Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing

All CPAs are not created equal. And if you’re working with an accountant who doesn’t understand real estate tax strategy, you may be leaving tens of thousands of dollars on the table.Thomas Castelli, CPA, CFP, is Partner at Hall CPA, an entrepreneurial accounting firm that helps real estate investors minimize tax and maximize profit.Out of college, Thomas landed a ‘dream job’ at a traditional accounting firm but soon realized he wasn’t on the path to the lifestyle he wanted. To achieve financial freedom, he built a portfolio of passive investments in apartment buildings before participating in his first deal as an active partner.On this episode of Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing, Thomas joins Garrett and me to discuss why he chose to put his money in multifamily over other investments.Thomas offers a high-level overview of how the taxation of real estate works, explaining who benefits from bonus depreciation and why we can report a loss despite earning substantial cashflow.Listen in for Thomas’ top strategies for deferring capital gains and find out why tax planning is so important for real estate investors!For full episode show notes visit: https://themichaelblank.com/podcasts/session343/

In the spring of 2020, store shelves were empty. And supply chain issues have disrupted businesses of all kinds ever since—including real estate.But what, exactly, is causing these problems in the supply chain? And when will things get back to normal?Jeff Davis is both a supply chain expert and real estate investor, serving as a senior sales executive for a Fortune 100 global logistics firm and Managing Partner at Bridgestone Holdings, where he has built a portfolio of 952 units.On this episode of Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing, Jeff joins Garrett and me to explain what is causing our ongoing supply chain issues and why things haven’t normalized since the pandemic.Jeff discusses how rising interest rates impact the supply chain and shares his take on when construction costs might return to pre-COVID levels.Listen in for Jeff’s insight on underwriting deals in the current economic environment and learn how to navigate supply chain concerns as a multifamily investor.For full episode show notes visit: https://themichaelblank.com/podcasts/session342/

When you’re a new real estate syndicator with a smaller network, you can keep track of investors with a spreadsheet and work through the process of raising money manually.But as you grow your investor database, it becomes more and more tedious to do things this way.The good news is, you can leverage investor management software to automate the process of drafting legal documents and wiring money, saving yourself and your investors a lot of time and trouble.So, how do you choose an investor portal that’s the right fit for you and your syndication business?Perry Zheng is Founder and CEO of Cash Flow Portal, a real estate syndication platform that helps syndicators streamline the process of raising equity, automate operations and attract more investors.Perry began his career as a software engineer, taking on roles at Twitter, Amazon and Lyft. He has also acted as lead sponsor on three apartment syndications, raising $20M to build a portfolio of 850 units.On this episode of Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing, Perry joins Garrett and me to explain how his frustrations with the process of raising capital inspired the creation of Cash Flow Portal.Perry discusses how GPs and LPs alike benefit from using an investor management platform and describes what differentiates Cash Flow Portal from other syndication software on the market.Listen in for Perry’s insight on vetting investor management software and find out if Cash Flow Portal is the right long-term partner for you!For full episode show notes visit: https://themichaelblank.com/podcasts/session340/

Michael Flight used to be a crypto-skeptic. But as he learned more about the blockchain and its potential to make real estate more accessible to a wider audience, he became a crypto-innovator.Today, Michael is CEO of Liberty Real Estate Fund LLC, the world’s first net lease security token fund. With 34 years of investing experience, he is leveraging the blockchain to tokenize ownership of high-quality commercial real estate.On this episode of Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing, Michael joins me to explain how his beliefs around freedom drew him to blockchain technology.Michael describes the connections between real estate and the blockchain, discussing how it makes syndications more accessible and solves the liquidity problem in multifamily investing.Listen in to understand how the SEC governs tokenized real estate deals and learn how to take the first steps in offering a multifamily syndication on the blockchain.For full episode show notes visit: https://themichaelblank.com/podcasts/session341/

No matter what asset class you want to invest in, creativity is key—especially if you don’t have a rich uncle to help you get started!You just have to stop asking yourself, ‘Can I do this?’ And start asking yourself, ‘How can I do this?’Christian Osgood left his sales job with CoStar Group to become a full-time investor at age 29. And in the last 18 months, he leveraged creative financing to build a portfolio of 95 units.Today, he is Cofounder of Multifamily Strategy, a platform that helps others achieve financial freedom with real estate and take back control of their lives.On this episode of Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing, Christian joins Garrett and me to discuss his top creative strategies for buying property, challenging us to think beyond price when we negotiate a deal.Christian walks us through the fundamentals of seller financing, explaining how he introduces himself to property owners and why he focuses on understanding their goals to build a strong relationship.Listen in for Christian’s insight on using Google Maps to ‘drive for dollars’ and learn his formula for finding creative ways to close a real estate deal.For full episode show notes visit: https://themichaelblank.com/podcasts/session338/

