The Best Ever CRE Show

Bobby Larsen has spent virtually his entire career in real estate. He earned his broker’s license while studying as an undergraduate, working in the sales part of the residential industry through his graduation. He then moved on to the investment world, working for a large asset manager based out of Newport Beach. 12 years, later, he launched Vanamour Investments, which strategically invests in multifamily communities throughout the United States through syndications and joint ventures with high-net-worth, family office, and institutional investors.  Today, Bobby is the founder and principal of Vanamor Investments. He is a GP of 400 units across seven properties totaling $115M in AUM, as well as an LP of 10,000 units across 34 properties. In this episode, Bobby tells us how he qualifies operators as an LP and how he establishes trust with LPs from a GP perspective, plus his thoughts on why investors lose money in multifamily and why he believes now is a better time to invest than it was six months ago.  Join the newsletter for the expert tips & investing content.   Sign up to be a guest on the show. FREE eBook: The Ultimate Guide to Multifamily Deals & Investing Register for this year's Best Ever Conference in Salt Lake City Stay in touch with us! www.bestevercre.com YouTube Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Click here to know more about our sponsors: Cornell Capital Holdings | PassiveInvesting.com | DLP Capital Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Ash takes on the topic of partnerships, covering partners in business, deals, and joint ventures. He also shares the six most important lessons he’s learned from mistakes he has made over the years.   Join the newsletter for the expert tips & investing content.   Sign up to be a guest on the show. FREE eBook: The Ultimate Guide to Multifamily Deals & Investing Register for this year's Best Ever Conference in Salt Lake City Stay in touch with us! www.bestevercre.com YouTube Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Click here to know more about our sponsors: Cornell Capital Holdings | PassiveInvesting.com | DLP Capital Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Gilman started his career as an attorney in investment banks. This gave him a chance to explore asset classes and business lines, which influenced him to leave the volatility of the stock market for real estate. He began investing his own capital, creating cash flow to replace his salary so he could eventually begin a full-time career in real estate. Today, Michael is the founder of Cross Mountain Capital, a vertically integrated sponsor focused on value-add and opportunistic real estate in New England and the Mountain West. In this episode, Michael shares how his first deal became the best-performing property in his portfolio, how his Wall Street and law background help him with the due diligence process, and his secrets to successfully scaling.    Michael Gilman | Real Estate Background Founder of Cross Mountain Capital, a vertically integrated sponsor focused on value-add and opportunistic real estate in New England and the Mountain West. Portfolio: GP of 600+ units Based in: New York, NY Say hi to him at: crossmountaincapital.com LinkedIn Greatest lesson: The importance of finding the right partner to scale.   Join the newsletter for the expert tips & investing content.   Sign up to be a guest on the show. FREE eBook: The Ultimate Guide to Multifamily Deals & Investing Register for this year's Best Ever Conference in Salt Lake City Stay in touch with us! www.bestevercre.com YouTube Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Click here to know more about our sponsors: Cornell Capital Holdings | PassiveInvesting.com | DLP Capital   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hemal Badiani spent two decades traveling between three continents as he provided management consulting services to several fortune 100 companies. Several years ago, he decided to hang up his traveling boots and join the financial world, which led him to real estate.  Today, Hemal is the CEO and founder of Exponential Equity, which builds and buys large commercial assets in the Carolinas. He is a GP of 744 units and $60M of ongoing construction projects that include self-storage and build-to-rent communities. In this episode, Hemal discusses the strategies that helped him rapidly scale his business over the last 16 months since leaving his W-2 job.  1. Be clear about what you do well — and what you don’t. When Hemal was new to the business and looking to educate himself, he insisted on being authentic about what he did and didn’t know. His specialty is in helping others improve their businesses, backed by two decades of corporate experience. However, he makes it clear that construction isn’t his forte. “People are attracted to that authenticity and the competency that I bring to the table,” he says. 2. Focus on what works in your market. One of the reasons Hemal says he has been able to scale successfully so quickly is that he stays disciplined when it comes to what works in his chosen market. He avoids attaching numbers to his goals — whether he does $100M or $10M, he is happy if he, his partners, and his employees can make a good living.  “We just continue the momentum and expansion of business, and the way we’re building each project is more important to us than having a fancy target,” he says. “That philosophy has allowed us for the most part … to stay in a very disciplined lane in terms of what we’re trying to do.” 3. Manage your emotions. Last year, Hemal and his team walked away from a $45M deal and lost $385K in due diligence money. The sellers said they did due diligence, and because Hemal trusted them, his team didn’t follow their typical process. They later found out that there was a misleading set of financial information once they got into the contract and the deposit had already been made. “The biggest lesson was … if you let your excitement let you diverge from that process, you can get knocked down pretty quickly,” he says.  4. Hire people who genuinely subscribe to your vision. A major fundamental that has helped Hemal to scale is finding the right people who have the right values, integrity, hunger, and drive that he carries. He determines who these people are through a genuine conversation about how they view success and what they truly want out of their careers.  “Once I find the right person, I trust them so much they get uncomfortable sleeping at night,” he says. “I look at them and I’m like, ‘I know you got this.’ And they just do magic and they go above and beyond.” 5. Stay nimble.  Because the market has been so dynamic over the last two years, Hemal and his team assess and alter their strategies each quarter. By refusing to stay married to any one idea for a long period of time, they are able to adapt to market changes as they continue to build out their business both horizontally and vertically.  6. Ask the experts.  When Hemal was just starting out, the most valuable education he received came from established operators. “We asked these owner-operators to basically open up the books on how they manage properties, how they do reporting, and how they do communication,” he says. After reviewing five other operators’ playbooks, he was able to distill down his own version and buy his first property in September 2020. 7. Take action.  “When you’re trying to climb a mountain, if you’re thinking about what shoes you want to wear and what pack you want to bring and what kind of filtered water you want to bring, I’m telling you — folks like myself are going to go barefoot and be halfway there before you decide to take action,” Hemal says. Even if you make mistakes, he believes those experiences only help to build credibility and good judgment. Hemal Badiani | Real Estate Background CEO and founder of Exponential Equity, which builds and buys large commercial assets (mainly multifamily) in the Carolinas. Previous episode: JF2418: Using Diverse Background and Personal Superpowers in Real Estate Portfolio: GP of: 744 units $60M of ongoing construction projects that include self-storage and build-to-rent communities LP of: 2,000 units Based in: Charlotte, NC Say hi to him at: exponential-equity.com Facebook Greatest lesson: Do your best every day, but remember that your best is different on different days. S​​tay in touch with us! Sign-Up for the Best Ever CRE Newsletter: www.bestevercre.com/access www.bestevercre.com YouTube Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Click here to know more about our sponsors: | Cash Flow Portal | DLP Capital |  Cornell Capital Holdings | PassiveInvesting.com | Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Each week for the Best Ever Round Table, the three Best Ever Show hosts — Ash Patel, Slocomb Reed, and Travis Watts — come together for a deep dive into a commercial real estate investing topic. Have you recently dipped your toe into commercial real estate? Maybe you’ve done a deal or two, or maybe you’re considering putting some more CRE in your portfolio. If you’re just getting started, this episode is for you. Ash, Slocomb, and Travis discuss what originally attracted them to commercial real estate and how you can decide if it’s the right path for you.   1. Why Commercial Real Estate? Ash, Slocomb, and Travis each had different circumstances that led them to consider investing in real estate.  Ash was seeking a way to offset taxes. “I found real estate by accident,” he says. Every year, he would ask his CPA how to offset his taxes as a W-2 earner, but never received a useful answer. “I always heard that real estate was a great way to offset taxes,” he continues. “I didn’t understand what that meant, but I thought I should buy some real estate.” Slocomb was looking for a side hustle. Before becoming an apartment owner/operator, he worked as a youth minister. “I was just looking to bridge the gap with a part-time job, be contributing equally to our family as my wife was, and I finally picked up Rich Dad Poor Dad,” he says. Soon after, he embarked on his first house hack and fell in love with real estate. Travis was following his dream of entrepreneurship. “I just didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do for a business,” he says. “So it took many years to go full-time with real estate, and that was about a seven-year journey.” 