BLD Financial Podcast

Capital is available. So why is real estate financing getting harder? In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, Josh & Ehren sit down without a guest to break down what they’re actually seeing across the Canadian real estate financing market in 2026. While there’s no shortage of capital available, getting a deal funded is becoming increasingly dependent on the strength of the borrower, the...

 “We’ve finally figured out the formula that works.”  What does it really take to become a successful real estate developer? In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, Josh Findlay and Ehren Laycock sit down with Darren Voros, a real estate investor and developer with more than 20 years of experience, to explore the realities of building missing middle housing in Toronto. Darren shares his evol...

This is the part of the real estate financing process most investors never see... Welcome to Finance Friday , a special series within the BLD Financial Podcast. In these shorter episodes, Josh and Ehren break down timely developments in commercial real estate finance, lending, underwriting, and investing, giving Canadian investors practical insights they can apply in today's market.  In this...

"The best deals in real estate are made. They're not found." What happens after you've bought your first duplex? In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, Josh Findlay and Ehren Laycock sit down with Alex Pal, founder of Pal Capital Group, to explore the evolution from small multifamily investing into capital raising, apartment syndications, property management, and buildin...

Rental housing financing is changing... and CMHC just made another round of updates that multifamily investors and developers need to understand. Welcome to Finance Friday , a special series within the BLD Financial Podcast. In these shorter episodes, Josh and Ehren break down timely developments in commercial real estate finance, lending, underwriting, and investing, giving Canadian investors pra...

"I watched most of my generation get priced out of Toronto and I took it personally." What happens when an urban planner decides the housing system needs to change? In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, Josh Findlay and Ehren Laycock sit down with Blair Scorgie, Managing Principal of Scorgie Planning, instructor at Toronto Metropolitan University, and one of the leading voices be...

What can a private lender who's funded hundreds of real estate deals tell us about the future of housing in Canada?  In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we're joined by Matt Gonsalves, Vice President & Broker at Foremost Financial, one of Ontario's leading private construction lenders. Drawing from more than a decade of experience financing construction, land developme...

“The harder it is to build housing, the less housing gets built… and then we have an affordability crisis.” Canada says it wants more housing… So why does the system make it so difficult to actually build it? In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we sit down with developer, housing advocate, and Toronto Standard partner Chris Spoke to break down the real reasons Canada’s housing affordabil...

"Does the BRRRR strategy still work in Canada… or is it over?” In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by Jack Bernstein of Bernstone Capital to break down what’s actually happening in today’s Canadian real estate market and why many of the strategies that worked over the last cycle are no longer producing the same results and how investors are being forced to adapt in toda...

“We believe the next 5 years will be the best 5 years the mortgage industry has ever seen.” In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by Eddy Cocciollo, President of DLCG Mortgage Group, one of Canada’s largest mortgage brokerage groups, supporting over 9,000 agents Canada wide. This episode breaks down where the Canadian mortgage and real estate market is actually headed, from so...

 “You think you're walking into a project… and then you find out after you've acquired it, you can’t even do it.”  In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by Zachary Jancsar, a mid-market real estate developer, brokerage owner, and investor who has scaled from small residential deals to over 70 multifamily units across Southwestern Ontario.  This episode breaks down th...

“A major mistake right now is that a lot of money gets left on the table when developers don’t think about rebates and incentives early enough.” In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined again by Jayden Haywood, founder of PL Energy, an engineering firm specializing in energy modeling, CMHC MLI Select compliance, and helping developers unlock energy rebates and incentives across C...

"We’re building a house behind a house.... we have a neighbor to the left, neighbor to the right, neighbor to the rear... very niche space in that aspect." In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by Yasser Majd, owner/operator of 555 Construction Management Inc and the Original ADU Home Service Provider for Home Depot Canada. With over 15 years of experience as both a...

“Once you control the land, everything becomes a business decision — not an emotional one.” In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by Dane Buttenaar, a real estate developer who scaled from small multifamily properties into controlling 60 acres of development land in Ontario. Dane walks through what scaling actually looks like — from early triplex and fourplex deals, to missing...

“People were drunk off of the appreciation of the assets over two decades... It's almost like a bad hangover” In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by Vince Gaetano, a veteran mortgage professional with over 35 years of experience who has lived through every major real estate cycle — from working with bailiffs in the early 1990s to advising homeowners and investors in tod...

“People envy where you are now — they don’t envy how you got there.” In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we sit down with Jason Castellan, CEO and Co-Founder of Skyline Group of Companies, one of Canada’s largest private real estate operators with $10.5B+ investment in assets under management. Jason breaks down how Skyline grew from student rentals in the early 1990s into a multi-fund pl...

“It’s not the money, it’s the game — that’s what I actually love about real estate.” In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we sit down with Joe Mysak, the 'fixer' trusted by Canada’s old-school real estate families. With more than 35 years in the business, Joe has built a reputation for quietly solving the deals others cannot. His work lives behind the scenes, helping multi-gener...

 “Most people think housing got more expensive. It didn’t — the dollar got weaker.”  In this episode, we sit down with Nick Karadza, an investor, educator, and co-founder of Rock Star Inner Circle whose work has helped thousands of Canadians navigate the intersection of money and real estate. Nick breaks down how the 2008 financial crisis changed his worldview, why younger investors today are far...

In this episode of The BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by Michal Wach, a real estate investor, tax accountant, and coach who has been investing since 2008. Michal shares how he built a portfolio that includes a Muskoka luxury cottage, navigated multiple market cycles, and transitioned into tax advisory for investors and self-employed Canadians. They unpack common mistakes investors make with t...

“2025 was the year of volatility — but out of the chaos came stability.” In this episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, Josh & Ehren break down what defined the Canadian real estate market in 2025—and what investors need to prepare for heading into 2026. They unpack the interest rate shifts, CMHC policy updates, and bond yield movements that shaped the past year, and share actionable insights f...

“We’ve Killed the Condo Market.” Toronto City Councillor Brad Bradford joins Josh & Ehren to break down how policy, red tape, and costs are choking housing supply — and what it’ll take to make Toronto buildable again. Listen to the full conversation on Toronto’s housing crisis, missing middle development, and the future of affordability.  In episode 16, urban planner–turned–City Councillor Bra...

Nick Hill shares a warning every Canadian real estate investor, broker, and entrepreneur needs to hear about the future of AI, Universal Basic Income (UBI), and the direction of Canadian real estate investing. In the fifteenth episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by Nick Hill, Canadian real estate investor, mortgage agent, and co-host of the Canadian Real Estate Investor Podcast. Fro...

What does it really take to scale from duplexes to ground-up developments?  In the fourteenth episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by Bryan Bouchard, a seasoned investor and developer who has built a career helping Canadians navigate CMHC programs, construction financing, and multifamily development. From comparing CMHC construction loans to conventional financing to managing investo...

What does it really take to navigate rising insurance premiums? In the thirteenth episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by Samuel Castillo, an expert in multi-family and builder’s risk insurance who’s built a career helping investors protect their assets and their bottom line. From understanding loss ratios to navigating CMHC requirements, Samuel reveals the strategies and hard truths...

What does it really take to go from maxxing out your credit cards for a downpayment on a 2-bedroom house to doing a $1M renovation on a 32-unit apartment building? In the twelfth episode of the BLD Financial Podcast, we’re joined by multifamily real estate investor & developer Carlos Afanador. With a track record of scaling from student rentals to midsize multifamily properties without partner...