Passive Income Through Multifamily Real Estate

Latest Episodes:

Episode #177: 112 Unit Case Study with Chris Roberts Feb 22, 2021

Show notes

Today’s episode is a case study that provides a detailed blow-by-blow of a multifamily deal by Founder and CEO of Sterling Rhino Capital LLC, Chris Roberts. Chris has been a full-time entrepreneur and investor since 2007. He owns and operates a sales and marketing company that, when acquired, had annual sales of 7.2 million in 2007. By 2019, Chris and his team grew that business to 24.5 million. Chris holds investments or shares in over 2,100 units across the country and recently closed on 112 unit in Georgia and 104 unit property in Virginia. In this episode, Chris shares the details from the 112 unit deal in Georgia, from how he came across the property to what stood out about it and why he describes it as a diamond in the rough. He addressed the challenges and the lessons he learned along the way, namely the importance of building rapport, putting in the hours, doing the hard work, and following the numbers! Chris also shares some of his favorite tools and what others can learn from his biggest mistake, so make sure to tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

Chris shares a bit more about himself and his business.
This specific 112 unit deal and how Chris stumbled upon it via a different group.
What stood out about the property, and why Chris describes it as a diamond in the rough.
The biggest challenge in closing this deal were the people between Chris and the seller.
Chris explains how he went about closing the deal, given the owner had no digital records.
The importance of establishing relationships with owners and helping them with the process.
Working with the brokers on the deal is important, but this was a unique circumstance.
Negotiating a lower price – Chris explains why he asked for the discount in the first place.
Going about negotiation the right way: Chris says it’s about understanding the other side.
Chris explains what his ultimate business plan for this property and what they are testing now.
While Chris shops everything, he is always on the lookout for off market deals.
Why Chris believes that brokers are a valuable resource for finding deals.
Put in the hours, do the hard work, and follow the data, your deals should pay off.
The real estate investing tool Chris can’t do without is the team he has built.
Chris says his biggest mistake was not taking action and building a vision plan sooner.
To grow his life to the next level, Chris says he needs to work on work-life balance.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Chris Roberts on LinkedIn

Chris Roberts Email

Chris Roberts

Sterling Rhino Capital

Sterling Rhino Capital on Facebook

Sterling Rhino Capital on YouTube

How to Win Friends and Influence People
Bullpen

Episode #176: Managing Renovations with Perry Zhang & Ed Sittler Feb 19, 2021

Show notes

In today’s segment, we focus on building better systems and becoming best-in-class real estate operators. Our guests, Ed Sittler and Perry Zhang, walk us through the ins and outs of their latest deals and share insider tips along the way. We open the show by hearing about Ed and Perry’s professional history and get up to speed with their most recent CapEx development. Ed reveals some of the immediate challenges he and Perry faced, as listeners find out how the two were tasked with making a building habitable again. Perry expands on this and tells us about the different lenders and players which made their success possible. Yet, there is an important sequence to all this. One might have all the right ingredients, but if you don’t follow the recipe, failure will be your result. In light of this, Perry details his entire process, referencing each player and what their role is. Adding to this, Ed shares valuable information about how you can keep your contractors accountable and why jobs are never perfectly executed the first time around. To conclude the show, we hear the pair’s three biggest lessons from CapEx projects and why digging for detail and a big-picture mindset are their complementary asset management superpowers. To find out more, be sure to join us today!

Key Points From This Episode:

Introducing today’s guests, Perry Zhang and Ed Sittler.
Both Ed and Perry give a small breakdown of their professional backgrounds.
Ed tells us about his $1.4 million CapEx deal in Dallas.
What it was like working with different lenders and players.
Hear about the sequencing of their projects.
How they hold their contractors accountable for the work they’re doing.
Lessons they’ve learned from their CapEx projects.
How to approach escrowing and LPs.
What Ed and Perry’s asset management superpowers are.
Important information about our podcast and where we will be moving to.