2. Top Lessons Learned in Their CRE Careers If you want to go far, go together. “If you’re full-time in real estate and your goal is to scale, you have to start looking at partners, joint ventures, and other people to work with,” Ash says. He also advises carefully selecting your partners and clearly communicating your expectations beforehand. You always have the ability to adapt. When Slocomb realized he was pulling most of the weight in a partnership, he decided to do something about it. “I formed a property management company through that experience so that my partnership could pay me management fees for doing all of the work,” he explains. That management company has allowed him to take down additional deals, scale through hiring, and scale through new partnerships. “It was my ability to adapt to changing circumstances that those things happened.” You don’t have to start small. “I would say to anybody listening, whether you are or want to be a GP, an LP, do a JV, individual purchasing — you really can start with multifamily or commercial, or something above that,” Travis says. He didn’t realize this for a long time, and like many CRE investors, now believes he could have gone bigger faster when he started out. S​​tay in touch with us! Sign-Up for the Best Ever CRE Newsletter: www.bestevercre.com/access www.bestevercre.com YouTube Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Click here to know more about our sponsors: | Cash Flow Portal | DLP Capital |  Cornell Capital Holdings | PassiveInvesting.com | Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Marshall Sykes served in the U.S. Navy as a Civil Engineer Corps officer, where he built and maintained military bases. He retired after 25 years as a captain, moving on to a career in the oil and gas business with ExxonMobil. In 2021, after eight years in that role, he decided to launch a full-time career in multifamily real estate.  Today, Marshall is the president and owner of Capitano Investing Group, which focuses on multifamily real estate syndications with 100 or more units. He is a GP of over 2,600 units across 13 properties. In this episode, he shares how he acquired so many units in his first 14 months as a syndicator, why he feels that rising interest rates can be used to his advantage, and his projections for how increasing expenses will impact the multifamily space.    Marshall Sykes | Real Estate Background President and owner of Capitano Investing Group, which focuses on multifamily real estate syndications with 100+ units. Portfolio: GP of 2,600+ units across 13 properties valued at $330M LP in nearly every property that he has raised on Based in: Houston, TX Say hi to him at: capitanoinvestinggroup.com Facebook Instagram LinkedIn Best Ever Book: Halftime by Bob Buford Greatest lesson: Develop your strategy before you start implementing it.   S​​tay in touch with us! Sign-Up for the Best Ever CRE Newsletter: www.bestevercre.com/access www.bestevercre.com YouTube Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Click here to know more about our sponsors: | Cornell Capital Holdings | PassiveInvesting.com | DLP Capital Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ben Kogut got his start in the commercial real estate space as a broker in 2004. He pivoted to syndications in 2017, joining HJH Investments. Today, Ben is a partner and the Director of Investor Relations at HJH, which specializes in triple-net, cash-flowing investment properties including shopping centers, office buildings, industrial, medical, and QSR. In this episode, Ben compares and contrasts triple-net commercial real estate syndications with multifamily syndications. He also discusses the two major components of management and the strategy he and his team use to take down one deal every month. Ben Kogut | Real Estate Background Partner and director of investor relations at HJH Investments, which specializes in NNN cash-flowing investment properties like shopping centers, office buildings, industrial, medical, and QSR. Portfolio: GP of 80 acquisitions, totaling $500M in AUM LP of 10 deals Based in: Austin, TX Say hi to him at: hjhinvestments.com @benkogut on all socials Best Ever Book:  Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl Greatest Lesson: Relationships are the most important part of business! Relationships with our investors, lenders, brokers, vendors, etc. S​​tay in touch with us! Sign-Up for the Best Ever CRE Newsletter: www.bestevercre.com/access www.bestevercre.com YouTube Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Click here to know more about our sponsors: | Cash Flow Portal | Cornell Capital Holdings | PassiveInvesting.com | dip capital Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lisa Landry started her interior design firm specializing in residential and commercial properties more than 20 years ago. Today, she is the CEO of Above & Beyond Multifamily and Landry Designs. She is a multifamily syndicator and asset manager as well as an interior designer specializing in adding value to multifamily properties across the country, particularly in class B and C assets.  When it comes to syndications, Lisa stresses that design is incredibly important. “Our job as designers for multifamily is to do whatever we can to boost the NOI,” she says. “It’s just amazing how quickly the value of the property can increase.” In this episode, Lisa shares her top interior design tips property owners can use to increase their NOI.  