When I got started in multifamily, I was much too hands-off with property managers. Yes, I reviewed the numbers, but otherwise, I stayed away and simply let them manage everything.Then I realized that experienced syndicators are much more actively involved with their property management companies, and we started to build more collaborative relationships.So, where is the sweet spot between too hands-off and too involved? What does a healthy relationship between property managers and ownership groups look like?Nathan Ridgeway is Regional Vice President at First Communities, one of the nation’s most successful property management companies.Founded in 1978, FCM has managed over 200K units in 100K communities, growing their market reach to include Washington DC, Dallas, Austin, Houston, Atlanta, Charlotte and Nashville.On this episode of Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing, Nathan joins Garrett and me to discuss the relationship between property management companies and ownership groups.Nathan explains what differentiates FCM from other property management companies, describing his team’s approach to building a deep bench in a given market and managing expectations with ownership groups.Listen in for Nathan's advice on vetting a property manager and learn how to strike the right balance between trusting your management team and verifying their performance.For full episode show notes visit: https://themichaelblank.com/podcasts/session337/

Think you need an Ivy League education or 20 years of experience on Wall Street to set up a fund? Think again! Once you've done a handful of syndications, you can easily launch a fund of your own and simplify the process of raising money for multiple real estate deals. Bridger Pennington is Cofounder and CEO of Fund Launch, an education platform that helps aspiring fund managers launch, build and scale a fund. Fund Launch has served more than 20K students with its hundreds of videos and dozens of downloadable assets. Bridger also serves as Founder of Black Bridge Holdings, where he established multiple funds and facilitated more than 326 transactions across a variety of industries. On this episode of Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing, Bridger joins Garrett and me to discuss what differentiates a real estate syndication from a fund, describing when it's appropriate to start raising capital through a fund and how the process changes. Bridger walks us through the pros and cons of raising money with a fund, explaining how it allows you to scale your business faster and close on a good deal more quickly. Listen in for Bridger's insight on generating excitement around investing in a fund and find out how to launch a fund of your own and raise a huge pool of capital from investors for real estate deals! For full episode show notes visit: http://www.themichaelblank.com/session336/

Investor relations is not about selling a deal. It’s about getting to know individual investors and solving their problems. But what does that look like in practice? How do you connect with potential LPs and educate them around the benefits of investing in multifamily syndications? Travis Watts is Director of Investor Education at Ashcroft Capital. He got his start in real estate in 2009, investing in single family and short-term rentals. Travis became a passive investor with Ashcroft several years ago and was so impressed with their performance that he offered to join the Investor Relations Team in 2019. On this episode of Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing, Travis joins Garrett and me to explain why he transitioned from active investing in single family to passive investing in syndications. Travis describes how he attracts new investors at Ashcroft and walks us through the pros and cons of raising capital through a fund. Listen in for Travis’ best practices for taking care of investors and learn how to serve your LPs and solve their problems to grow your syndication business. For full episode show notes visit: http://www.themichaelblank.com/session335/

Proximity is power. But how do you get in front of successful people when you're struggling yourself? Sterling Griffin was homeless when he made the decision to surround himself with the people he wanted to become. Then he found creative ways to add value so they'd want to be friends. And in just two years, Sterling went from living in his Honda Accord to making $1.68M. Today, Sterling serves as Founder of Life Changer Academy and Sterling Capital, a real estate firm that provides high-net-worth individuals with access to tax-advantaged investments. On this episode of Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing, Sterling joins cohost Garrett Lynch to share his journey to becoming a millionaire, explaining how he borrowed money and sold his car to invest in a mentor and why he's committed to inspiring others to see more for themselves too. Sterling describes his transition from fitness trainer to business coach to real estate investor, discussing his decision to focus on triple net lease investing and the tax advantages of accelerated depreciation. Listen in for Sterling's insight on finding the right people to learn from and learn creative ways to add value to high-profile people who will help you grow to the next level of success! For full episode show notes visit: http://www.themichaelblank.com/session334/

The lack of affordable housing is a big problem in the US. And most developers shy away from these projects because it’s hard to make money. But Alvin ‘Hope’ Johnson is not most developers. He’s found a way to innovate in the affordable housing space and ‘do good while doing good.’ Alvin is President of the Hope Housing Foundation, a nonprofit positioned to be one of the country’s most effective affordable workforce housing organizations. He also serves as CEO of Multifamily Monopoly, an education platform for real estate developers interested in the process of multifamily development and ownership. On this episode of Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing, Alvin joins Garrett and me to discuss his journey from painting houses to $225M multifamily entrepreneur and describe the tenacity it took to find a mentor in the space. Alvin shares his successes in affordable housing so far, explaining how he’s turning neighborhoods around, building sustainable workforce housing developments, and making a profit in the process. Listen in for Alvin’s insight on pursuing a mission-driven business and learn how to leverage innovation to make money building naturally occurring affordable housing. For full episode show notes visit: http://www.themichaelblank.com/session333/