The Real Estate Espresso Podcast

Deborah Smith is based in the NY area where she plays a key role in institutional investing at the Center Cap Group in industrial real estate. In particular, she is a big fan of industrial outdoor storage. We share that in common. On today's show we are talking about the market dynamics. To learn more or to connect with Deborah, visit centercapgroup.com. ------------- Host: Victor Menasce emai...

Dan Haberkost is based in Colorado Springs where he is the founder of Front Range Land. The company specializes in in-fill land improvements all over the South-east. On today's show we are talking about the current market conditions for in-fill land projects and the marketing for land. To learn more or to connect with Dan, reach out to him on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/danhaberkost...

On today’s show, we are taking a look at one of the largest economies in the world and wondering why it seems to be sputtering. We are of course, talking about China. Earlier this year the Chinese economy was in strict lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After weeks of protest, the Chinese government change course and opened up the economy, seemingly overnight. At the same time, the economy inn...

 Our book this month is called "Debt: the last 5000 years.”  I expected this book to be thought-provoking, and it did not disappoint. The author of the book is anthropologist David Graeber and the book was written in the week of the great financial crisis of 2008 and published in 2011.  For those who went through 2008, and for those who remember it, the great financial crisis was the mother o...

On today’s show we are looking at an outlook for inflation of construction prices and how this is going to play out over the next three years.  There is no question that construction prices have come down in the past 6 months and continue to fall. This has been driven by the fall in lumber prices. Labor prices have stabilized and many subcontractors who have been forecasting no capacity for the ne...

On today’s show we are going to put forward a hypothesis. A hypothesis is an untested idea. It’s hypothetical which is why it is called a hypothesis.  Specifically we’re going to look at the balance of revenue and expenses that make for a profitable venture in hospitality.  It’s no secret that hotels suffered greatly during the pandemic. They were forced to close as the stay at home mandates cause...

On today’s show we’re coming to you live from Multi Family Conference in Toronto.  There were a number of great speakers at the conference, but I want to focus on one speaker in particular. Our North American culture can be celebrity obsessed and I don’t buy into that. However, I believe that success leaves clues and that success is rarely accidental.  That speaker was Alex Rodriguez. He is known...

Mark Kenney is a principal at Think MultiFamily in Dallas Texas. He and his partners have amassed a portfolio of more than 14,000 apartments. On today's show we are talking about lessons learned from the current market conditions. This is a fairly sobering episode and Mark is extremely transparent about the stresses he is experiencing. To connect with Mark and to learn more, visit ThinkMultiFa...

Quentin DSouza is based in Toronto Canada where he has grown as sizeable portfolio of multi-family apartments. On today's show Quentin talks about his strategy for stimulating rent growth in a rent controlled market. To connect or to learn more, reach out to Quentin at quentindsouza.com ------------- Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

Today’s question comes from Mathieu who asks: I’m experiencing sellers who are demanding unreasonable terms when it comes to even looking at a property. They are asking me to get the property under contract before even viewing the property and they are demanding due diligence timeframes and closing schedules that are simply unreasonable for us to accept. How would you recommend that we negotiate t...

On today’s show we are looking at short term rentals to see what market conditions are best suited to this product type.  In addition, some critics are zeroing in on a legal gray zone in the world of residential tenancies, short term rentals, hotel stays, and medium term rentals.  The world of short term rentals has been suffering a growth in supply and a fall in occupancy in some major metros. Ph...

On today’s show we are taking a look at the so-called liquidity crunch to understand why it is happening. Is it just rumour? Is the lack of liquidity real?  On today’s show we have concrete proof as to why the credit markets are seizing up.  A few months ago it was simply a thesis that the regional banks were losing deposits to the major banks. These medium sized banks were under pressure ever sin...

On today’s show we are talking about conservation easements.  We tend to think of the income tax code as a mechanism for extracting revenue from the population and from businesses. To be fair, that is true. But there are thousands upon thousands of pages in the tax code.  You can describe how much a business or an individual needs to pay in income tax in a very small number of pages.  The remainde...

Today's question is from Marc in Montreal The information you provide on your show helps me every day sharpen my strategies and tactics.  Thanks for that. I run a strip mall with a laneway behind it that is used for a McDonald’s drive through.   The city, rightly or wrongly, is not permitting McDonald’s to update is signage until “this is resolved”.  This seems quite unreasonable since the laneway...

Brett Swarts has been active in sheltering real estate from capital gains tax for several decades. On today's show we are talking about several strategies that can be used to shelter from tax including the Delaware Statutory Trust and the Deferred Sales Trust. ------------- Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

Max Hansen is based in Utah where he has been practicing as a 1031 Intermediary for more than 40 years. On today's show we are talking about some of the nuances of sheltering capital gains tax in the US tax code. To connect or to learn more, visit accruit.com, now part of Millennium Trust. ------------ Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

This past month, a milestone was passed that went largely un-noticed. China exported more goods in Remnimbi then in US dollars for the first time in modern history. This means that more and more countries are willing to do business with China.  When you consider what it means to be financially responsible, a few things come to mind.  You pay your bills You follow a set of well established rules Yo...

On today’s show we are taking a look at why we are experiencing a banking crisis. There are those in the Federal Reserve and in the media who are critical of recent bank failures. Those banks were irresponsible and didn’t hedge their interest rate risk properly. Silicon Valley Bank in particular received heaps of criticism for not hedging their interest rate risk. But let’s step back for a moment...

On today’s show we are talking about why the math of home affordability is broken. The critics of home affordability put the blame at the feet of developers and home builders for not building affordable homes.  But the price of homes in the resale market is set entirely by market forces. This is a function of the laws of supply and demand, combined with the ability to pay.  The simplest evidence o...

In the world of economics, it’s vital to understand energy. Energy is the economy. The economy and real estate are connected through multiple threads. The ESG movement of environmental sustainability and governance has its heart in the right place. The problem is the so-called greenwashing which is the process of adopting the branding of something green and environmentally friendly, but doing some...

Today's question comes from Ms. Cortes in Atlanta who asks: I’ve been offered an opportunity to invest in a ground up construction of a new warehouse located near I-10. I’ve sent you the entire package of information from the deal sponsor including the webinar and the investor package. I’d love to get your perspective on the offering and whether this is something you would consider investing i...

Matt Pestronk is based in Philadelphia and specializes in redeveloping office assets in the North Eastern states. On today's show we are talking about the subtleties of office conversion projects. You can connect with Matt at postcre.com ----------------- Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

Michael Flight is based in Oak Brook, Illinois and has been investing in shopping centers since the 1980's. On today's show we are talking about the changing nature of retail and how the retail apocalypse is not upon us. Michael has been doing some innovative work in the realm of combining blockchain technology with commercial real estate. To learn more about this get a copy of his blockch...

On today’s show we are talking about the process of getting approvals for even simple projects.  We are talking about a project that recently received full approval to move forward with construction. Even in cases where the zoning is not changing and no new buildings are being built, it is possible that the site plan application results in a review of similar scope as a major planned used developm...

On today’s show we are going to look at an asset class that continues to attract attention from both individual investors and institutional players. That asset class is storage. Storage is seen as a recession resistant asset class. There are clearly many signs that the global economy has entered recession, even if there have not been any official announcements to that effect.  But saying storage a...