Tweetables:

“The first key move is to come up with a business plan. Plan the renovation ahead as much as possible.” — Perry Zhang [0:06:54]

“Gates are super important, especially for C-class properties. You can get a lot of vagrants that you don’t want on the property.” — Ed Sittler [0:05:25]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Perry Zhang on Facebook

Ed Sittler on Facebook

Ed Sittler email

City Gate Property Management

Asset Management Mastery

Passive Income Through Multifamily Real Estate Facebook Group

Free Call with Kyle or Lalita

Episode #175: Branding Your Business with Stace Caseria Feb 15, 2021

Show notes

Branding is a key tool in the competitive world of real estate, and there are endless opportunities to build a successful and reputable brand. However, with thousands of similar offerings out there, investors, agents, and business owners need to position themselves in a way that helps them stand out from the crowd. Today’s guest, Stace Caseria, offers strategies that help businesses do just that. Stace is the Founder of Trust Deep Branding Agency and an award-winning writer and branding expert with 20 years of experience. Stace has also been investing in real estate for more than 20 years and is currently both an active and passive investor. Through his branding and marketing expertise, he enables businesses to create long-term loyalty in relationships built on deep trust. In this episode, Stace shares a bit about his real estate, branding, and marketing experience, explains what branding is, its top level benefits, and its two halves: image and substance. He also talks about personal versus professional brands and creating a trustworthy brand, and he shares his favorite real estate investing tool, his biggest mistake, and what he needs to grow his life and business to the next level. Tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

Stace shares a bit about his experience with real estate investing, branding, and marketing.
Stace explains that branding is the process a business goes through to make the jump from commodity to brand.
The four top level benefits of branding: differentiation, credibility, focus, and premium pricing.
When to start branding yourself – the first step is finding the why or mission of the business.
Stace breaks branding down into two halves: image and substance, which work side-by-side.
Personal brand versus professional brand – there is a risk in having one name or face be the only thing everybody knows about your brand.
The four factors of the trust dynamic: credibility, track record, empathy, and alignment of interests.
You don’t need a Nike-sized budget to develop a memorable brand and set yourself apart.
The one real estate investing tool Stace can’t do without is a website called Rentometer.
Stace's biggest real estate investing mistake.
The main takeaway for listeners from Stace’s mistake is don’t get too emotionally attached.
Why Stace believes that he needs more courage in order to grow his life to the next level.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Stace Caseria on Twitter

Stace Caseria on LinkedIn

Stace Caseria

Trust Deep Branding Agency

Trust Deep Branding Agency on LinkedIn

Trust Deep Branding Agency on Twitter

Trust Deep Branding Agency on YouTube

Rentometer

Passive Income through Multifamily Real Estate Facebook Group

APT Capital Group
Bullpen

Episode #174: Preferred Equity with Ellie Perlman Feb 12, 2021

Show notes

Preferred equity is not something you tackle when starting out as a new syndicator. It comes with a large amount of added paperwork, legalities, due diligence, and much more. Today on the show we talk to a leader in this field, Ellie Perlman, founder of Blue Lake Capital. Ellie has over 10 years of experience in real estate investment, law, and property management. She started her career in Israel as a commercial real estate lawyer, leading commercial real estate transactions for Israel’s largest development company. Later, as a property manager for one of Israel's most prominent oil and gas companies, she oversaw properties worth over $100M. Ellie leads Blue Lake Capital, which owns and manages multifamily properties across the U.S., with a focus on Texas, Florida, and Georgia. At Blue Lake, Ellie oversees the acquisitions and asset management of the company's portfolio. She is a Forbes author on real estate investing, the host of the podcast “REady2Scale,” and an avid real estate investing blogger. Ellie holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management and a Bachelor's and Masters in Law from Bar-Ilan University in Israel. Stay tuned as we dive into what pref. equity means, the pros and cons thereof, tips on doing your first pref. equity deal, and more, with Ellie Perlman!

Key Points From This Episode:

Ellie shares more about herself and her background in real estate.
She explains what pref. equity is and when one would use it.
How investors feel being in 3rd position when returns are paid out and how she combats this.
Ellie goes over some of the pros and cons of using pref. equity.
Ellie’s advice for doing your first deal with a pref. equity group.
How to deal with net worth and liquidity when working with pref. equity groups.
Whether or not Ellie would use pref. equity groups again in the future and why.
Ellie’s asset manager superpower: Attention to detail.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Ellie Perlman on LinkedIn

Ellie Perlman on Twitter

Ellie Perlman

Blue Lake Capital

Passive Income Through Multifamily Real Estate Facebook Group
RedIQ

Episode #173: The Importance of Website and SEO Performance with Kris Reid Feb 08, 2021

Show notes

Kris Reid, ‘The Coolest Guy in SEO,’ joins us today to share some of his valuable knowledge around digital marketing. The digital space is becoming more relevant by the day and the traffic on one’s website can be the determining factor between failure and success. There is much more to a successful website than just making it look good; if you want people to visit your page, and more importantly, make use of your services or buy your products, there are certain tools that you can use to ensure this. Kris talks us through some of these tools, his journey into the SEO space, the importance of having a growth plan for your business, how backlinks work and why you need them, and more! We learned a lot from this interview and for anyone looking to start a real estate company, or any company for that matter - don’t miss this episode!

