Howard Bissell III is a Partner at Old Harbour Partners (OHP), a commercial real estate investment and advisory platform serving families, RIAs, and high-net-worth individuals. OHP enables clients to invest directly into institutional-quality commercial real estate alongside deeply vetted operating partners. At OHP, Howard helps lead the firm’s investment strategy, sponsor relationships, and advisory services—drawing on nearly three decades of experience across commercial real estate, private capital, and family office leadership.
Howard’s 30-year career has been rooted in multi-generational family office real estate. He spent over 22 years at The Bissell Companies, a legacy family enterprise that helped shape Charlotte’s commercial landscape through the development, ownership, leasing, and management of office, hospitality, and mixed-use assets. Working alongside his father, H.C. “Smoky” Bissell, and other senior leaders, Howard played a key role in executing millions of square feet in real estate transactions, while helping steward the family’s long-term vision, values, and wealth preservation strategy across multiple market cycles.
Through this experience, Howard developed a uniquely holistic perspective on guiding families through direct investment, capital deployment, and intergenerational real estate planning. His ability to navigate both the emotional dynamics of family enterprises and the discipline of institutional investing has made him a trusted advisor—especially for those seeking a seasoned partner to help align strategy, structure, and execution.
Prior to joining Old Harbour, Howard founded Bissell Investment Co., LLC (“BIC, LLC”), an operating company serving his family office while also providing asset advisory services and directing investments in private equity, traditional investments, and commercial real estate. In collaboration with a small network of family offices and operating partners, BIC’s investment strategy has focused on multiple asset classes, including office, industrial, medical, retail, and hospitality. Howard also co-founded Bissell Management Services, Inc., managing extended family-owned assets, including day-to-day operations, acquisitions, dispositions, and portfolio strategy across a variety of privately owned investments.
At Old Harbour, Howard plays a key leadership role in both the investment and advisory arms of the platform—guiding sponsor diligence, structuring direct LP and Co-GP investments, and helping families operate more confidently in the real estate space. Whether through hands-on capital deployment or acting as a fractional “head of real estate,” he helps deliver the firm’s mission: to serve as Head Coach for family office capital—offering access, alignment, and long-term stewardship in a market that increasingly demands institutional rigor and trusted relationships.
Howard is deeply engaged in the OHP “Locker Room” community—a collaborative environment where families and operators come together around execution, trust, and shared values. He brings not only decades of real estate experience but also the personal touch of someone who has spent his career living the family office experience from the inside out.