For most of my career, I did my best work after 7 pm or early on weekend mornings.  The amount of work wasn’t the problem. It was the environment. I did my best at odd hours, mainly because I could not do my best work in the office. It wasn’t until the pandemic that I understood a better way of working. Then, without the chaos of the office or a wasteful commute, I regained control of my calendar, found the space I needed to think, and arguably delivered better results.   As COO of a remote-first company and a real estate

It’s easy to feel bearish in the current environment. Just read almost any news headline or check your investment accounts. The negativity hits on a short ride around town. For example, I swear our local gas prices rose a dime during my 15-minute round trip to the grocery store this weekend. Of course, gas prices notoriously influence sentiment because they’re so prominent. But, for many, the psychological pain far outweighs the relatively affordable higher cost. We’re so susceptible to avoiding losses that we’re constantly doing the worst things, usually also at the worst time. Fear clouds our judgment. As a

Here we go. Fancy new title. Broader mandate. Yet somehow, I can’t move forward without first sharing some thoughts on multifamily real estate valuations. Mainly, that’s because I don’t get it. Please note that nothing I write should ever be considered investment advice. The current investing environment must be one of the most difficult in decades. The following comments represent my current gut reaction to the current pricing environment for multifamily assets. Over the coming weeks, I plan to update this view by adding rigor (more analysis, references, and charts) and subtracting fluff. At that point, I hope to have

In my journey as a real estate investor, I’ve focused primarily on properties with below-market rents. I’ve assumed that both rising costs of construction and competing housing options would pull rents higher over time. I’ve also counted on some downside protection on purchase price given the significant discount to replacement cost. The basic strategy has been to invest in neglected assets and earn a reasonable return on that investment. If we do our jobs well, our residents will thank us for improving their homes. For this, they’ll often gladly pay an additional $50-$100/month, knowing that they’re still enjoying some of