Key Points From This Episode:

Kris’s journey from big banks to online games to SEO.
Why a good digital marketing strategy is key to a successful business.
The importance of having a plan and knowing ‘what success looks like to you.’
The difference between SEM and SEO (and why SEO is the way to go).
Keyword research should always be your starting point.
Tips for getting traffic boosts on your website.
How backlinks work and why they are the secret behind Google.
Ways to utilize SEO to build trust in your potential customer base and Google.
Kris’s suggestions for what to do when starting a business.

Tweetables:

“A website is like a business card, a business card doesn’t work if it’s sitting in your desk drawer, you got to get out there and hand it out. The same with your website.” — @coolestGuyInSEO [0:04:14]

“You need to be able to grow with consistency and that’s what a really good digital marketing strategy can do for you.” — @coolestGuyInSEO [0:05:45]

“An expert can make something look easy, doesn’t mean it is easy.” — @coolestGuyInSEO [0:21:14]

“You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. You can just see who’s doing good and follow their lead.” — @coolestGuyInSEO [0:22:29]

“Having more customers coming in than going out lets you fight another day.” — @coolestGuyInSEO [0:22:49]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Passive Income Through Multifamily Real Estate Facebook Group

Free Call with Kyle or Lalita

Ardor SEO

Kris Reid on Twitter

Kris Reid on LinkedIn

The Vision Driven Leader - Michael Hyatt

Entrepreneurs on Fire - John Lee Dumas

Larry Page

Warren Buffet

Clockwork - Mike Michalowicz

Ahrefs

Bullpen

Episode #172: Hardening Your Asset with Justin Fraser Feb 05, 2021

Show notes

Joining us for this Asset Management Friday segment is Justin Fraser, host of the True Multifamily Podcast and syndicator at 88 Real Estate Capital. In our conversation, we get to hear about Justin's role at the firm and the most recent deal they completed before we dive into our focus of hardening assets and what this means for syndicators. Justin explains what an important part of the real estate game this is, strengthening parts of assets and investments that might cause problems down the road. He explains the simple steps that he and his team take early on with a property and how these easy measures can save a lot of time, money, and trouble for you! Justin also talks about the data he analyzes in this regard, emphasizing crime stats, and the monitoring of repair and maintenance costs. One of the big takeaways that Justin gives us is about how to spend money and his philosophy is one of never cutting corners and getting things done early for everyone's benefit. He also shares his thoughts on what it means to build and maintain healthy relationships with everyone involved with a property, and the amazing results this can facilitate. For all this and more, be sure to listen in with us!

Key Points From This Episode:

Justin's work in multi-family syndication and asset management and a look at his current portfolio.
Unpacking the idea of hardening your asset and why it is so important.
Some examples of methods for hardening assets.
The dangers that face syndicators who do not harden their assets!
The data points that go into this process; crime statistics, and repairs and maintenance costs.
Mindset around spending money wisely and doing things properly the first time.
Justin's asset management superpower: managing a diverse set of relationships!
How to find and connect with Justin online, and where to listen to his podcast.

Tweetables:

“My job day to day on the team is asset management. I focus on writing the business plan and running and executing it so that we can deliver results to our investors and make the property a great place to live for our tenants and residents.” — Justin Fraser [0:01:20]

“We want them to be great, qualified tenants before they even get in the door which is the best way to prevent them from messing up your units and to keep your assets strong.” — Justin Fraser [0:02:07]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Justin Fraser on LinkedIn