Lisa Landry | Real Estate Background CEO of Above & Beyond Multifamily and Landry Designs. She is a multifamily syndicator and asset manager, as well as an interior designer specializing in adding value to multifamily properties across the country, particularly class B and C assets. Portfolio: GP of 108 units Recently had an LP property go full cycle She has won 35 International Design Awards, been published nationally 18 times, and is a 10-time winner of Living Magazine's Best Interior Designer award. Based in: Ft. Worth, TX Say hi to her at: growaboveandbeyond.com landrydesigns.com Facebook Instagram Best Ever Book: Best Ever Apartment Syndication Book by Joe Fairless & Theo Hicks Greatest lesson: Real Estate: I have learned how rewarding it is to transform B & C properties into safe, beautiful places to live and work. Also, to provide multifamily investment opportunities to regular, everyday people who weren't aware of the multifamily space prior to introducing it to them. Interior Design: I have learned that people's moods, happiness, and productivity can be extremely affected by their surroundings and that people like to live in unique spaces. That's what Landry Designs is known for. S​​tay in touch with us! Sign-Up for the Best Ever CRE Newsletter: www.bestevercre.com/access www.bestevercre.com YouTube Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Click here to know more about our sponsors:  dlp capital | Cash Flow Portal | Cornell Capital Holdings | PassiveInvesting.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Travis explores a hypothetical situation many investors have thought about: What if you lost everything and had to start over again? This is a typical, fear-based thought many investors experience in the early stages. Travis shares why he knows he’ll be okay regardless of what the future holds for him, how avoiding the “success cycle” is crucial, and the two things you should always keep in mind as a passive investor. S​​tay in touch with us! Sign-Up for the Best Ever CRE Newsletter: www.bestevercre.com/access www.bestevercre.com YouTube Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Click here to know more about our sponsors: | Cash Flow Portal | Cornell Capital Holdings | PassiveInvesting.com | dip capital Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John McGeown is a self-described old soul in real estate. He grew up in Chicago and joined the U.S. Navy after graduation, where he served from 1999 to 2003. At age 24, he decided to enter the world of real estate.  Today, John is the president of High Fidelity Property Management, a third-party property management company that has 1,000 apartment units under management throughout Chicago’s North Side neighborhoods. In this episode, he shares his top five Best Ever tips for property managers, as well as his experience as a GP in the Chicago MSA. 1. Don’t Underestimate the Time It Will Take John says that many people who self-manage underestimate the time it takes to properly manage a building, which is why they often come to him for help. “I think the mistake is people try to do too much too fast too soon,” he says.  2. Make Sure You Have the Right Resources Others who self-manage their properties tend to struggle because they haven’t yet established reliable connections. “Having a good cast of vendors is one of the hardest things for property owners who are managing themselves,” John says.  3. Your Existing Portfolio Is the Gold John admits that he is often in “go” mode and forgets this one thing: “Your existing portfolio is the gold, and new people are silver,” he says. He sees many third-party property managers flip those priorities around, making the mistake of devaluing their existing client base and overvaluing new business.  4. Know What You Know — And What You Don’t When asked why he hasn’t ventured into short-term rentals, John answers candidly: “I’m a Navy guy, and I’m very cautious,” he says. “I know what I know, and I know what I don’t know.” It took him a considerable amount of time to discover who he is, what he wants to offer, why he is different, and why people should work with him. Now that he has that figured out, he prefers not to deviate from his plan.  “There’s always going to be a shiny object that somebody is shaking in front of you,” he says. “For me, it never really felt like something that I wanted to do. So I didn’t do it.”  5. Three Things to Look for When Evaluating Vendors “Communication, trust, and competency are the things that we look for when we’re evaluating new vendors,” John says. Additionally, he prioritizes getting the best possible price for the best service he can.  John McGeown | Real Estate Background President of High Fidelity Property Management, a third-party property management company that has 1,000 apartment units under management throughout Chicago's North Side neighborhoods. Portfolio: GP of 100 units LP of 36 units Based in: Chicago, IL Say hi to him at: hifipm.com LinkedIn Greatest lesson: Never give up! This business doesn't slow down for me, so I have to work hard to keep up. Sometimes tomorrow is about learning from yesterday. S​​tay in touch with us! Sign-Up for the Best Ever CRE Newsletter: www.bestevercre.com/access www.bestevercre.com YouTube Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Click here to know more about our sponsors: | Cash Flow Portal | Cornell Capital Holdings | PassiveInvesting.com | dip capital Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices