AZ Opportunity Fund review: a small Opportunity Zone developer with limited public detail

What the fund is

AZ Opportunity Fund, LLC, also called AZOFund, is a Qualified Opportunity Fund: a vehicle that lets investors defer and potentially reduce taxes on capital gains by investing them in designated Opportunity Zones. The fund develops its own projects rather than simply investing alongside other developers, focusing on industrial buildings for mid-sized users of warehouse, manufacturing and flex space. Its website also mentions office properties and a focus on Arizona and other Western markets.

The fund says its experience in ground-up construction and redevelopment sets it apart from Opportunity Funds that only raise capital and partner with outside developers, and that it reduces risk by diversifying across markets and property types.

This fund is not related to ORG AZ Opportunity Fund II and III, institutional real estate funds managed by ORG Portfolio Management in Ohio.

Who runs it

The fund’s co-founding principal and public contact is Brady Welsh, a Denver-area commercial real estate professional who has worked in office, industrial and retail sales, leasing, development and management since 2005. He holds a master’s degree in real estate and construction management from the University of Denver and is founder and CEO of Sherpa Commercial Real Estate, a Colorado brokerage. His LinkedIn also lists a 2022 to 2023 role as a real estate manager at Velocity Global, a separate company.

The fund’s SEC filing additionally lists Anthony Muscatello and Michael Tomasz as executives. Neither appears on the fund’s website.

SEC filings

AZ Opportunity Fund LLC filed a Form D with the SEC on April 21, 2021, reporting $4,600,000 sold in an equity offering, with a Scottsdale, Arizona address and the three executives named above. We did not find later filings showing additional capital raised.

Projects

OZ Business Center of Deer Valley, Phoenix

A 73,000-square-foot multi-tenant flex industrial building, divisible into units of about 5,300 square feet, with dock-high and drive-in loading. The fund announced the land purchase in February 2020, and its website lists completion and disposition in 2023. We could not find the sale price or the return to investors.

Colorado Aerospace Business Center, Colorado Springs

In August 2024, the fund announced it had acquired 31.7 acres in Colorado Springs to build an industrial and retail park with potential for over 320,000 square feet, aimed at aerospace and government contracting tenants. The first phase is 84,750 square feet of small-bay warehouse space, with Cushman & Wakefield handling leasing. The site sits within several incentive zones, including an Opportunity Zone and a Foreign Trade Zone. We found no update on construction or leasing progress.

The Opportunity Zone tax benefits

Under the program created by the 2017 tax law, investors who reinvest a capital gain into a Qualified Opportunity Fund within 180 days can defer the tax on that gain. If they hold the investment for at least 10 years, any appreciation on the Opportunity Fund investment itself can become tax-free. The fund must keep at least 90% of its assets in qualifying Opportunity Zone property.

For the original program, deferred gains must be recognized at the end of 2026, so the deferral benefit for new investments under the original rules is now small. Congress changed and extended the program in 2025. Investors should confirm with a tax adviser exactly which rules apply to an investment made today, and whether this fund can accept new capital under them.

The website lists the Deer Valley project’s disposition in 2023, only a few years after purchase. Opportunity Funds can reinvest sale proceeds, but investors should ask how the sale affected their 10-year holding period and tax position.

Claims versus records

Key risks

• Development risk: ground-up projects face construction cost overruns, delays and the risk of slow leasing.
• Concentration: with only two disclosed projects, the outcome of the Colorado Springs development could dominate results.
• Long hold: the full tax benefit requires a 10-year hold, and Opportunity Fund interests are illiquid.
• Tax rules: changes to the program and the 2026 recognition date affect the value of the tax benefits.
• Related-party dealings: the principal’s brokerage represented the fund on a land purchase.
• Limited disclosure: no public information on fees, terms, investor reporting or returns.

What investors say

We found no investor reviews of AZ Opportunity Fund on Invest Clearly, BiggerPockets, Trustpilot, the BBB or Reddit, and no complaints, lawsuits or regulatory actions involving the fund or its principals. Public information is limited to the fund’s website, press releases and data profiles.

Strengths and concerns

Strengths

• A principal with two decades of commercial real estate experience.
• A completed Phoenix industrial project.
• Develops its own projects rather than paying an outside developer.
• A focus on small-bay industrial space, a segment with steady demand.
• No complaints or regulatory actions found.

Concerns

• No published fund terms, fees or investor returns.
• Only two disclosed projects, despite claims of diversification.
• The principal’s brokerage represented the fund on a land purchase.
• An outdated, thin website that does not list all of the fund’s executives.
• Tax benefits that depend on a 10-year hold and changing program rules.

Who it suits

Questions to ask before investing

1. Is the fund currently accepting investments, and under which Opportunity Zone rules?
2. What did the Deer Valley sale achieve, and what did investors receive?
3. How are the Colorado Springs project’s construction, budget and leasing progressing?
4. What are the fund’s fees, and did Sherpa Commercial Real Estate earn a commission on the land purchase?
5. What roles do Anthony Muscatello and Michael Tomasz play?
6. What financial reports and audits do investors receive?

What would change our verdict

• Published results from the Deer Valley project;
• clear fund terms, fees and investor reporting;
• disclosure of related-party fees;
• progress updates on the Colorado Springs development.

What we couldn’t verify

• Total capital raised since 2021.
• Returns from the Deer Valley sale.
• Current status of the Colorado Springs project.
• Fund fees and terms.
• Whether the fund is open to new investors.

Verdict history

October 15, 2026 · Initial review · Caution (5.3)

Sources

• AZ Opportunity Fund homepage
• About AZ Opportunity Fund
• Services (AZ Opportunity Fund)
• Projects (AZ Opportunity Fund)
• AZ Opportunity Fund announces a 320K SF aerospace industrial park (PR Newswire, August 2024)
• AZ Opportunity Fund aerospace industrial park announcement (ARCO/Murray)
• AZ Opportunity Fund LLC filings (FormDs)
• AZ Opportunity Fund firm profile (Preqin)
• AZ Opportunity Fund LLC company profile (Bloomberg)
• Brady Welsh on LinkedIn
• Opportunity zone (Wikipedia)