The Real Estate Espresso Podcast

What is a Repo Rate and why did it jump to over 5% in just one day? The newspaper headlines were stating that the last time this happened the economy was in 2008 and was on the brink of collapse. The implication being that perhaps the economy is much weaker than the government is telling us. In my research, there is a much simpler explanation. Listen to today's show.

Coming to you live from NYC where we have the UN General Assembly in session. Today is the official first day of debate. According to UN rules, the debate is to last 9 days, although in recent years, they’ve managed to wrap things up usually in about 7 days. It’s a crazy time to be in NYC. There is intense security everywhere. Traffic is gridlocked. There are private security firms guarding entire...

Today is another Ask Me Anything episode. Mike asks, I love the podcast. Quick and packed with good info. I have around 75 single family rental houses and recently it seems that people are applying more and more with emotional support animals. Apparently I can't say that I do not allow pets in my rental if they have an emotional support animal. Also, it's my understanding that they don't even have...

Today's episode is an excerpt of a Q&A session with Mayor Jim Watson. We grapple with questions on affordable housing and short term housing. 

This episode is an excerpt of my conversation on The Real Estate Experts Summit where we're discussing my origin story and some of the fundamentals that I believe should underpin every investment strategy. 

If you listen to some of the election rhetoric coming out of the most left leaning candidates, you might be alarmed. And you should be. I don’t have any party affiliation. I don’t even get to vote in the US election. I’m not a US citizen. I’ve read through Bernie Sander’s election platform to understand what the core items that are being proposed. I don’t want someone else’s interpretation or spin...

In this special bonus episode, I'm answering the question - "What does the quarter point cut in interest rates mean for your lending rates?"

Today’s show was inspired by a number of emails I’ve received over the past month. I’ll get to that in a minute. In reality, today’s show is about the myth of real estate. There is a Giant myth and it’s perpetuated by the people who promote the free evening intro to real estate investing workshop and the weekend bootcamp for $199. That myth is of passive income. Become a real estate investor and y...

On today’s show we’re talking about how Assumptions create the mother of all catastrophes. The latest case of this is in California where they just implemented rent cap legislation. It’s no secret that the tenant population in California is swelling. California is trending to the lowest levels of home ownership in the country. If you’ve been listening to the podcast for a while, you will know that...

Today is another AMA episode. On today’s show Richard asks “I have a seller who is in their mid 80’s and has been a little difficult to work with. He has a development site that is zoned R3 and we can build a profitable project on it. We can get 5 units by right, and maybe 6 if we are granted a variance. The land is expensive and therefore that sixth unit really makes the project profitable. I’m w...

Lee from Michigan writes. Hello, I really enjoy your podcast.  Met you briefly at the Real Estate Guys Syndication conference in Sept. 2018. Here's my question: My real estate partners and I have the opportunity to purchase a great 14-acre parcel of vacant land in the best demographic area of our community.  The land borders a freeway on the south, a highly-traveled secondary road to the...

Ali Boone is the CEO of Hipster Investments. She got her start as an aerospace engineer and a pilot and quickly discovered that she was an entrepreneur at heart. Loved this conversation with Ali. 

Dallas based Omar Kahn got his start in Investment Banking in Canada. Today he puts together large projects around the nation. We had a wide ranging conversation on the skills needed to make the transition from corporate life to being an entrepreneur.

Have you ever wondered how the hard core drinker can pound back a six pack of beers and not seem the least bit intoxicated? In the meantime, your tea toddling aunt gets silly after half a glass of wine? It’s because the addict becomes resistant to the drug. On today’s show we are talking about the latest mainline injection of hard core drugs into the economy. I’m not talking about actual drugs of...

On today’s show we’re talking about the difference between a commodity and a home. From an executive summary, or an Excel spreadsheet, multi-family offerings look pretty much the same. They have lovely photos, and the numbers look compelling. I find that newer investors are consumed with making sure they have a profitable project. It captures almost all their attention. But there is a level above...

Mobile home parks have long been a part of the senior living landscape, and they have emerged as one of the most in-demand product types in recent years. They offer investors stability and steady returns, and they provide older adults amenities found at other senior housing communities at more reasonable price points. In fact, senior mobile home communities can be an affordable alternative to the...

On today’s show we’re talking about a niche within senior living, and that is coop housing. It’s a small and slowly growing segment. For some, it has become a competitive option in some markets, and may gain further traction by addressing several pressures facing the industry. Co-ops account for a fraction of senior housing inventory, but there are signs that they are growing in popularity. The nu...

Late last week, The White House released its long-awaited plan to reform the nation’s housing finance system and privatize Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, calling it the "last unfinished business of the financial crisis.” In the report, they call these mortgage insurers who are currently under government conservatorship, government sponsored enterprises or GSE for short.  In the go...

Jim Murray is based in Rhode Island. He's a professional property manager who got his start in real estate through house hacking. Listen to this entertaining conversation about house hacking. Jim can be reached on Instagram at REICashFlowKing. 

On today's show I'm talking with Ottawa investor Rich Danby about some of the painful real-life lessons earned from working with contractors. This is an important show that every investor needs to hear.  

On today’s show we’re continuing our series on digital marketing. A few of my consulting clients have asked about SEO. So on today’s show we’re going to cover some of what’s new in search. It’s no secret that the majority of the business goes to the businesses that appear on the first page of Google’s search results. By some accounts, 50% of the business goes to the first organic search result. By...

We are continuing our deep dive on digital marketing. If you’re in business, you need to make sure your clients know what you have to offer. The most valuable pile of gold bars hidden in the middle of the Sahara desert is worthless if nobody knows about it. As real estate investors, too often the importance of marketing is overlooked or outright ignored. Let’s start with a few definitions. I’m goi...

The year was 1888 and Almon Strowger was the local undertaker. The phone systems of the day were answered by human operators who would make the physical connection for you using a giant patch panel. In his home town of La Porte Indiana, one of the telephone operators was the wife of another undertaker and his competitor. He felt that phone calls requesting to be connected to the undertaker were go...

On today’s show we are talking about one of the factors that can be at play in a tight market. We have just gone through a period of more buyers than sellers, of rapidly rising prices and of multiple offers. That’s not all markets or sub markets. But many major markets including New York, Toronto, San Francisco, Seattle. My home town right now has less than two months of inventory in the market an...

Patrick from Austin Texas writes. Hello Victor. Congrats on all of your success. I have followed you for years now. Do you suggest any good masterminds. I currently own 110 single family homes for rentals. I have them professionally managed so I only spend 15 minutes a month on my real estate and I’m looking to expand. Patrick, thank you for the kind words and that is a great question. Masterminds...