True Multifamily Podcast

88 Real Estate Capital

Passive Income Through Multifamily Real Estate Facebook Group
RedIQ

Episode #171: Long Term Wealth with Multifamily with Arn Cenedella Feb 01, 2021

Show notes

Investing in multifamily is a great way to diversify your portfolio and profit as investors seek to grow long-term wealth. Today’s guest is Arn Cenedella, founder of Spark Investment Group, and a real estate expert with more than four decades of experience, including 35 years as a realtor navigating the unique real estate landscape in Silicon Valley. During that time, Arn invested in real estate ranging from single family homes and fix-and-flips to land subdivisions, condominium conversions, and commercial multifamily properties. Through these experiences, he developed a passion for helping others achieve their own financial freedom by investing in multifamily real estate syndications. Through Spark Investment Group, Arn is putting his decades of real estate expertise to work for his clients, helping them reach their goals and attain the lives they’ve always wanted to live. In this episode, Arn shares some of the lessons he has learned in his 42-year real estate career, how he has diversified his investments, and how he educates himself in different markets and asset classes, and why he is shifting his portfolio from single-family to multifamily. We also hear about tools he can’t do without, his biggest mistake, and what he hopes for the future. Tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

Arn provides listeners with a brief introduction of himself and his real estate practice.
The biggest lesson Arn has learned in 42 years in real estate – it’s a long-term proposition.
How Arn’s wide, firsthand experience helps him with passive investments or evaluating deals.
The education needed to get started in real estate – Arn believes that there is no substitute for practical, hands-on experience.
Arn’s criteria: aim for long drive base hits, capital reservation over growth, be less aggressive.
How economic cycles influence Arn’s approach and how he suggests others adjust their expectations for the coming downturn.
How Arn has diversified his investments, both in property class type and geographically.
The research Arn does in each of the markets he invests in to educate himself on the area.
Arn explains the thought process behind shifting his portfolio from single family to multifamily.
An asset class that Arn might be interested in shifting to is self-storage, not mobile homes.
The real estate investing tools that Arn couldn’t do without are his iPhone and his iPad.
Arn’s biggest mistake in real estate investing was not checking zoning on a renovation.
Arn is excited about moving into multifamily, helping others, and passing the business down to his two sons.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Arn Cenedella on LinkedIn

Arn Cenedella Email

Arn Cenedella on Facebook

Spark Investment Group

Bullpen

Episode #170: The Capital Side of Asset Management with Veena Jetti Jan 29, 2021

Show notes

Welcome to another Asset Management Friday’s Edition of the Passive Income Through MultiFamily Real Estate Podcast. Today’s guest on the show is Veena Jetti, who is the founding partner of Vive Funds, a unique commercial real estate firm that specializes in curating conservative opportunities for investors. Veena is also a multifamily owner-operator, real estate investor, and entrepreneur with over 10 years of real estate experience. She brings a dynamic perspective to targeting, acquiring, managing, and operating assets using best practices combined with cutting edge technologies, and her professional expertise includes driving corporate strategy and business development opportunities. In this episode, Veena addresses the capital side of asset management, talking about investor experience and engagement, and she asserts the importance of being transparent and over-communicating with investors, especially during times of uncertainty. Tune in to find out more!

Key Points From This Episode:

Veena introduces herself, and shares a bit about her background and her business.
What the capital side of asset management means to Veena – it’s about investor experience.
How Veena keeps investors engaged, both on a month-to-month basis and annually.
One of the questions Veena consistently receives from investors revolves around K1s.
Overseeing every aspect of asset management, from capital raise to investor relations.
Veena’s advice as an experienced operator is to over-communicate with investors.
Why being transparent is Veena’s asset management super power.

Tweetables:

“What about the capital management side of the asset management? For me, what that is is the investor experience beyond agreeing, and committing, and funding a deal, what happens through the five-year hold period? How does that communication occur, how is that investor experience? Is it good enough that they’re now wanting to invest with you on your next project that might be running concurrently with an open project?” — @veenajetti [0:02:24]

“We invest alongside every single one of our investors. It is our money just as much as theirs, and being able to communicate that, and share what is happening and how you are handling the situation in a way that is appropriate and is reassuring for your investors, I think that’s the most important thing.” — @veenajetti [0:09:43]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Veena Jetti on Twitter

Veena Jetti on LinkedIn

Veena Jetti on Instagram

Veena Jetti on Facebook

Vive Funds
RedIQ

Episode #169: Transitioning From Single Family to Multifamily with J Scott Jan 25, 2021

