + Micro Event Space
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Business W est 2026
A25