Street Smart Success

An often overlooked and misunderstood category of Real Estate investing is tax liens. 2% of property taxes annually don’t get paid, which presents an opportunity for investors to invest in tax liens or tax deeds. With tax liens, you can earn interest when the property owner pays off the delinquent taxes up to 18–36% annually, depending on the state. In tax deed sales, you can acquire properties at a heavy discount. Brian Seidenstic...

The largest asset class in the world is single family houses in the U.S., worth a total of $35 trillion. Not only is it the largest asset class, it’s the least risky if you invest with low leverage. One way to participate in the appreciation of this asset class without the potential downside is with Home Equity Agreements. Home Equity Agreements are contracts between investors and homeowners where investors get a percentage of the ...

In order to become an expert in multifamily takes decades. From knowing all aspects of the physical properties and maintenance, to the nuances of property management, and how to buy properties at the right price, requires a lifetime of knowledge. Paul Carassone, The Property Boss, has been acquiring and managing properties in New York for over the past 25 years. Paul started with his father and brother in the Bronx and transitioned...

Smaller industrial buildings are seeing high occupancy levels and strong buyer demand. Even in slow growth, or slightly declining markets, the demand for industrial space is increasing because of limited inventory. Kip Northrup, a small business entrepreneur, started out by acquiring his first property to locate his pond and aquarium business, but has gradually expanded to 14 industrial properties from 5,000-25,000 s/ft.  Kip loves...

Many long-term real estate owners have experienced tremendous appreciation and consequential equity in their properties. This is a great boon, but as a result, they are generating very small returns on their equity, sometimes as little as 2%. For these people, exchanging their properties via 1031 exchanges is a great way to improve cash flow and to no longer have to manage day-to-day operations. Benjamin Carmona, Managing Partner a...

One area of the economy and commercial real estate that’s flourishing is luxury travel. Well located, well managed hotels are unique assets that retain their value irrespective of the macroeconomic environment. In the past few years, this trend has been amplified because of the cost to build and resulting limited new supply. People who have the economic wherewithal will always prioritize upscale experiences and be willing to pay fo...

Despite the common convention, you can buy homes without cash or banks. You can use seller financing, subject-to existing loans, or lease purchases, allowing you to control properties without personal guarantees or large down payments. There are many reasons sellers will sell on these terms, among them because they can command a price they didn’t get on the open market, they don’t want to pay fees, and other reasons. Chris Prefonta...

When it comes to Real Estate investing, you can be a borrower, or you can be a lender. When you’re the lender, you get monthly payments without having to manage the properties, and you can generate the same or higher returns. There’s a secondary market for buying loans from original note holders at a discount. Fred Moskowitz, Fund Manager and Investor, quit his job in 2015 to become a full-time note investor and has turned it into ...

Over the past few decades, there’s been a trend towards renting apartments versus home ownership, especially in the past five years. Home ownership has grown increasingly out of reach, and apartment amenities and living spaces have improved dramatically. Additionally, people are becoming more reluctant to make long-term commitments to any given location and want to avoid the responsibility of owning a home. Mike Kron, COO of Manage...

Because of increased regulations that have resulted in tighter lending standards, banks aren’t making a lot of smaller loans against properties that aren’t stabilized. This has created a sizeable gap in the market for “Micro balance” short-term bridge loans to operators borrowing $200,000 - $1,500,000 with value-add business plans, especially in secondary and tertiary markets. Brock Freeman, Managing Partner and COO of Kirkland Cap...

As word got out about Mobile Home Parks over the past five+ years, many new players emerged in the space. The fundamentals were appealing, but many underestimated the capital expenditures required and the multitude of operational challenges. Mobile Home Parks can be lucrative, but there are a ton of nuances and speed bumps on the way to stabilization. As many of these players have been unable to achieve their business plans, they’r...

Ecommerce has plateaued at 16% of total retail sales. Concurrently, the cost of land, borrowing, and construction has made it prohibitive to build new neighborhood retail centers. As a result, occupancy at existing properties in many markets is in the mid-high 90’s and sometimes even 100%. There’s a huge demand for space from restaurants, yoga and Pilates studios, gyms, massage clinics, plus other medical providers like dentists, c...

It’s easy to oversimplify multifamily operations, and to make assumptions about how a property will perform. Countless nuances and details impact property performance, some are controllable, others aren’t. Many operators get this wrong, and it costs them dearly. There are hundreds of details that impact how financially successful a property will be. Stacey Hampton, Founder of Asset NOI Consulting, helps multifamily owners achieve g...

In some markets, you can buy suburban office property for as low as $10/ft where it costs $200/ft to build. What’s more, you don’t have to find off-market deals, they’re listed publicly on LoopNet, Crexi, and other prominent sites. As workers have moved to the suburbs and left downtown offices, they’ve chosen to work closer to home. Suburban buildings with one to three person offices in particular are seeing strong tenant demand. A...

In order for a larger multifamily dwelling to perform at its peak, it needs the right leasing personnel and the right maintenance team. The leasing agent creates the first impression of the property and influences the prospective tenant decision to rent at the property. This can make or break the deal out of the gate. On the maintenance side, an ornery repairman can alienate existing tenants and cause them to leave. Andrew Cushman,...

Most real estate classes require a lot of hands-on daily management that makes or breaks the success of the investments. Nowhere is this more true than multifamily apartment communities. When you’re dealing with tenants 24/7, there’s always things that need prompt attention.  Ryan Weiss, Principal Broker and Managing Partner at Blue Door Living, has gone from managing 40 units to over 700 units in the past five years and has gotten...

Investing in newer multifamily assets is a long-term conservative investment, but returns are low. There’s too much money chasing these deals, therefore the market is efficient. If you invest in heavy lift C Class properties, however, the returns are significantly higher. There’s far less competition to acquire these assets, and therefor better deals. Amy Rubenstein, CEO of Clear Investment Group, has an incredible track record acq...

3rd party property management can be notoriously difficult and aggravating, but it can be successful if you manage it properly. To make it work, you need rigid processes, actionable metrics, and weekly meetings to hold property managers accountable. Chris Lento, Founder and CEO of EM Capital, has been successful managing properties in other states by finding great property managers that help him execute on his business plans. Chris...

As urban port neighborhoods have been redeveloped over the past few decades into residential and other uses, warehouse developers and tenants have moved to more inland locations. At the same time, ecommerce has created a need for tenants to be closer to their customer bases. These changes, which have created a high demand for inland urban infill spaces, has resulted in great opportunities for investors. Brian Ker, President of Snow...