Show notes

Former tech entrepreneur from Silicon Valley, J Scott, and his wife, moved to Atlanta in 2008 to start a new chapter. In the past ten years, they have bought, built, rehabbed, sold, lent-on, and held over $60 million in property all around the country. But, in 2016, they transitioned into multifamily and they have never looked back. J is today’s guest on the show. He is an entrepreneur, investor, advisor, and the co-host of the BiggerPockets Business Podcast. He is also the author of four books on real estate investing, which have sold over 200,000 copies and have helped investors from around the world get started in real estate. In this episode, J talks about his transition from single-family to multifamily and shares some lessons from his first multifamily syndication, including the importance of building a relationship with your team and understanding that multifamily is not simply single family at a larger scale. It’s a completely different beast! To J, being the team lead is just a word, and he is much more focused on sharing the risk and reward with his team. During our conversation, J also gives us a glimpse into his predictions for the next three to six years. Finally, J has some advice for those getting into multifamily at this time, with a special focus on COVID and employment diversity. Tune in today to hear more!

Key Points From This Episode:

J tells listeners a little bit more about who he is and what he does.
Why J decided to transition into multifamily after he finally had the opportunity to do so.
The reason why J has no regrets about starting out in single-family first.
J’s first multifamily syndication – what the deal was, who he went into it with, and why.
The importance of getting over the hump and doing the first deal, but not rushing into it.
Joining a team versus going it alone – J felt he should be working with experienced partners to lend the deal experience and credibility.
Being part of a team is like a marriage – J was cautious about finding and vetting his team.
J learned from his first syndication that multifamily isn’t just single family on a larger scale.
Why being the team lead is just a word – what’s important is sharing risk, equity, and reward.
What J foresees for the next 5 to 10 years, like lower interest rates and increasing cap rates.
J’s advice for those getting started in the multifamily space now: be cognizant of location.
The three focus areas in multifamily – population growth, employment growth, and wage growth, and J adds a fourth: employment diversity.
The tool J can’t do without? As a numbers guy with a passion for spreadsheets, it’s Excel.
J’s biggest mistake in real estate investing was being too transactional when he started.
To grow his life to the next level, J needs to figure out his work-life balance.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

J Scott on LinkedIn

J Scott Email

J Scott on Instagram

J Scott on Facebook

J Scott on BiggerPockets

J Scott

BiggerPockets Business Podcast
Bullpen

Episode #168: Construction Management with Ashley Wilson Jan 22, 2021

Show notes

Knowledgeable and passionate about all things real estate and with a keen eye for detail, Ashley Wilson, Founder of Bad Ash Investments, joins us on the show today to discuss topics ranging from construction management to COVID-19 to capital reserves. Before Ashley became a real estate investor over 10 years ago, she was involved in vaccine development. Her knowledge of pandemics meant that in the very early days of COVID-19, she had the foresight to take actions which helped keep her business afloat. Ashley stresses the importance of always having cash reserves and being attuned to what is going on in the real estate market because of the fast-changing nature of the sector. She also shares with us what's most important when it comes to managing projects, how COVID-19 has changed housing preferences, the processes that she makes use of to make sure her projects are going according to plan, along with experiences she has had when the opposite has happened. This episode is packed full of important insights, so be sure not to miss it!

Key Points From This Episode:

Ashley’s three top tips to remember when getting involved in a rehab project.
Why it’s important to have someone on your team who has construction knowledge.
How the COVID-19 pandemic has changed people’s housing preferences.
The importance of being attuned to the market because things are changing all the time.
Trust and leveraging technology are must-haves when it comes to construction projects.
Processes Ashley utilizes to hold the companies that she works with accountable.
The two main components of construction: Labor and materials.
How Ashley’s vaccine development knowledge helped her prepare her real-estate business for the COVID-19 pandemic.
Why companies should always have capital reserves.
Ashley shares some personal experiences of what can go wrong in her line of work.

Tweetables:

“Time is money in multifamily and taking an interior renovation and going a week versus a two-week renovation period can be a dramatic change to your cash flow.” — Ashley Wilson [0:02:31]

“Your boots on the ground are going to be your make or break in terms of your success on being able to execute a project.” — Ashley Wilson [0:03:04]

“No matter what reason it is, whether it’s COVID or anything else in the future, maybe a natural disaster, etcetera, you should always have reserves.” — Ashley Wilson [0:10:04]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Bad Ash Investor
redIQ

Ashley Wilson on Instagram

GlaxoSmithKline

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