The Real Estate Espresso Podcast

Every year the Consumer Electronics Show happens in Las Vegas in early January. I used to attend this show every year when I was in the tech industry. Today, I don’t attend in person, but I do follow some of the innovations that are showcased at CES.  This show is not real estate per se. But it provides a glimpse into what is happening in our world from a perspective that is not necessarily being...

On today’s show we are taking a look at something that has been happening in the bond market during the holiday period while much of the western world has been distracted and not paying attention. Of course the mainstream media is fixated on the instability in the Middle East and rightly so. The situation in Israel, Gaza, Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and Iran is carries a very real risk of...

Today's show is a live talk held in Ottawa in mid November. We're talking about how to invest in a high interest rate environment. -------------- Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

Pasquale (Pat) Zingarella is based in Clinton Connecticut where he is a principal at Invest Clearly. The company specializes in providing verified reviews of real estate sponsors from verified investors. To connect and to learn more visit https://goinvestclearly.com/ --------------- Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

On today’s show we are talking about anti-development movements that are becoming increasingly organized in communities across North America. The objection of these groups seems centred around the additional noise, traffic, and congestion that can result from additional people moving into an area.  Some have become so militant that they use all legal means available to object to development applic...

You might have read headlines in the past couple of days that the Federal Reserve is planning to wind down its bank term funding program when it expires on March 11, literally two months away. Michael Barr is the Fed’s vice chairman for bank supervision and he signalled that the program would not be extended.  The purpose of the bank term funding program was to provide emergency liquidity to banks...

On today’s show we are talking about the recently introduced piece of legislation in the US Congress dated December 5. There is a corresponding bill that was introduced in the Senate by Democratic members of both the house and the senate.  The Congressional Bill is called the “End Hedge Fund Control of American Homes Act”.  The second bill is a Senate Bill called the American Neighborhoods Protect...

On today’s show we are talking about how to size your business into the future.  Some people think that profitability in a business is something that happens. Profit is what is left over after you subtract expenses from your income. Yes, that is the math for calculating what your profit will be.  But that doesn’t mean you don’t have control over your revenue or your expenses.  What should you do w...

On today’s show we are talking about property taxes.  We have experienced dramatic increases in costs for owners of multi family apartment properties over the past couple of years. The biggest contributors have been the cost of capital as a result of rising interest rates and the rising cost of insurance.  In some areas of the southern United States, insurance costs are up by 500%-700%. Insurance...

Ken Brown is based in Washington DC where he is a principal at Lion Chase Holdings. On today's show we are looking at the outlook for the coming year. To connect with Ken visit https://lionchase.com --------------- Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

Scott Lewis is based in Golden Colorado where he is a principal with the Spartan Investment Group. Our team at Y Street Capital is also work with the Spartan Group on a couple of projects including the construction of a new storage project in Grand Junction Colorado. On today's show we are talking about project execution and scaling the business. To connect with Scott, visit spartan-investors....

On today’s show we are taking a look at the build to rent trend that’s growing across many parts of the United States. This is where you build an entire community of detached single family homes or in some cases townhomes. In fact there is a continuum of product offerings that are possible to bridge the gap between the density and cost of detached homes versus a multi story apartment complex. The...

On today’s show we are talking about different types of trusts. Now before we begin, let me state categorically that I’m not a lawyer and I’m not an accountant and I’m not here to provide any form of tax advice or legal advice.  The purpose of today’s show is merely to discuss different types of trusts so that you are armed with enough information to conduct additional research of your own, and th...

On today’s show we are talking about how and when to hire an interior designer.  As developers and as building owners we often look to the architect to help us determine the aesthetic of our buildings. But often the skillset is not sufficient to cover the breadth of interior design.  We often hear the term interior decorator and some people use these terms interchangeably. But they are very differ...

Today is another AMA episode. Steve asks “Without a crystal ball but more broadly, what is your opinion of bitcoin as an investment?” ------------ Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

Our book this month is called “Noise: A Flaw in Human Judgement” by Daniel Kahneman, Olivier Sibony, and Cass Sunstein. Daniel Kahneman is an author, psychologist and economist notable for his work on hedonic psychology, psychology of judgment and decision-making. He is also known for his work in behavioral economics, for which he was awarded the 2002 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. He...

Sean Roberts is based in Denver Colorado and is the CEO of Villa Homes. The company is focused on designing and building a wide product line of factory built accessory dwelling units for the California market. They are the largest supplier of volumetric ADUs in the state and target both residential in institutional clients. To connect with Sean and to learn more, visit villahomes.com -------------...

Tim Lyons is managing two careers simultaneously. He's a Lieutenant with the NYC Fire Department and is also a managing partner with City Side Capital, a FINRA registered broker dealer license. On today's show we're talking about managing dual careers and capital allocation in today's environment. To connect with Tim, visit citysidecap.com or check out the Passive Income Brothers P...

It appears as though a lot of people got 2023 wrong. What happened happened, and what didn’t happen, didn’t happen. But the history books are actually based on the narrative that is attached to what happened.  I was thinking hard about what to say about 2023 that would be insightful and meaningful.  We could attach the narrative that In 2023 interest rates went up. Or did they? The yield on the 10...

On today’s show we are examining the ways in which energy efficient systems are not achieving their performance goals due in part to the way traditional systems have been used. As we are getting deeper into the winter heating season this is an important factor when it comes to energy efficiency and saving money in particular. To understand this we need to take a closer look at how energy use is ch...

On today’s show we are looking at Florida’s Live Local Act. Florida is an example of how one state has taken real steps to create the incentives for new affordable housing to be created. This legislation is a series of incentives designed to stimulate the development of workforce housing. Many of Florida’s high priced communities have become impossible for the people who work in those communities...

Today is another AMA episode. Today’s question comes from J who writes: I’m performing due diligence on an investment opportunity for a conversion of an existing property into a multi-unit property. This is essentially a repartitioning of an existing 3000 SF property into multiple units. The total investment is about $1.5M and the deal sponsor is estimating that the property will be valued at $3M...

On today’s show we are looking at real estate in China to try and understand some of the factors that have molded that industry into what it has become today. Private ownership of property in China began in the late 1970’s and accelerated through the 1980’s and 1990’s. At the same time, there was a mass migration from the farms in rural areas to the cities to work in factories.  In North America a...

Ray Heimann is based in Pittsburg, PA where he is a principal with Terra Capital. His firm specializes in redeveloping historic properties in mature neighborhoods and converting them into luxury class multi-family properties with old world charm. This is a unique angle on multi-family investing and redevelopment. To learn more and to connect with Ray, visit usaterra.com ------------- Host: Victor...

Anna Olin and Weina Zhang are based in Las Vegas where they manufacture unitized building structural systems that embed the buildings structural elements in the core which correspondingly simplifies the building facade construction. The labor savings of 40% means significantly lower cost compared with other conventional systems. Connect with Anna and Weina at zlifeco.com or visit their most recent...