History of Raanan Katz and RK Associates

Raanan Katz first arrived in the United States in his early twenties with a reputation as an excellent outside shooter on the Israeli National Basketball Team. Raanan had been invited to join the Boston Celtics training camp, where he was the final player cut from the Celtics roster, edged out by Hall of Famer, John Havlicek.

Celtics Head Coach Red Auerbach recommended Raanan to play for the U.S. All Stars, the sparring team for the world famous Harlem Globetrotters. After leaving the All Stars, Raanan settled in Boston, Massachusetts and purchased a small apartment building with the money he earned. During the next several years, he amassed over 2,000 apartment units in the Greater Boston area.
Raanan transitioned from residential to commercial holdings in 1980, when he acquired three retail properties in the Greater Boston Area. Then, in 1984, Raanan purchased a block of stores on Miami Beach and implemented an aggressive acquisition program throughout South Florida and New England, which remains in place today.

Currently, the portfolio is comprised of over 6,000,000 square feet of commercial space with roughly equal amounts in New England and South Florida. Raanan continues to apply his conservative real estate principles by operating with a minimal amount of debt (enabling him to sustain periodic declines in the real estate market) and investing in improvements to his properties.

R.K. Associates continually invests in maintenance and beautification of all R.K. properties. Raanan's vision provides for the long term viability of his holdings, due to the constant attention to detail regarding even the smallest maintenance issues. Raanan’s pride in maintaining top quality shopping centers is evidenced by his personal “signature” emblazoned on each building with the initials “R.K.” and his distinct basketball logo.
Raanan's unyielding passion for NBA basketball was finally fulfilled when he became an original partner of the Miami Heat expansion franchise in 1986. Since the team's inaugural season in 1988, he has been a fixture at courtside along with his wife, Phyllis. The Heat have developed into one of the league's most successful and profitable franchises, culminating with the 2006 NBA Championship led by Pat Riley, Dwayne Wade and Shaquille O’Neal. With the addition of Lebron James and Chris Bosh, the Heat are poised to remain one of the premier NBA franchises for many years to come.

More recently, Raanan returned to his basketball roots by purchasing a substantial interest in his former Israeli club team, Maccabi Tel Aviv. Since the time of Raanan’s acquisition in 2003, Maccabi has advanced to the Euroleague championship game four times while capturing the coveted Euroleague Cup championship twice in 2004 and 2005. Raanan also is an active player on the Maccabi Veterans team, with his specialty being the accuracy of his 3-point shot.
Raanan’s tireless commitment to the development of the City of Sunny Isles Beach, Florida was recently recognized by the City renaming 170th Street in Sunny Isles as “Raanan Katz Boulevard” and with the dedication of the Phyllis and Raanan Katz Sports Center. Additionally, Raanan’s development efforts have been recognized by numerous communities in New England and Florida.