HHHunt, a prominent family-owned homebuilding and real estate development company operating across the American Southeast, has announced a major, multi-year leadership transition. Ann Kelly, the firm’s longtime chief financial officer and a company veteran of more than two decades, is set to step into the role of chief executive officer. The appointment will become effective on July 1, 2027, marking a significant milestone for the 60-year-old regional enterprise as it prepares for its next chapter of growth and strategic evolution.

Under the planned succession outlined by the company, Kelly will succeed Buck Hunt, who has served as chief executive officer since 2013. While stepping down from his day-to-day executive management duties, Hunt will remain deeply connected to the firm as chairman of the board. In his new capacity, Hunt will shift his professional focus toward long-term corporate strategy while spearheading an exciting new hospitality venture for the company. This structural realignment ensures that the organization maintains its foundational family oversight while opening up entirely new channels for business expansion.

The leadership transition also involves strategic promotions within HHHunt’s executive ranks to ensure continuity across its core operational and financial divisions. Steve Brant, who currently serves as the senior vice president of finance and treasury, is slated to succeed Kelly as chief financial officer, effective July 1, 2027. Meanwhile, Steve Fritz will continue to steer the day-to-day business operations in his current capacity as chief operations officer, a position he has held since 2019. Together, Kelly, Brant, and Fritz will form the core of HHHunt’s senior executive leadership team, guiding the firm through a complex and evolving macroeconomic climate.

The carefully orchestrated leadership handoff places a seasoned corporate finance professional at the helm of the organization. As private regional homebuilders face mounting pressures to scale operations, manage increasingly volatile capital requirements, and navigate turbulent housing market cycles, HHHunt’s elevation of Kelly highlights a deliberate strategy centered on financial discipline, operational familiarity, and long-term stability.

Leadership Backgrounds

The incoming chief executive officer brings a deep institutional understanding of the homebuilding and real estate sectors to her future role. Ann Kelly first joined HHHunt in 2001, spending her initial decade with the organization as the controller for HHHunt Homes. This foundational role provided her with comprehensive, hands-on exposure to homebuilding operations, supply chains, and construction costs from the ground up.

Over the course of her tenure, Kelly steadily ascended through the corporate ranks. She subsequently served as the vice president of finance and accounting and later as the senior vice president of finance and risk management. In 2019, she formally stepped into the role of chief financial officer. In that capacity, she has maintained broad oversight of corporate finance and accounting across the company’s multifaceted operational pillars, which include HHHunt Homes, HHHunt Communities, and HHHunt Abberly Apartments.

Beyond her corporate responsibilities at HHHunt, Kelly remains deeply engaged in civic and educational endeavors within her community. She currently lends her expertise by serving on the boards of directors for the Goochland Education Foundation, GoochlandCares, and the prestigious Blackwood School of Real Estate at Virginia Tech.

Steve Brant, who is slated to assume the chief financial officer position in July 2027, boasts a similarly robust tenure within the organization. Brant joined HHHunt in 2006, initially serving as the controller for HHHunt Communities. By 2013, his responsibilities expanded when he was promoted to vice president of finance and accounting, and he has successfully directed the company’s treasury and financial operations as senior vice president since 2019. An alumnus of Virginia Tech, where he earned an undergraduate degree in economics, Brant also holds a Master of Business Administration from Averett University.

Rounding out the executive team is Steve Fritz, who has served as chief operations officer since 2019. Fritz joined HHHunt in 2015 as the general manager of HHHunt Homes of Raleigh, quickly proving his operational acumen and earning a promotion to president of HHHunt Homes in 2017. Before his tenure at HHHunt, Fritz built an extensive career holding divisional and regional presidential leadership roles with several of the largest publicly traded homebuilding corporations in the United States. He holds a degree in civil engineering from the University of Maryland, bringing a rigorous technical perspective to the company’s construction and development divisions.

Continuity at a Family-Owned Builder

Buck Hunt represents a vital link to the foundational history of the enterprise. As the son of company founder Harry H. Hunt III, Buck grew up immersed in the family business. Over the past 13 years at the helm, he has successfully guided HHHunt through complex corporate divestitures, strategic acquisitions, and the modern refinement of the company’s vision, mission, brand promises, and core values.

By retaining Hunt as chairman of the board and providing him with a dedicated mandate to launch a new hospitality arm, HHHunt aims to preserve its treasured family-oriented governance structure while simultaneously cultivating a brand-new avenue for commercial diversification and growth.

Reflecting on the planned transition, Hunt expressed profound confidence in the executive team that will carry the torch forward. He noted that he and Kelly share a unified vision for the future trajectory of HHHunt, highlighting her relentless drive to push the company forward, question the status quo, and maintain accountability for the high standards the enterprise has consistently upheld over the decades. Hunt emphasized that the incoming leadership team enjoys his full support as they prepare to steer the company into its next era.

For her part, Kelly expressed deep gratitude and humility regarding her upcoming appointment. She noted that she is honored to be entrusted with the chief executive officer role and looks forward to building upon HHHunt’s six decades of values-driven success, operational excellence, and industry innovation.

Why It Matters for Homebuilders

Operating extensively across Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, HHHunt develops, builds, owns, and manages a vast portfolio of residential communities and homes. The announcement of such a well-structured, multi-year succession plan carries broader implications for the wider residential construction and master-planned community development sectors across the American Southeast.

For industry peers, trade partners, institutional lenders, and land sellers alike, the forward-looking 2027 effective date provides an exceptionally long runway and transparent visibility. It offers absolute clarity regarding who will hold the reins of corporate purchasing, capital allocation, and strategic operational decision-making across HHHunt’s homebuilding and community development platforms for years to come.